How to change the Primary Domain at BlueHost

QUESTION: How can I change the Main Domain Name or How can I Rename an Addon Domain to Main Domain?

ANSWER: Changing the primary domain of your account is something that BlueHost is happy to help with. Before contacting BlueHost to make the change, make sure to review the following information regarding renaming an account:

1. If you have Domain Privacy please call the Billing department to either End Privacy for that Domain or Pay for the Prorated Amount for the remainder of the Year.
2. The rename Process normally runs from 25 minutes to 5 hours, depending on the size of your account.
3. The domain you are changing to must be Associated with your account first.
4. The current main domain can never become your main domain again.
5. The current account's username, password, files, databases and e-mails will remain unchanged.
6. The new primary domain will point to the public_html directory itself, the same way your main domain does currently.
7. The website files may need to be moved into and out of the public_html directory to correspond with the new primary domain and assignment of the old primary domain to a subfolder. NOTE: If you already have your current main domain redirected to a subdirectory, it will not be necessary to move the files.
8. Custom DNS entries will be overwritten.
9. Although renaming an account should not move or delete any files on your account, we do recommend creating/downloading a backup of all files and databases prior to requesting the rename. Please see Backup Utility Tools in cPanel  for information about creating and downloading backups.
10. The new primary domain must be registered to you. You may choose to use the free domain offered with your hosting account OR create a new domain with your current registrar.

When you are ready to have your account renamed, simply contact BlueHost Sales via Phone or Live Chat  and request the rename. Be sure to include the following information to expedite your request:

• Primary Domain:
• New Primary Domain:
• Last 4 digits of the credit card on file or last four characters of cPanel password. NOTE: If you paid for your hosting using PayPal, you will need your PayPal Invoice receipt #.
• I already own the new primary domain:
• I have read and understand the account rename information including: my username will not change, I cannot rename the account back to the same domain, I have backed up my files/databases in case there is any data lost during the rename process:

My Experience with the Renaming Process

Once I had backed up all of the files in my hosting account particularly the databases for my WordPress installs, I used LiveChat to request  the renaming process start. Once I had answered all of the questions, the process was started and took a little less than half and hour.

• The old Primary Domain becomes a parked domain. You will need to assign it as an addon domain pointing to the correct subdirectory.
• If you had a .htaccess file redirecting your primary domain to a subfolder, you will need to edit or delete it or the new primary domain will redirect to the old primary domain folder.
• All email addys relating to the old Primary domain remain intact and worked perfectly.
• Password Protected directories that were part of the old primary domain continued to work.
• All in all the process was a painless experience.