In this post we detail the steps involved to change a users profile photo in Microsoft 365, other options and some other useful information.
Adding or changing a profile photo for a user is a straight-forward admin task – just get the photo and upload it…or so I thought. Although the steps to change a photo are quick and easy, there are a couple of things worth knowing along the way.
How to update a user profile photo – admin
- Navigate to the Microsoft 365 admin center.
- Go to Users > Active users.
- Click on the user you want to edit.
- In the flyout that appears, you’ll see the profile picture (or placeholder). Click Change photo.
- Upload your file and hit Save.
NOTE: You must be a Global Administrator to complete these steps.
How to update your own profile photo – user
- Select your current profile photo from the Microsoft 365 ribbon (this could be an actual photo or grey initials)
- Select either view account or my Microsoft 365 profile – either option works
- For the my account option:
- Press the pencil icon next to your profile photo > change > select a photo > upload > save
- For the M365 profile option:
- Press update your profile next to your existing profile photo > press the pencil icon > upload > select a photo > add to profile
Things to note
- Global admin role is the only role you can use to change a profile photo on behalf of a user – I know because I tried user admin and it didn’t work!
- It’s best to keep the photo size under 4MB and less than 448x448px in size to display correctly. Although the documentation states it supports large files, it can cause issues displaying across M365 apps.
- It can take a while for the updated profile photo to proliferate across M365 apps, especially Teams. My rule of thumb is up to 24 hours, but sometimes specific users need their Teams cache cleared to see the change.
- You can manage user profile photos using the MS Graph, but I haven’t covered that in this post as it is a pro-code option.
Leave a Reply