Frequently Asked Questions

NameRight is a guidance and document preparation tool for legal name and gender marker changes — built from real court records across all 50 states. We organize county-level filing requirements, privacy-first guidance, form support, and step-by-step progress tracking into one place so you always know exactly what to do next. NameRight is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.

NameRight is built for anyone in the US navigating a legal name change: identity-affirming changes, gender marker updates, marriage, divorce, document corrections, or any personal reason. We put extra care into privacy and safety features because many of our users depend on them most.

No, you can start using NameRight before you have your court order. We can help you plan ahead and understand what steps you'll need to take. However, most of the actual name updates will require a court order or other legal documentation.

NameRight provides state-level filing guidance for all 50 states plus D.C. County-level details are available where verified and continue to expand. Check your state guide for the latest county-specific status.

Complete is in Beta while we expand our court form packet builder and institution update library state by state. You still get every Complete feature, but coverage and automation depth will keep improving during this period.

No. It is a readiness review of how complete, consistent, and well-prepared your filing packet looks based on your state's rules and your inputs. It is not a prediction of how a court will rule. NameRight does not provide legal advice.

Yes — we include gender marker guidance across all 50 states. Depth of state-specific and county-specific details is expanding progressively. Check your state guide for the latest county-specific status.

NewlyNamed and HitchSwitch are designed for marriage name changes. They do not handle court petitions, gender marker updates, publication waivers, or hostile-state risk. NameRight was built from day one for people who actually need to go through court — trans, nonbinary, marriage, divorce, and personal-reason filers — with privacy and safety at the center.

Yes. NameRight is built for every person in the US who needs a legal name change. We center privacy, safety, and identity-affirming design because the trans and nonbinary community needs it most — but marriage, divorce, record correction, and personal-reason filers get the same level of privacy protection and post-court support.

Advocate access includes up to 12 months of in-app policy monitoring. If your state's publication waiver, gender marker standard, or county-level judicial practice materially changes, we alert you — and if a monitored change materially affects your filing path, Advocate includes free process regeneration.

Yes! We include gender marker update guidance for every document that supports it, with state-specific requirements. Your checklist will automatically include gender marker steps if you indicate you're updating your gender marker during onboarding.

Your current legal name is optional and only used where it is necessary to personalize forms or checklists. It is encrypted, never sold, and you can delete your data at any time from Settings or by contacting support.

Yes. You can start with Anonymous Mode, which pauses analytics for that browsing session and keeps quick-exit controls close at hand. If you later create an account, you can still use a preferred name and a privacy-focused email service.

Privacy and safety are central to how NameRight is built. Your data is encrypted in transit (TLS) and at rest by our hosting infrastructure, and we never sell your data. We surface whether your county's court filings are public record, and show you exactly how to request privacy protections or court sealing where available. If you're in a hostile state, we strongly recommend using a privacy-focused email service and keeping Quick Exit enabled in your browser session.

It is our dignity-first pricing path for people who need help affording the platform. There are no proof-of-income requirements and no gatekeeping paperwork. You can claim 30% off or 50% off instantly, and free Complete access is issued through partner codes or support review when needed.

After you sign up and complete your profile, we generate a personalized checklist based on your state, documents you have, and your specific situation. The checklist is organized into 5 phases, from foundation documents (Social Security, DMV, passport) to private accounts (banks, online services).

Each item on your checklist has a status: Not Started, In Progress, or Completed. You can update the status by clicking on the item. Your overall progress is displayed on your dashboard, so you always know exactly how many institutions still have your old name.

We provide templates for common name change notifications including: bank notification letters, employer/HR notifications, landlord notifications, insurance company notifications, and credit bureau notifications. Each template is pre-filled with your information and ready to customize.

NameRight offers a free tier plus two paid one-time plans: Complete ($49) and Advocate ($149). Each step up adds more certainty: deeper filing guidance, privacy-path analysis, fee-waiver help, and extended support.

Yes. The free tier lets you review county-specific filing information, fees, timelines, and publication rules before you pay for anything.

All purchases are one-time payments. No subscription, no auto-renewal. Refund requests submitted within 7 days are reviewed against account activity. Once you access personalized materials or generate documents, the purchase becomes non-refundable. To request a refund, email support@nameright.app within 7 days of purchase with your order ID. Processing time: 5–7 business days.

Yes. All data is encrypted in transit and at rest using industry-standard encryption. We use Supabase for secure data storage with Row Level Security, which means your data is isolated and only accessible by you. We're committed to protecting the privacy of every user who trusts us with this process.

No. We never sell your data or share it for advertising. We only disclose limited information to service providers needed to operate NameRight (for example, hosting and payment processing). Your data is used solely to power your experience within NameRight. We built this platform for the LGBTQ+ community and for anyone whose privacy matters — selling data was never part of the model.

You can request deletion by contacting support@nameright.app or from Settings. We begin processing deletion requests immediately and complete them within 30 days, unless we need to retain certain information for security, fraud prevention, legal, tax, or operational reasons. Payment transaction records may be retained for up to 7 years as required by financial regulations.

Yes, NameRight is fully responsive and works on all devices including smartphones and tablets. We recommend using a desktop or laptop for the best experience when generating and printing documents.

Yes, you can export your complete checklist as a text file. This is useful for offline reference or sharing with a trusted friend or advocate who may be helping you with your name change.

No. NameRight is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. We provide organizational tools, county-level filing information, and document preparation support to help you navigate the name change process. For legal advice specific to your situation, please consult a licensed attorney. Many LGBTQ+ legal organizations — including Lambda Legal, the National Center for Transgender Equality, and local legal aid offices — offer free or low-cost consultations.

Our templates are provided as starting points for your convenience. They are not legal documents and should be reviewed and customized for your specific situation. We recommend having important documents reviewed by a legal professional.