Renaming is done entirely in Setup and takes effect almost immediately. You change the label, not the data, so it is safe to do in production with a little planning.
- Open the Rename page
From Setup, type "Rename Tabs and Labels" in the Quick Find box and select it. You see a list of standard tabs and objects that support renaming.
- Edit the object
Click Edit next to the object you want to rename, for example Accounts. Leave the language selector on your default to rename in English, or switch it to a supported language to translate.
- Set singular and plural labels
Enter both the singular and plural display names. Mark the "Starts with a vowel sound" box if the new word begins with a vowel, so generated messages read correctly.
- Adjust standard field labels
Continue through the wizard to rename the object's standard fields if needed. Save when done; the new labels appear across tabs, list views, and reports within moments.
Choose your org default to rename in English, or pick a supported language to supply translated labels for that locale.
Both are required because the UI uses each in different spots; a list header wants plural, a button often wants singular.
A checkbox that fixes grammar in system messages so users see "an Asset" instead of "a Asset".
Optional per-field overrides reached inside the same wizard, excluding audit fields like Created By that cannot be renamed.
- The Forecasts tab and audit fields such as Created By and Last Modified By cannot be renamed.
- Only the label changes; API names stay the same, so SOQL, Apex, and integrations are unaffected.
- Custom objects and custom fields are not renamed here; set their labels in the object manager and translate them in the Translation Workbench.
- Salesforce Help, Trailhead, and some admin Setup pages keep the original names, so document both your label and the standard one.