How to Rename Multiple Columns in R

Renaming columns means changing the existing column names to more meaningful or consistent ones. We often do this to make our data easier to understand, follow naming rules or match analysis requirements.

Methods to Rename Multiple Columns in R

R programming language offers several ways to rename multiple columns. We will explore some of these methods.

1. Using names() to Rename Multiple Columns

We use names() to assign a new vector of names to all columns at once.

• names(): Retrieves or sets the names of columns in a data frame.
• c(): Combines values into a vector.
• data.frame(): Creates a table like structure.
• cat(): Prints text without quotes or structure formatting.

df <- data.frame(
  old_name1 = c(1, 2, 3),
  old_name2 = c(4, 5, 6),
  old_name3 = c(7, 8, 9)
)
cat("Original Dataframe\n")
df

cat("\nRenaming the columns\n")
new_names <- c("new_name1", "new_name2", "new_name3")
names(df) <- new_names

cat("\nModified Dataframe\n")
df

Output:

2. Using colnames() to Rename Multiple Columns

We use colnames() to change all column names similarly to names().

• colnames(): Gets or sets the column names of a data frame.
• c(): Combines values into a vector.
• data.frame(): Creates a table like structure.
• cat(): Prints text without quotes or structure formatting.

df <- data.frame(
  old_Frame1 = c(1, 2, 3),
  old_Frame2 = c(4, 5, 6),
  old_Frame3 = c(7, 8, 9)
)
cat("Original Dataframe\n")
df

cat("\nRenaming the columns\n")
new_names <- c("new_Frame1", "new_Frame2", "new_Frame3")
colnames(df) <- new_names

cat("\nModified Dataframe\n")
df

Output:

3. Using dplyr::rename() to Rename Multiple Columns

We use rename() from the dplyr package to rename specific columns using the format new = old.

• library(): Loads external packages like dplyr.
• rename(): Used to rename specific columns in a data frame.
• %>%: Passes the data frame to the next operation.
• cat(): Prints text without quotes or structure formatting.

library(dplyr)

df <- data.frame(
  old_Column1 = c(1, 1, 1),
  old_Column2 = c(5, 5, 5),
  old_Column3 = c(8, 8, 8)
)
cat("Original Dataframe\n")
df

cat("\nRenaming the columns\n")
df <- df %>%
  rename(new_Column1 = old_Column1,
         new_Column2 = old_Column2,
         new_Column3 = old_Column3)

cat("\nModified Dataframe\n")
df

Output:

4. Using Column Index in dplyr to Rename Columns

We use column positions with !! and rename() to rename specific columns by index.

• library(): Loads external packages like dplyr.
• rename(): Used to rename columns using index.
• !!: Unquotes column index for tidy evaluation.
• %>%: Chains data operations in sequence.
• cat(): Prints text without quotes or structure formatting.

library(dplyr)

my_dataframe <- data.frame(
  old1 = c(1, 2, 3),
  old2 = c(4, 5, 6),
  old3 = c(7, 8, 9)
)
cat("Original Dataframe\n")
my_dataframe

cat("\nRenaming the columns\n")
my_dataframe <- my_dataframe %>% 
  rename(c1 = !!1, c2 = !!2)

cat("\nModified Dataframe\n")
my_dataframe

Output:

5. Using setnames() from data.table to Rename Columns

We use setnames() from the data.table package to rename multiple columns in place.

• library(): Loads external packages like data.table.
• setnames(): Replaces old column names with new ones.
• data.table: Creates high performance data table objects.
• cat: Prints text without quotes or structure formatting.

library(data.table)

my_data_table <- data.table(
  oldName1 = c(1, 2, 3),
  oldName2 = c(4, 5, 6),
  oldName3 = c(7, 8, 9)
)
cat("Original Dataframe\n")
my_data_table

cat("\nRenaming the columns\n")
new_names <- c("newName1", "newName2", "newName3")
setnames(my_data_table, old = c("oldName1", "oldName2", "oldName3"), new = new_names)

cat("\nModified Dataframe\n")
my_data_table

Output:

The column names are changed from oldName1, oldName2, oldName3 to newName1, newName2, newName3, while the data remains unchanged. The output confirms the renaming in a data.table format.