How to Chat in a Teams meeting in Microsoft Teams

Participants in most Teams meetings can share information in a chat room without interfering with the flow of the meeting.

[su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: Your organization may disable this feature. Details can be found by contacting your IT administrator.[/su_note]

View and send messages

In your meeting controls, a red dot on the Show conversation icon indicates that someone posted a message.

• Messages can be viewed by selecting Show conversation.

From the main screen, you can access the meeting chat window.

• Select Send after composing your message in the text box.

The same features will be available as in other Teams chats, such as formatting text, adding pictures and GIFs, using emoji, and attaching files. Visit the Chat help page for more details.

You won’t have to click the Show conversation icon to see chats if you’re participating in the Teams public preview.

Choosing More actions and choosing Don’t show chat bubbles will hide chats from appearing in the main meeting window.

During the meeting, you will see a preview of your two most recent messages on iOS and Android devices.

Chat bubbles can be snoozed by clicking the snooze icon.

At the bottom of the screen, select Don’t show chat bubbles to permanently disable chat bubbles.

[su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: A public preview version of chat bubbles is currently available and may be subject to further changes before it is released. Switch to the Teams public preview to get access to this feature and others.[/su_note]

Continue the conversation after the meeting

The chat conversation can be accessed in several ways after the meeting:

• In Teams, you can find the meeting in the chat list

Meeting chats appear in the chat list with the same name as the meeting and are preceded by the meeting icon.

• Right-click the meeting event in Teams’ Calendar, choose Chat with participants, and then click Conclude.

By double-clicking on the meeting event, you can access the Chat tab.

If the organizer hasn’t limited the chat to only during the meeting, attendees can continue their conversation after the meeting.

[su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: Manually removing someone from the meeting chat or voluntarily leaving it will prevent them from accessing it. For more information, see Leaving or removing someone from a group chat.[/su_note]

Start the conversation before the meeting

Meeting chats can also be used to prepare people for upcoming meetings (unless the meeting organizer restricts chats).

• You can send a message to meeting participants by right-clicking the event in your Teams calendar, selecting Chat with participants, and entering your message.

[su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: In spite of not attending the meeting, people who received the meeting invitation have access to the meeting chat.[/su_note]

Chat in recurring meetings

Chat conversations continue from meeting to meeting for recurring meetings. Messages exchanged in previous meetings will be available when participants open their chat window.

[su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: Those who are removed from recurring meetings will lose access to chat.[/su_note]

Invite someone to a single occurrence

An individual invited to one of a series of recurring meetings can participate in the chat. During the meeting, they can send and view chat messages, but they will not see chat history from previous meetings.

Please ensure that you forward the invite for the single instance, not the entire meeting series, if you want someone to join one of your recurring meetings, but not the other meetings.

[su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Tip: When you invite an external speaker to be a guest speaker, you can schedule their presentation as the last session of the meeting so they will not have access to the chat. It is then possible for the organizer or moderator of the meeting to monitor the participant list in real-time during the meeting, and if the speaker wishes to join after the allocated time has passed, they can manually remove him/her from the meeting.[/su_note]

[su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: In the Inviting someone box on the participant list, you can invite people to join a meeting after it has already begun. Once they are invited, they will have access to the chat during the meeting as long as they remain in the meeting. [/su_note]

Chat in channel meetings

It must be noted that all channel members are able to view and contribute to the chat conversation during a meeting that is held in a channel, regardless of whether they have attended the meeting. Under the meeting title, you will find a link to the conversation under the Posts tab of the channel.

[su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: Chat access will not be available to nonmembers of the channel who have been invited to a meeting.[/su_note]

More info about chat access

• Chat settings can be modified by meeting organizers. Chats should be limited to only during meetings, not before or after.
• Meeting chats can be accessed by up to 1,000 people before, during, and after meetings. Meeting participants who do not attend are included in the 1,000-person limit.
• Distribution lists (DLs) with more than 150 members can only access the meeting chat during the meeting if they are added to the meeting invitation. Make sure the DL is expanded before sending the invite so everyone can access the chat before and after the meeting.

  [su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: For meetings with more than 20 participants, the automated message notifying them of their participation will not appear.[/su_note]

  Those on the required attendees line should be added to the invitation, while those on the optional line should be added to the invitation.

  DLs that are nested (a list inside another list) are not able to participate in the chat.

  [su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: You won’t be able to add a DL if the chat exceeds 1,000 people.

  [/su_note]

   

• The chat function is not available to anonymous and external participants during meetings (except in channel meetings, where the chat function will not be available).

  [su_note note_color=”#f07afb”] Note: Chat is available to participants from federated organizations before, during, and after meetings.

  [/su_note]

   

   

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can I chat with individuals that are in a Teams meeting?