How to Use breakout rooms in Microsoft Teams
Open discussions and meaningful exchanges of ideas are difficult in all but the smallest meetings. People can discuss ideas and brainstorm in small groups in breakout rooms.
In Teams (Windows and Mac), breakout rooms can only be created and managed by meeting organizers.
- Call me
- The participants panel has been added to the meeting
- The meeting chat has been expanded to include additional participants
- I am copying the information for joining the meeting
Best practices for a large team meeting provide more information about managing large meetings.
Create breakout rooms
When you create breakout rooms, people can be automatically assigned to them. The meeting will have to be manually adjusted if you want to move people around.
Meeting organizers and presenters who’ve been appointed breakout room managers can create breakout rooms.
Create breakout rooms before the meeting
- Open the meeting invite in your Teams calendar.
- Select Create rooms from the Breakout rooms menu.
- Click Add rooms and select the number of rooms you would like to add (up to 50).
The following example shows three rooms that have not yet been assigned to anyone. - You can assign participants by selecting Assign participants.
- It’s your choice whether Teams automatically assigns people to rooms evenly (Automatically) or you assign people manually (Manually).
Breakout rooms can be opened as soon as the meeting begins.
Create breakout rooms during the meeting
- Start the meeting.
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Do the following:
- You can choose up to 50 rooms.
- Team members can be evenly assigned to rooms (Automatically) or manually assigned (Manually).Note: In the meeting, you cannot assign people automatically to breakout rooms.
- Click on Create rooms.
Change breakout room settings before meeting
Before your meeting begins, adjust breakout room settings to make it more efficient. In addition to assigning room names, organizing attendees into breakout rooms, and setting timers, meeting organizers can plan ahead for meetings.
Meeting breakout room settings can be changed by following these steps:
- Open the meeting invite in your Teams calendar.
- Select Settings from the Breakout rooms menu.
Assign people to breakout rooms manually
Ensure that participants are assigned to each breakout room if they weren’t automatically assigned or if they need to be reassigned. Meeting organizers or presenters who are appointed breakout room managers can assign people to breakout rooms.
Assign people manually before the meeting
- Open the meeting invitation in your Teams calendar.
- Select Assign participants in Breakout rooms.
- Select Manually and click Next.
- By checking the boxes next to their names, you can invite people into a room.
- To assign them a room, click the down arrow next to Assign.
- Each member of the meeting should be assigned to a room by repeating the previous steps. After you’ve finished, click Confirm.
Assign people manually during the meeting
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- You can assign participants by selecting Assign participants. Select the down arrow next to Name or Room to sort people according to where they have been assigned.
- By selecting the checkboxes next to their names, you can select the people you want in a room.
- Then choose a room for them by clicking the drop-down arrow next to Assign.
- Assign rooms to everyone in the meeting by repeating the previous steps. Select Confirm when you are finished.Assign participants to rooms again if someone joins late.
Appoint breakout room managers.
Presenters can be delegated to manage the breakout rooms if you’re the meeting organizer.
The manager of a breakout room can do the following:
- Rooms can be added and deleted
- Participants can be assigned to rooms and reassigned
- Rooms can be opened and closed
- You can join any room.
- Limit the duration of sessions in the room
- An announcement should be sent
- Rooms can be recreated
Appoint managers before the meeting
- Open the meeting invite in your Teams calendar.
- Select Room settings from the Breakout rooms menu.
- On the Manage rooms toggle, select Assign presenters.
- Choosing breakout room managers is as simple as selecting Search for presenters.
Appoint managers during the meeting
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Choose Room settings.
- On the Management of rooms toggle, select Assign presenters.
- Adding presenters and choosing a room manager is available if no one in the meeting has been designated as a presenter.
- Using the dropdown menu, select presenters.
- To save your changes, click the back button.
Take control of breakout rooms
Among the managers of breakout rooms in your meeting, you may be one of a few. The rooms can only be controlled by one of you at a time.
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
The current manager (for example, Daniela) can be seen. - Choose Manage rooms.
Now you’re responsible for managing breakout rooms. Make an announcement, join open rooms, and more.
Rename breakout rooms
You can rename the rooms according to what each room will be used for.
- The meeting controls allow you to select Breakout rooms.
- When hovering over the room, click More options and then Rename room.
- Rename the room by entering the new name and selecting Rename.
Set a time limit for breakout room sessions
During breakout sessions, participants are informed when the session ends by a timer. As soon as the meeting time has expired, participants return to the main meeting.
- The meeting controls allow you to select Breakout rooms.
- Select Rooms from the Settings menu.
- You can set a time limit and the length of the session.
- To save your changes, click the back button.
Start using the breakout rooms
You can turn off automatic breakout room entry by turning off the setting in Turn off automatic entry to breakout rooms. Meeting participants will automatically be moved to their assigned rooms once you open them.
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Choose one of the following:
- By selecting Open, all rooms will be opened simultaneously.
- You can open a single room by hovering over it, selecting More options, and choosing Open room.
During a meeting, breakout rooms can be opened and closed multiple times.
Join a breakout room
All breakout rooms are open to meeting organizers and breakout room managers.
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Choose More options then Join room when you hover over the room.
Leave a breakout room
Select Return from the meeting controls.
Interact with breakout room participants
All breakout rooms can be informed and discussions can be taken part in as the meeting organizer.
Send an announcement to all breakout rooms
The breakout session can be updated, or you can let everyone know how much time remains.
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Choose Make an announcement.
- Select Send after entering your announcement.
Your announcement is announced in your meeting chat so participants can check it out.
Chat in breakout rooms
Breakout rooms have a chat function. You can see all the chats you’ve taken part in in Teams Chat.
Any breakout room member can be contacted here.
The Chat feature in breakout rooms allows you to communicate with other people within the room once you’ve joined.
Close breakout rooms
The participants return to the main meeting when you close the breakout rooms.
Close rooms individually
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Click More options and then Close the room after hovering over it.
Close all the rooms at the same time
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Select Close.
When the status of a room changes to Closed, it has successfully closed.
After everyone has returned from their breakout rooms, select Resume to resume your meeting.
Notes:
- Unless the organizer sets a timer or manually closes the breakout rooms, breakout rooms remain open.
- The rooms will remain assigned to the participants if the meeting is reopened later.
Room assignments in recurring meetings
There will be no need to change breakout rooms or assignments until the organizer manually unassigns people from their breakout rooms.
Attendance reports for breakout rooms
Through attendance reports, you can learn about the participants and their breakout room activities during a meeting. Find out which breakout room each individual entered, when they left, and which break out room they joined.
Meeting breakout room data can be viewed by following these steps:
- Select Calendar in Teams.
- The meeting details can be viewed by selecting the meeting you’d like insight into.
- Choose Attendance.
- You can view which breakout room an attendee entered and when they joined and left it by selecting them under Participants.
To refer to the attendance report later, you can also download it as a .CSV file.
Notes:
- Attendance reports can only be viewed by meeting organizers.
- Deleting breakout rooms does not affect attendance reports.
Additional options
Turn off automatic entry to breakout rooms
Breakout rooms are automatically assigned to participants when they are opened by default. By turning this option off, participants will be invited to join a breakout room. Upon joining the room (on a mobile device), they select Join the room.
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Click on Room settings.
- You can turn off the automatic room assignment toggle.
- You can save your changes by clicking the back button.
Here’s how attendees can join breakout rooms in Teams meetings: Join a breakout room.
Allow people to return to the main meeting
Default settings are off. When activated, it allows participants to leave their breakout rooms and rejoin the group discussion after they have left their breakout rooms.
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Choose Room settings.
- Turn on the toggle to allow people to return to the main meeting.
- To save your changes, click the back button.
Move a person to a different breakout room
Participants can be moved when breakout rooms are open or closed.
- Select Breakout rooms in the meeting controls.
- Choose Assign participants and check the person whose name you want to move.
- Move the person to a new room by selecting Assign then Move.
Add another breakout room
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Click on Add room.
Delete an individual breakout room
- Choose Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- You can delete a room by hovering over it and selecting More options.
Delete all breakout rooms at once
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Remove rooms by selecting Remove.
Recreate breakout rooms from scratch
The breakout rooms can be deleted during a meeting and new ones can be created and participants can be reassigned.
- Select Breakout rooms from the meeting controls.
- Confirm the decision by selecting Recreate rooms.
- Assign people to new breakout rooms by following the instructions above.
Frequently Asked Question
How do I use breakout rooms in MS Teams?
- Let’s get the meeting started.
- Select the Breakout rooms option in the meeting controls.
- If you want to book more than 50 rooms, then follow the steps below: Once this has been completed, you will need to select whether to automatically allocate people to rooms (Automaticly) or manually assign people to rooms (Manually) in order to book more than 50 rooms.
- You can create rooms by selecting Create rooms.
Why can’t I use breakout rooms on Teams?
Can anyone set up breakout rooms in Teams?
Who can join breakout rooms in Teams?
Can more than one person control breakout rooms in Teams?