TABLE OF CONTENTS

Four things to know about group chats

1. Name your group chat so its easy to keep track of

Remember to name your group chat, so it's really clear what the subject of the conversation is.

To start and name a new group chat, select New chat New chat button at the top of your chat list. Then, select the down arrow next to the To field and enter a name in the Group name field. You'll see the name at the top of the group chat. 

To rename a group chat, select Name group chat Edit button at any point.


Name a group chat in Teams.

Name your group chat so it's easy to track.


2. Pin your most frequently used group chats

Pinning is a great way to keep track of a chat even if you only need to do it temporarily. 

To pin a chat, highlight the chat, then select More options Select to see more options > Pin.

Once you pin a chat, drag it into the order you want. Do this for several chats and you'll have all pinned chats within easy reach.

Unpin the chat when you don't need it front and center anymore. There's a limit of 15 pinned chats. 


Teams pin a chat

Pin your group chats for easy access.


3.Share files and make calls right from your group

In a group chat, you can share files and collaborate on them. Then, instantly make calls to the whole group of people who are in the chat. It's really handy for that!

Here are two ways to share files in chats:

Go to on the left side of Teams, highlight the file, choose More options Select to see more options > Copy link, and paste the link directly into a message.

In the toolbar under your message, click Attach  Choose file button , and upload your document.

The Files tab in your chat shows all the files you've shared with each other.


Share files from a group chat in Teams.

The Files tab in your chat shows all the files you've shared with each other.

Video call, Audio call, and Add people buttons

Select Audio call  Calls button to start a call from a group chat.


4.Select how much chat history to include

When you need to add somebody to a group chat, you have a few choices about how much conversation history you can have.

To see your choices, select View and add participants  Add people to team button in the top right corner of Teams, then select Add people. Type the names of the people you'd like to chat with. Next, select how much of the chat history to include, and click Add.

Teams saves the whole chat history, all the way back to the first message. And if someone leaves the group their chat responses are still there in your chat history.


Chat history in Teams

When adding someone to an existing group chat (not a one-on-one), you can include the chat history.


Start a group chat

Start one the same way you start a one-on-one chat: select New chat New chat icon in Teams at the top of your chat list. Select the down arrow to the far right of the To field and type a name for the chat in the Group name field. Then, type the names of the people you’d like to add in the To field.

Name a group chat in Teams

This starts a new conversation. Everyone who has access to the group chat can send messages.

You can include up to 250 people in a group chat. 


Hide, mute, or pin a chat

1.Hide a chat

While you can't delete an entire chat, you can hide a chat from your chat list if it's not relevant to you anymore. To hide a chat, select Chat  Open chat button to open the chat list. Next to the chat you want to hide, select More options  More options button > Hide.

Mute or hide a chat in Teams

The chat will be hidden until someone posts a new message to it.

2.Mute a chat

When you mute a chat, you'll still be included in the conversation, but won't get notifications from it. 

Select Chat Open chat button to open the chat list. Find the name of the chat you want to mute. Then, select More options More options button > Mute. If you change your mind, just select it again and unmute it. 

An icon appears next to the names of the participants to remind you that the chat has been muted.

3. Pin a chat

You can pin frequent conversations to the top of your chat list.

Select Chat Open chat button to open the chat list. Find the name of the conversation you want to pin. Then, select More options More options button > Pin. This ensures that the chat stays at the top of your list. If you change your mind, just select it again and unpin it. 

Teams pin a chat

Share your screen in a chat

When you're chatting with one or more people in Teams, you can instantly share your screen. Go to the chat controls in the upper-right corner and select Share Share screen button .

Share your screen in a chat in Teams.

Choose a window to share that specific program and its content, or select Desktop to share everything on your screen.

The other participants in the chat will receive a notification asking them to accept your screen share. Once they do, they'll be able to see your screen and continue the chat.

When you're done sharing, go to your meeting controls and select Stop sharing.

Leave or remove someone from a group chat

Leave a group chat

Select Chat Open chat button to open the chat list.

Find the name of the group you want to leave.

Select More options More options button > Leave.

Select More options > Leave in Teams

Remove from a group chat

To remove people from a group chat in Teams, follow these steps:

Open any group chat of three or more people and go to the top of the chat where it tells you the number of participants.

Hover on the number of participants and then hover on the person's name you want to remove.

Select the X and confirm you want to remove the participant from chat.

Remove people from a group chat in Teams.

An update in the chat will inform everyone that you've removed the person.

People removed from a chat will be able to view previous chat history, but won't be able to send new messages, react to messages, and won't be able to view new conversations or files shared by the group.