How to Create a Team and Channels in Microsoft Teams
Group chats are fine for quick conversations, but for a department or a project you want a team: one place for conversations, files and meetings, organised into channels by topic.
Teams vs channels vs chats
• Team — a group of people working together, like "Marketing" or "New Office Project".
• Channel — a topic within a team, like "Social Media", "Budget" or "Events".
• Chat — a private conversation with one or more people, outside any team.
• Channel — a topic within a team, like "Social Media", "Budget" or "Events".
• Chat — a private conversation with one or more people, outside any team.
Every team starts with a General channel. You add more as you need them.
Create a team
1. Click Teams in the bar on the left.
2. Click + (or Create or join a team) at the top of the teams list.
3. Choose Create team.
4. Choose From scratch, or pick a template (for example, "Manage a Project") that sets up channels for you.
5. Choose Private or Public:
• Private — only people the owners add can join.
• Public — anyone in your organisation can find and join it.
6. Give the team a name and a short description, then click Create.
7. Add members by typing their names. You can add people outside your organisation as guests if your company allows it.
2. Click + (or Create or join a team) at the top of the teams list.
3. Choose Create team.
4. Choose From scratch, or pick a template (for example, "Manage a Project") that sets up channels for you.
5. Choose Private or Public:
• Private — only people the owners add can join.
• Public — anyone in your organisation can find and join it.
6. Give the team a name and a short description, then click Create.
7. Add members by typing their names. You can add people outside your organisation as guests if your company allows it.
Note: Your organisation might limit who can create teams. If you can't see the option, ask IT.
Add a channel
1. Hover over the team name and click ⋯ (More options).
2. Click Add channel.
3. Give it a name and description.
4. Choose a channel type (see below).
5. Click Create.
2. Click Add channel.
3. Give it a name and description.
4. Choose a channel type (see below).
5. Click Create.
Channel types
| Type | Who can see it |
|---|---|
| Standard | Everyone in the team |
| Private | Only people you add from the team |
| Shared | People you add — including people outside the team or company |
Tip: Use a private channel for things like "Managers" or "Salaries" that not everyone in the team should see.
Add or remove members later
1. Hover over the team name and click ⋯ > Manage team.
2. Go to the Members tab.
3. Click Add member, or click the X next to someone to remove them.
2. Go to the Members tab.
3. Click Add member, or click the X next to someone to remove them.
You can also make someone an Owner so they can manage the team too. Have at least two owners, in case one leaves.
What each channel gives you
• Posts — conversations (start a new post for each topic, and reply in the thread).
• Files (or Shared) — a shared folder for the channel's documents.
• Tabs — click + at the top to add a OneNote notebook, Planner board, website or app.
• Files (or Shared) — a shared folder for the channel's documents.
• Tabs — click + at the top to add a OneNote notebook, Planner board, website or app.
Keep your teams tidy
• Start small. General plus two or three channels is plenty to begin with.
• Name things clearly. "2026 Office Move" beats "Project X".
• Reply in threads instead of starting new posts for the same topic.
• Pin the channels you use most (⋯ > Pin) and hide the ones you don't.
• Archive a team when the project ends, so it's read-only but still searchable. Team owners can do this from Manage teams (find the team, click ⋯ and choose Archive).
• Name things clearly. "2026 Office Move" beats "Project X".
• Reply in threads instead of starting new posts for the same topic.
• Pin the channels you use most (⋯ > Pin) and hide the ones you don't.
• Archive a team when the project ends, so it's read-only but still searchable. Team owners can do this from Manage teams (find the team, click ⋯ and choose Archive).
Wrapping up
Teams > + > Create team, choose Private or Public, add people, then add a few channels by topic. Keep it simple and let it grow as you need it.
