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Custom categories are personal folders for your sidebar. Use them to group the rooms you work with most, such as a category for a project, a client, or an on-call rotation, so your sidebar matches the way you work.
How custom categories work
Custom categories appear in the sidebar alongside the default groups, such as Favorites, Teams, Channels, and Direct messages. Keep the following in mind:
Categories are private: Only you see your categories. Other members' sidebars aren't affected.
Categories only change your sidebar: Moving a room into a category doesn't change the room, its members, or who can access it.
A room is in one place at a time: Each room appears in one custom category, in Favorites, or in its default group.
Omnichannel conversations can't be categorized: Livechat rooms always stay in their Omnichannel groups.
Create a category
Create a category from the Create new menu in the menu bar. You can add rooms right away or leave the category empty and fill it later.
In the menu bar, click the Create new icon (+) and select Category.
In the Create category dialog, enter a Name.
(Optional) In the Rooms field, search for and select the rooms to add. You can also add rooms later.
Click Create.
The new category appears near the top of your sidebar, below any groups that are pinned there, such as Unread.
In the rooms list, tap the Create new button (+) and select Category.
Enter a Name and tap Next.
(Optional) Search for and select the rooms to add, then tap Next. You can also add rooms later.
Review the category and tap Create.
Category name rules
Names can have up to 30 characters and can't be empty.
Names can't match a default group name, such as Favorites or Channels.
Each of your categories needs a unique name. Names are compared without regard to capitalization, so
Projectsandprojectscount as the same name.These rules apply on web, desktop, and mobile.
Add a room to a category
You can move a room from the sidebar or from inside the room. The same Move to menu opens in both places.
From the sidebar:
Hover over the room and click the kebab menu (⋮).
Under Category, select Move to.
Select a destination (see the table below).
From inside the room:
Open the room.
Click the category icon to the left of the room name.
Select a destination.
The icon shows where the room currently is: a filled star for Favorites, a folder for a custom category, and an outline star for the room's default group.
Destination | Result |
|---|---|
Favorites | Adds the room to Favorites. Appears only when favorite rooms are enabled in your workspace. |
A custom category | Moves the room into that category. A checkmark marks the room's current category. |
New category | Opens the Create category dialog with the room already selected. Enter a name and click Create and move. |
On workspaces with custom categories, the Move to menu replaces the separate Favorite option in the room's kebab menu and the star icon in the room header. Because a room can only be in one place, moving it to a custom category removes it from Favorites, and moving it to Favorites removes it from its category.
You can move a room from the rooms list or from inside the room:
From the rooms list: Swipe the room to show its actions and tap Move to category.
From inside the room: Tap the room name to open the room options, then tap Category.
In the Move to category sheet, select a category, or select New category to create one with the room already added.
On workspaces with custom categories, Move to category replaces the Favorite swipe action. Omnichannel rooms can't be moved to a category and keep the Favorite action.
To add several rooms at once, use the Rooms field when you create or manage the category.
Remove a room from a category
Open the Move to menu from the room's kebab menu or the room header and select Remove from category name. The room returns to its default group, such as Channels or Direct messages.
Categories and the unread group
The Display menu can group all rooms with unread messages into a single Unread group at the top of your sidebar. When this option is on, it takes priority over your custom categories.
What happens with “grouping by unread” turned on:
A new message arrives in a room that belongs to one of your categories.
The room moves to the Unread group at the top of the sidebar. It doesn't appear in its category while it has unread messages.
After you read the messages, the room moves back into its category automatically.
The room stays assigned to its category the whole time. The room header still shows the folder icon, and nothing needs to be moved back by hand.
What happens with “grouping by unread” turned off:
There's no Unread group. Rooms with unread messages stay in their own category or default group.
When a group is collapsed, its name appears in bold with a badge that shows how many rooms have unread messages.
The Always display and Keep on top toggles are available for each group. For details, see Keep unread rooms visible section.
Groups keep the order you set in either mode. A category doesn't move up the sidebar because it has unread messages.
To turn grouping by unread on or off:
In the navigation bar, click the Display icon
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. Under the grouping options, turn Unread on or off.
In the rooms list header, tap the Display icon.
Under Group by, turn Unread on or off.
Manage your categories and sidebar groups
Every group in your sidebar, including default groups, has an options menu. Hover over the group name and click the kebab menu (⋮) to open it. Custom categories have more options than default groups:
Option | Custom categories | Default groups |
|---|---|---|
Move up / Move down | Yes | Yes |
Create new | Yes | No |
Manage | Yes | No |
Delete | Yes | No |
Unreads toggles | Yes | Yes |
In the rooms list, tap the arrow next to the category name to open it.
Tap the options icon (⋮) in the header.
Choose one of the following:
Manage rooms: Add or remove rooms.
Rename: Change the category name.
Unread rooms on main display: Choose how unread rooms are shown. See Keep unread rooms visible.
Display: Choose Expanded or Condensed, and show or hide Avatars.
Sort by: Sort the category's rooms by Activity or Name.
Delete: Delete the category. See Delete a category.
Default groups, such as Unread, show only Unread rooms on main display, Display, and Sort by.
Rename a category or change its rooms
From the category's options menu, select Manage.
In the Manage category dialog, change the Name, or add and remove rooms in the Rooms field.
Click Save.
Open the category and tap the options icon (⋮).
Tap Rename to change the name, or Manage rooms to add or remove rooms.
Confirm your changes.
Create a room inside a category
From the category's options menu, select Create new.
Select the room type, such as Channel, Team, Direct message, or Discussion.
Complete the usual steps to create the room.
In the rooms list, tap the arrow next to the category name to open it.
Tap the Create new button (+).
Select the room type, such as Channel, Team, Direct message, or Discussion.
Complete the usual steps to create the room.
The new room is added to the category automatically. The room types you can create depend on your permissions and workspace settings.
Reorder groups
From a group's options menu, select Move up or Move down. This works for custom categories and default groups, such as Favorites or Channels.
Groups that appear only when they have content, such as Unread, Incoming calls, Queued chats, Chats in progress, and On hold, always stay at the top of the sidebar and can't be moved.
In the rooms list header, tap the Display icon.
Tap Category order.
Drag the items into the order you want. The order is saved when you release an item.
Keep unread rooms visible
Each group has two options for unread rooms:
Always display: Rooms with unread messages stay visible when the group is collapsed.
Keep on top: Rooms with unread messages are listed first when the group is expanded.
The toggles are in the Unreads section of a group's options menu.
If you group rooms by Unread in the Display menu, unread rooms already have their own group, so these toggles are turned off for other groups. Hover over a toggle to see the reason.
Open the category and tap the options icon (⋮).
Under Unread rooms on main display, turn Always display or Keep on top on or off.
If Unread is turned on in the display preferences, these options are turned off. A note below the options explains why.
Collapse and expand groups
Click a group name to collapse or expand it. The room you have open always stays listed under its group, even when the group is collapsed, so you can see where it belongs.
Delete a category
From the category's options menu, select Delete.
In the Delete category dialog, click Delete to confirm.
Open the category and tap the options icon (⋮).
Tap Delete.
In the Delete category dialog, tap Delete to confirm.
The rooms in the category return to their default groups. Deleting a category doesn't delete any rooms or messages, and it doesn't change who can access them.
Categories in the mobile app
The Rocket.Chat mobile app (version 4.77.0 and later) shows your custom categories in the rooms list, in the same order you set on web or desktop. From version 4.78.0, you can also create and manage categories in the mobile app, as described in the Mobile tabs of this article. Managing categories on mobile requires Rocket.Chat 8.9.0 or later with a valid Enterprise license.
To show or hide your categories in the mobile app:
In the rooms list header, tap the Display icon.
Under Group by, turn Categories on or off.
When Categories is on, rooms are grouped into your custom categories and the default groups, such as Teams, Discussions, Channels, and Direct messages. When it's off, custom categories are hidden and rooms that aren't in Unread or Favorites appear in a single list.
If Unread is on, rooms with unread messages appear in the Unread group at the top of the list instead of in their category, the same as on web.