---
title: "Rocket Chat Direct Messages for Secure Chat"
slug: "direct-messages"
description: "Use direct messages in Rocket Chat for secure one-to-one communications and collaboration."
status: "update"
updated: 2026-04-15T13:59:00Z
published: 2026-04-15T14:57:47Z
canonical: "docs.rocket.chat/direct-messages"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.rocket.chat/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Direct Messages

In Rocket.Chat, you can have private one-on-one or one-to-many conversations with users in your workspace. These are called **Direct Messages (DMs)**. Your most recent DMs appear by default under the **Direct Messages** section in your sidebar.

## Types of Direct Messages

There are two types of direct messages:

- **1:1 Direct Messages (1:1 DM)**: Private one-on-one conversations between members of your workspace. You can create a DM with another user in the same workspace (or across workspaces using [Rocket.Chat Federation](https://docs.rocket.chat/v1/docs/rocketchat-federation)) to chat and share files privately. The DM exists only between two users, and no one else can join.
- **Direct Messages Between Multiple Users (1:M DM)**: Enables you to chat privately with multiple users in the same DM. You can create direct message rooms with several users to exchange messages and files. Unlike [private channels](https://docs.rocket.chat/v1/docs/channels#private-channels), you don’t need to set a name, topic, or permissions, the DM is automatically created for the selected users. It functions the same as a 1:1 DM, with the only difference being that multiple participants are included.

> [!NOTE]
> You can also manage DMs programmatically using the [DM API endpoints](https://developer.rocket.chat/apidocs/dm-api).

## Next steps

- To learn how to create DMs, visit [Create a New Direct Message](https://docs.rocket.chat/docs/create-a-new-direct-message).
- For more details about managing DMs, see [Manage Direct Messages](/v1/docs/direct-message-actions).