--- title: "Rocket Chat Teams for Organized Collaboration" slug: "teams" description: "Use teams in Rocket Chat to structure secure communications and manage projects with resilience." status: "update" updated: 2026-09-21T12:26:26Z published: 2026-09-21T16:14:49Z canonical: "docs.rocket.chat/teams" --- > ## 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. # Teams A **Team** in Rocket.Chat is a group of related [**channels**](https://docs.rocket.chat/v1/docs/channels) organized under one umbrella. Teams help you group conversations by project, department, or topic, making collaboration easier and more structured. For example, your organization might have a **Core Team** with private channels for leadership discussions, project planning, and updates. By grouping them in a team, managing access and visibility becomes more efficient and secure. Teams are identified by this icon: ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/6ae79a05-7252-45d0-96e8-8f375e07b1b2/Images/Documentation/people.png) ## Benefits of using teams - **Simplified access control**: Automatically adds new members to all associated channels, removing the need for manual invites. - **Clear organization**: Keeps conversations structured by department, project, or function, reducing clutter. ## Team security and permissions Teams can be [**private**](https://docs.rocket.chat/v1/docs/channels#private-channels) (invite-only) or [**public**](https://docs.rocket.chat/v1/docs/channels#public-channels) (visible to everyone in the workspace). Each team can include both private and public channels. A team's privacy setting also applies to the rooms created within it: - A public channel within a private team is accessible only to members of that team. It is not visible to other workspace members. - A discussion created in a channel that belongs to a team inherits the team's privacy setting rather than the channel's. For example, a discussion created in a public channel within a private team is created as private. The setting is assigned once, at creation, and does not change if the team's privacy setting changes later. For details, see [Discussion privacy and visibility.](/v1/docs/discussions#discussion-privacy-and-visibility) You can configure teams with specific settings to control who can view, join, and interact within them. ### Read-only teams Only users with the `Post_ReadOnly` [permission](https://docs.rocket.chat/v1/docs/permissions) can send messages in read-only teams. Others can view content and, if allowed, react to messages. To allow reactions, 1. Go to **Team Info > Edit > Advanced Settings** 2. Enable **Read-only.** 3. Turn on **Allow Reacting,** which appears once the read-only option is active. ### Broadcast teams Like read-only teams, broadcast teams allow authorized users with the `Post_ReadOnly` [permission](https://docs.rocket.chat/v1/docs/permissions) to write new messages while other users can reply to existing messages. However, it differs from read-only teams in the following ways: - All messages have a reply button that redirects you to the sender's direct message (DM), replying to the message as a quote. - Users can’t react to messages - Once set to broadcast, a team **cannot** be reverted to read-only mode. ### Encrypted teams Encrypted teams have [**end-to-end encryption**](https://docs.rocket.chat/v1/docs/end-to-end-encryption-user-guide) enabled. Only team participants can decrypt and read messages, ensuring secure and private communication. To learn more, see [End to End Encryption](/v1/docs/configure-e2e-encryption). ## Team information To access the details of a team: 1. Open the desired **Team** from the sidebar. 2. Click the **Team Info** ![](https://cdn.us.document360.io/6ae79a05-7252-45d0-96e8-8f375e07b1b2/Images/Documentation/image(236).png) icon from the menu bar to access some details of the team. 3. Click **Edit** to access and update all the following team details: 1. **Name:** The team title, displayed in the sidebar and used in search. 2. **Topic:** A short label shown next to the team name, useful for adding context or purpose. 3. **Announcement:** A message displayed below the team header for important updates or reminders. 4. **Description:** A detailed explanation of the team’s purpose or scope. 5. **Private:** Indicates whether the team is invite-only or open to all workspace members. 6. **Read-only:** Allows only users with posting permission to send messages; others can view messages but not reply. 7. **Archived:** Closes the team to new messages. Archived teams are excluded from search results but remain visible to admins through the **Directory**. 8. **Password to access:** Protects the team with a password. Members must enter the password to join. ### Advanced settings In the **Advanced settings** section, you can further customize team behavior and permissions: - **Hide system messages:** Choose which automated messages (for example, join or leave notifications) are hidden. - **Automatically prune old messages:** Enable automatic removal of older messages based on retention policies. - **Override global retention policy:** Apply custom message retention rules specifically for this team. Refer to [Room Retention Policy](/v1/docs/retention-policy#perroom-retention-policies) to learn how to prune messages in a room. ## Mentioning teams When you mention a team using `@teamname`, all members of that team **who are present in the room** are notified instantly. For example, mentioning `@engineers` alerts only members of that team currently active in the room. > [!WARNING] > To learn more about managing and organizing teams, see [Teams: Efficiently Manage Your Remote Team on Rocket.Chat](https://www.rocket.chat/blog/teams) The **Teams** feature in Rocket.Chat streamlines collaboration by grouping multiple channels under one structure. This simplifies membership management, improves access control, and helps teams stay organized. > [!NOTE] > Next steps > > - [Create a New Team](/v1/docs/create-a-new-team): Learn how to create new teams. > - [Manage Teams](/v1/docs/team-actions): Edit team information, exit teams, and convert teams to channels. > - [Manage Team Channels](/v1/docs/manage-team-channels): Manage the channels under a team.