How to add tags in Microsoft Teams

Using tags in Microsoft Teams allows you to mention of group of people all at once. By using tags, you no longer have to mention individual names, you can group several people under the same tag to notify them as a group. You can group people together based on their job role, location, or department.

Once you add a tag, just use the @tag_name in a channel in Microsoft Teams. Everyone assigned a tag will receive a notification the same as if they are @mentioned directly. Another way you can use a tag is to start a new chat and select the tag that includes the people that you want to reach.

Not just anyone can create and manage tags in Microsoft Teams. If you want to add and manage tags, you need to be a team owner in Microsoft Teams. If you are unable to add or manage tags, your organization might not have the feature enabled in Microsoft Teams yet.

If tags are enabled and you are not a team owner, you can still view the tags that have been assigned to you and other team members. Even though you are not the team owner, you can still use tag names to alert groups within your organization in channel conversations.

Add tags in Teams

Here are the steps you need to take to add and manage tags in Microsoft Teams.

1. Select Teams from the left side of the Microsoft Teams desktop app and find your team on the list.
2. Select the three-dot menu to the right of the channel name to see more options.
3. Select Manage tags to create and assign tags to people in Microsoft Teams

Now, you can add and assign tags to people within your organization. For example, you can label the group “Leadership” and add people that work within that specific department in your organization. Tap Create when you are finished adding people to a specific tag name.

Mention a tag in a channel

Use the @tag_name as you would for any other @mention in Microsoft Teams. In a channel conversation, use @tag_name to alert all the people assigned to the tag. Microsoft Teams will offer suggestions for which tag to send the message to based on what you type.

Using tags in a chat

 

If you want to chat with a group assigned to a tag, all you need to do is use the @tag_name. Instead of using @mentions for individual names, you can use the @tag_name to mention everyone assigned to the tag. Use the tag name in the same way you would start a new chat with an individual in Microsoft Teams.

Team administrative settings for tags

Only team owners can choose which users can add and manage tags. Here’s what you need to do to manage your team owner settings in Microsoft Teams.

1. Select Teams on the left side of the desktop app and choose your preferred team channel.
2. Select the three-dot menu and select Manage team.
3. Select the Settings tab.
4. Scroll down to the Tags section.

Here, team owners can change the tag settings to allow only team owners or all team members to add tags in Microsoft Teams.

Admin settings

Microsoft Teams admins can further modify the tag settings for team owners and team members in your organization. In Microsoft Teams, you can have a total of 100 tags with up to 100 team members added to a single tag in Microsoft Teams. Up to 25 different tags can be assigned to an single team member.

Furthermore, Microsoft Teams admins can allow team owners to override who can apply tags, add addition tags, and use up to 25 suggested default tags in Microsoft Teams. Each tag name can contain a maximum of 25 characters. Depending on if the feature is turned on, team owners and team members can use these suggested tags, modify the tag names, or create a new set of tags.

Do you think using tags in Microsoft Teams would be helpful in your organization? Let us know in the comments.