Manage user groups

User groups offer a flexible way to manage permissions in your organization. Most permissions in Zulip can be granted to any combination of roles, groups, and individual users.

Groups provide an easy way to refer to multiple users at once. You can:

  • Mention a group of users, notifying everyone in the group as if they were personally mentioned.
  • Compose a direct message to a user group. This automatically puts all the users in the group into the addressee field.
  • Subscribe a user group to a channel. This individually subscribes all the users in the group.

Create a user group

You can modify the group's name, description, and other settings after it has been created.

  1. Click on the gear () icon in the upper right corner of the web or desktop app.

  2. Select Group settings.

  3. Click Create user group on the right, or click the plus () icon in the upper right.

  4. Fill out the requested information, and click Continue to add members.

  5. Under Add members, enter groups and users you want to add. You can enter a #channel to add all subscribers to the group. Click Add.

  6. Click Create to create the group.

Note: You will only see the Create user group button if you have permission to create user groups.

Change a user group's name or description

  1. Click on the gear () icon in the upper right corner of the web or desktop app.

  2. Select Group settings.

  3. Click All groups in the upper left.

  4. Select a user group.

  5. Select the General tab on the right.

  6. Click the pencil () icon to the right of the user group, and enter a new name or description.

  7. Click Save changes.

Configure group permissions

Guests can never administer user groups, add anyone else to a group, or remove anyone else from a group, even if they belong to a group that has permissions to do so.

Users who can add members to a group can always join the group.

  1. Click on the gear () icon in the upper right corner of the web or desktop app.

  2. Select Group settings.

  3. Click All groups in the upper left.

  4. Select a user group.

  5. Select the General tab on the right.

  6. Under Group permissions, configure Who can administer this group, Who can mention this group, Who can add members to this group, Who can join this group, and Who can leave this group.

  7. Click Save changes.

Add groups and users to a group

You can add users to a group, or add a group to any other group. Nesting groups makes them easier to maintain. For example, moving a user from one team group to another can automatically update what department group they belong to.

  1. Click on the gear () icon in the upper right corner of the web or desktop app.

  2. Select Group settings.

  3. Click All groups in the upper left.

  4. Select a user group.

  5. Select the Members tab on the right.

  6. Under Add members, enter groups and users you want to add. You can enter a #channel to add all subscribers to the group.

  7. Click Add. Zulip will notify everyone who is added to the group.

Remove users from a user group

  1. Click on the gear () icon in the upper right corner of the web or desktop app.

  2. Select Group settings.

  3. Click All groups in the upper left.

  4. Select a user group.

  5. Select the Members tab on the right.

  6. Under Members, find the user you would like to remove.

  7. Click the Remove button in that row. Zulip will notify everyone who is removed from the group.

Deactivate a user group

  1. Click on the gear () icon in the upper right corner of the web or desktop app.

  2. Select Group settings.

  3. Click All groups in the upper left.

  4. Select a user group.

  5. Click the Deactivate group () button in the upper right corner of the user group settings panel.

  6. Click Confirm.

Configure who can create user groups

This feature is only available to organization owners and administrators.

You can configure who can create groups in your organization. Guests can never create user groups, even if they belong to a group that has permissions to do so.

  1. Click on the gear () icon in the upper right corner of the web or desktop app.

  2. Select Organization settings.

  3. On the left, click Organization permissions.

  4. Under Other permissions, configure Who can create user groups.

  5. Click Save changes.

Configure who can administer all user groups

This feature is only available to organization owners and administrators.

You can configure who can administer all user groups in your organization. Guests can never administer user groups, even if they belong to a group that has permissions to do so.

In addition, you can give users permission to administer a specific group.

  1. Click on the gear () icon in the upper right corner of the web or desktop app.

  2. Select Organization settings.

  3. On the left, click Organization permissions.

  4. Under Other permissions, configure Who can administer all user groups.

  5. Click Save changes.