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How can I call Microsoft Teams?

First things to know about calls in Microsoft Teams

Microsoft Teams – Make a Call

Calls are an easy method to connect with Teams. One-on-one calls are possible or calls with a group of individuals. You can schedule them prior to time, similar to an appointment or begin them in the middle of the night during chat.

Meetings are an excellent opportunity to work together with Teams, calls could be a faster method to connect for the completion of specific tasks or getting answers quickly to your questions. How can I call Microsoft Teams? Things to know before you make calls to Microsoft Teams.

In this Article:

  • How can I call Microsoft Teams?
  • First things to know about calls in Microsoft Teams
  • What if I Don’t See These Teams Call options?
  • What if I Can’t Find Other Microsoft Teams Users?

How can I call Microsoft Teams?

How can I call Microsoft Teams? You can conduct one-on-one calls or make group calls for anyone within your company directly through chat without having to organize a team meeting. The calls are private and won’t be included in any group chat. Call entries will show up in your chat, however.

  1. Go to your chat list, and click New chat to start a new conversation.
  2. Type the name or names into the To field at the top of your new chat.
  3. Select Video call or Audio call to start a call.

As many as 20 people are able to be connected to the same video conference. If you’re not engaged in conversation with the person you’d like to call, you can initiate the call with the command. Click on the command box on the upper right-hand side of your screen, and then type”/call” and then choose that name or the number of the user you’d like to contact.

You can also make one-on-one calls from someone’s profile page. You can open it by clicking the picture of them within a channel or via the search.

First things to know about calls in Microsoft Teams

1. There are many ways to make a call in Teams

Anywhere you are in Teams or elsewhere, you are able to start the call with someone (or or a group of participants). Here are a few ways to do it:

  • Make or answer a call from anywhere. Select either Video call or Audio call . Any call can be a video call or an audio-only call. It’s always up to you. Answering a call is simple too. Just select Video call  or Audio call  when prompted. When someone calls you, you’ll get a notification that lets you accept or decline the call.
  • Turn a chat into a call. With one click, you can make any chat into a call in Teams. When you’re in a chat, select Video call or Audio call  in the upper-right corner of Teams. The person you are chatting with (or the people, if it’s a group chat) will receive a call from you. 

Call from your call history such as call history, speed dial or your contacts:

Access your call history and quickly call anyone back from the list.

Go to Calls and review the History section in the center of the screen. Select any item from the list and then choose Call in the Details section on the right side of Teams.

From your speed dial, you can quickly call people that you previously saved to this list.

To access your speed dial, go to Calls and then find the Speed dial section on the right side of Teams.

From your voicemail, you can quickly call back anyone who left a message. 

To access your voicemail, go to History and select the Voicemail button in the upper-right corner. You can call someone back from your voicemail by selecting More actions next to their name > Call back from the call history list, or by clicking Call  under the contact details.

To view your contacts

Click Calls  > Contacts in the upper-left of Teams. From here, you can call anyone by selecting Call to the right of their name.

  • Use the dial pad. If you have a calling plan enabled, you can call anyone from Teams. To dial a number from Teams, go to Calls, and then enter the number of the person you want to reach by using the dial pad located on the left. Then click Call. You can also type the name of a person or group and call them from the dial pad.
  • Hover over someone’s profile picture. Throughout the Teams app, you will find profile pictures of people you’re connected with. (Sometimes people choose avatars or you might just see their initials.). At any time, you can mouse over a profile picture and you will see options to make a video or an audio-only call to that person. Choose one of those options and your call will begin.
  • Placing a Call from the Command Bar
  1. Type a forward slash, which tells Teams you’re giving it a command.
  2. Type call, then hit enter to input the command.
  3. You will be prompted to type the name, email, or phone number of the person you’d like to call. As soon as you click on the person you want, the call will start going through.

2.  You can do a lot while on a call in Teams

During a call, you can take many actions. These are a few common actions you might take:

  • Place a call on hold. Select More actions in your call window and choose Hold. Everyone in the call will be notified that they’ve been put on hold, and you can continue your call by clicking Resume.
  • Transfer a call. Select More actions > Transfer in your call controls. Then, type the name of the person you want to transfer the call to and select them. To finish, select Transfer. 
  • Consult then transfer. If you want to check in with someone before you transfer a call to them,  select More actions  > Consult then transfer. Under Choose a person to consult, start typing the name of the person you want to reach and select them when they appear. You can call them, or consult with them over chat. When you’re ready, select Transfer.
  • Add a delegate. You can pick someone in Teams to be your delegate—to receive and make calls on your behalf. When you add a delegate, you’re essentially sharing your phone line with them, so they can see and share all of your calls.To designate a delegate, select Settings and more next to your profile picture at the top of Teams and choose Settings > General. Under Delegation, select Manage delegates. There you can see who you’re a delegate for, and add and remove your own delegates.  
  • Share a line with a delegate. Select Settings and more next to your profile picture at the top of Teams and choose Settings > General. Under Delegation, select Manage delegates. Click Your delegates and type the person’s name in the Add a delegate box.

3. Review your call history

Your call history is located in the center of the calls experience and shows a list of past calls (including missed calls).

Go to Calls > History. From any call in the list, select  More actions  > Call back to begin a call automatically. 

You can also chat with that contact, add them to speed dial, and add them to your contacts—all from the More actions menu.

4. Access your voicemail

Your voicemail is another familiar tool for getting the most out of your calling experience in Teams. Go to Calls > History and then select Voicemail in the upper-right. From here you can: 

  • Review messages and transcripts from calls
  • Customize call rules
  • Record a greeting
  • Call anyone who’s left you a message 

Call someone back from your voicemail by selecting More actions  next to their name > Call back from the call history list, or by clicking Calls under the contact Details on the right side of Teams.

What if I Don’t See These Teams Call options?

Microsoft Teams comes in many different configurations. This means you might not have access to all the options for calling we’ve discussed here. The access you have to these features will depend on the kind of account you have.

If you’re a member of an unpaid Microsoft Teams account, or an account for business or education which does not have Microsoft Phone System as well as Calling Plan licensing, you will not be able to call any number through the Team’s account. This is a paid-for service that requires this specific license from Microsoft in addition to the existing Office 365 account.

Without this additional license your call tab might appear a bit different. In particular there won’t be a dial pad with a number.

It doesn’t mean that you can’t make calls using Microsoft Teams, but it does mean that you’re restricted from speaking to fellow Microsoft Teams users. Find contacts using their names or emails by following the steps on this page for calling them using Your Teams account.

What if I Can’t Find Other Microsoft Teams Users?

Your education or business account is managed by your organization’s IT administrators. They can disable or turn on the ability to look up users who are not part of your company or school–and also for other users to connect with you.If it’s not possible to find outside users when you try to call them and you want to make sure that it is checked with your IT administrator to confirm whether external federation is activated.

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