How to Disable Chat in Zoom

As one of the most popular live conferencing apps on the market, it’s only natural that Zoom has a chat option to complement the video/audio communication. The chat option, of course, isn’t an obligatory option. Whether you’re in the middle of a meeting or not, the chat option can be deactivated in Zoom.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to disable the chat function in Zoom across various devices the app is available on.

How to Disable Chat in Zoom on iOS and Android

Although apps often have the same features on iOS and Android, sometimes they may work differently. But not for Zoom, where the settings are similar if not identical on both of the major mobile/tablet operating systems.

Disabling the chat option works the same on iOS and Android devices. Here’s how to do it.

1. Once a meeting is underway, navigate to the bottom-right corner of the screen.
   
2. Tap the More entry.
   
3. From the list, go to Meeting Settings on iOS or Security on Android.
   
4. In the next screen, under Allow Participants to select Chat with.
   
5. Here, you can select whether you want the participants to be able to chat with No One, Host Only, Everyone Publicly, or Everyone.
   

Note that as a host, you’ll still be able to send messages to the group. However, if you select No One, none of the participants will be able to send any messages inside the chat.

How to Disable Chat in Zoom on a Windows, Mac, or Chromebook PC

Yes, the app does exist for Windows and Mac computers. The two work roughly the same. You can also run a meeting via the web browser, in which case Windows, Mac, and Chromebook users would access the same web app available online. Here’s how to disable the chat function in Zoom on your computer.

1. Start the meeting.
   
2. Go to the bottom of the screen and navigate to the Chat icon and click it.
   
3. Click the three dots, located to the right side of the text box.
   
4. Select No One, Host Only, Everyone Publicly, or Everyone Publicly or Privately.
   

That’s it. If you’ve selected No One, people won’t be able to chat within the Zoom meeting. You, however, will still be able to use the chat, and everyone within the chat will be able to see the messages.

Who Can Change Chat Options

Every Zoom meeting has a host who starts the meeting and invites/allows others to join. The host predictably has full control of the meeting.

Only the host of a meeting has the power to change the chat settings. As a participant, you can’t enable/disable your or anyone else’s ability to participate in text chatting.

How to Disable Chat in Zoom During a Meeting

Changing the chat settings in the middle of a meeting is very much possible. In fact, the tutorial above explains how to do it in-meeting.

Although you can plan and schedule meetings, as well as set up various options before the meeting takes place, you can’t disable chat beforehand. The only way to disable the chat in a Zoom meeting is when it’s live.

The Different Zoom Chat Options

As you already noticed, there are three basic chat options across all devices.

• The default option (Everyone on iOS/Android and Everyone Publicly and Privately on computer devices) allows everyone in a meeting to communicate with each other privately or publicly.
• The Everyone Publicly option is the first level of restriction on Zoom chats. It still allows everyone to communicate with everyone else via text messages but restricts private communication between participants.
• The Host Only option allows the participants to text the host (you) only.
• Finally, the No One option prevents everyone from engaging in any form of textual communication. You, as a host, will still be able to use the chat, and the participants will see your messages.

Useful Zoom Chat Tips

Although Zoom was made with audio and video conference calls in mind, the chat function is pretty much unavoidable. Now, basic as it seems, the chat function on Zoom actually gives you some cool features to use. Here are some of them.

Mentioning People

Like any social media platform or instant messaging app, Zoom allows you to mention other chat participants. You’re probably familiar with how this works.

1. Type in the “@” sign, followed by a few starting characters for the person you aim to mention.
   
2. A list will pop up, offering you to select the person in question.
   
3. Select the correct user, type in the message, and hit Enter to send it.
   

Sending Announcements

This neat feature is available only to paid members. Announcements are a slightly bigger deal than mentioning people, so you’ll have to go through a few steps to do it.

1. Go to Account Management after signing in to Zoom using a web browser.
2. Navigate to IM Management, followed by IM Settings.
3. Go to Visibility and flip the Announcements switch on.
4. Now, use the + icon to add the users that you want to allow sending/receiving announcements.
5. Use the users’ email addresses and select Add once you’ve found each user.
6. Now, inside the Zoom app, navigate to Chat, followed by Announcements in the left bar.
7. Formulate the announcement and add a file if necessary.
8. Finish off by hitting Enter to send the announcement to the select recipients.

Zoom Chat File Support

One of the most awesome things about Zoom’s chat feature is that it supports the vast majority of file types. The file types can be restricted by the host, assuming that they have a paid subscription.

Saving Chats

There are a number of reasons why you might want to save a Zoom chat conversation. You could select the entire conversation, hit Ctrl+C, and paste it somewhere. Fortunately, Zoom makes this very easy. You can even instruct Zoom to autosave your chats. This is done from the Settings menu found in your Zoom browser account. The setting that you’re looking for is called Autosaving chats. Flip the switch next to it on.

Here’s how to save a chat manually.

1. Click the Chat icon while inside a meeting.
   
2. Then, go to More.
   
3. Select Save Chat.
   
4. Follow the on-screen instructions.
   

Additional FAQ

Is it possible to permanently disable all private chats for all meetings I create in Zoom?

Although you can’t enable/disable a chat as a part of Zoom’s scheduling options, you can permanently disable Zoom chats.

1. To do this, open your preferred browser and sign in to your Zoom account.

2. Then, go to Settings and select the Personal category in the bar to the left.

3. Select In Meeting (Basic). You’ll see the Chat toggle switch, flip the switch off. You can also disable the Private chat option and disallow the participants to save the chat.

When a screen is shared in Zoom, is the private chat window visible to others?

By default, the Zoom window will not be shared with other participants as a part of the screen sharing experience. So, by default, the private chat isn’t visible to other participants of a Zoom meeting. However, if you want the other participants to see your Zoom screen, you can activate this setting. This is useful when the host wants to explain the Zoom functions to others.

1. To do this, make sure that the Show Zoom windows during screen share option are enabled under In Meeting (Basic).

As a host, can I view private chats in Zoom?

According to Zoom’s website, “Private messages between participants are not viewable by the host.” Although the public chats and messages are recorded either in the cloud or on a computer, your host will never be able to access the messages sent privately. However, Zoom cautions that it’s best if you reserve your opinions to yourself, as it’s easy to accidentally send a privately-intended message to the global chat.

Is Zoom Private?

As long as you send messages publically inside a chat, there is evidence that you’ve sent the messages. The meetings are saved to the cloud, to the device being used, or to both simultaneously. Then, there’s the question of encryption. Yes, Zoom chats can be encrypted, but the encryption is disabled by default.

1. To switch it on, you have to flip on the switch next to Require Encryption for 3rd Party Endpoints (H323/SIP). This setting is found under the In Meeting (Basic) section in the browser settings menu.

Can I use Zoom for personal use?

Although Zoom was initially intended for enterprise use, the free plan of the app is sufficient to run basic video, audio, and textual meetings. As such, Zoom is definitely suitable for personal use among friends and family members. The paid plan brings some great benefits to the table, though.

Tweaking the Zoom Chat Settings

Although it’s not the primary focus of Zoom, the chat option boasts solid versatility. As a meeting host, you can select the message types that the meeting participants can send, as well as tweak various other options.

Hopefully, this guide helped you get around the basic Zoom chat settings. If some of your questions are left unanswered, feel free to jump to the comments below and hit us up. Our community is more than willing to help out.