A private Slack channel only lets those we invite join. It gives you a little more control over content moderation and helps you keep proprietary information secure.
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Slack is an excellent platform for business communications. It will keep your team organized and up-to-date. But, sometimes, you don’t want the entire organization in every Slack channel. So, we’ll teach you how to make a private Slack channel.
What is a Private Slack Channel?
Private Slack channels ensure that any messages or files sent in the channel aren’t searchable or readable by any non-members in the organization. Making a Slack channel private gives you a little more freedom to send sensitive information to trusted team members while ensuring prying eyes don’t see anything.
Only Slack Owners, Admins, and Managers can change a Slack Channel to private. The limitations of who can change a Slack channel to private are set to only some by default to ensure that no one nefariously changes a Slack channel’s security parameters. Especially because when you change a channel to Private, you can’t change it back to Public.
How to Make a Slack Channel Private on a Desktop
Before changing your Slack channel to private, be sure you never want to turn it public again. Once you complete the steps below, that channel will be private forever.
As long as you’re ready to make your Slack channel private and you have permission to do so, follow these steps:
Step 1: Open the Channel
Your Slack channels are on the left side and are accompanied by hashtags (#).
Open Slack and navigate to the Channel you’re making private.
Step 2: Click on the Channel’s Name
After clicking on your channel in the left-side menu, you’ll see your conversation in the main portion of the screen and the channel’s name just above that with a little arrow icon. Click your channel’s name at the top.
Step 3: Click Settings
A new window opens with a few options near the top. The last option at the top of the page and to the right is Settings. Click Settings.
Step 4: Click Change to Private Channel
Finally, you can make the Slack channel private by clicking the Change to a private channel button.
Step 5: Confirm
Confirm that you want this channel to stay private by clicking Change to Private.
How to Create a Private Channel in Slack on a Desktop
If you don’t have the channel but would like to create one and make it private before publishing it, you can. It’s best to create a private channel instead of making one private after creation because any prior documents and messages are still accessible to everyone in the channel.
So, if you need to create a private channel, follow these steps:
Step 1: Click Add Channel
Open Slack and look at the menu to the left. Under your existing channels, click Add channels. A drop down menu will appear. Click Create a new channel.
Step 2: Toggle the Make Private Switch
Name your new channel and add a description if you like. Then, toggle the switch next to Make Private.
Step 3: Click Create
Finally, click Create in the lower right corner of the create a channel pop-up page.
How to Make a Channel Private on the Slack Mobile App
If you’re away from your computer at the moment, you can use the Slack mobile app to create private channels. But you can’t make an existing channel private on the mobile app (so head to a computer if you need to convert an existing Slack channel to private).
If you want to make a new private channel on the Mobile app, follow these steps:
Step 1: Tap Add Channel
Open Slack and look at the Channels section (in the middle of the home page). Then, tap Add Channel.
Step 2: Create the Channel
iOS users will see a small pop-up appear at the bottom of the screen. Tap Create Channel.
Android Users will see a + sign in the lower right corner. Tap the + sign.
Step 3: Toggle the Make Private Switch
Name your channel and add a description. Then, tap the Make Private toggle switch to turn it on.
To finish the process, tap Create.
Granting Private Channel Permissions
You may not see the option to make a channel private if you don’t have permission. However, it’s easy to check and add permissions. Follow these steps to grant or revoke someone’s permission to create Private Slack channels:
Step 1: Click the Workspace Name
In the upper left corner, click the Workspace’s name.
Step 2: Click Settings & Administration
When you click your workspace name in the upper left corner, you will see Settings & Administration in the dropdown menu. Click that.
Step 3: Click Manage Members
A new pop-out window will appear to the left. Click Manage members to move forward.
Step 4: Click the Three-Dot Menu Icon
You’ll see a three-dot menu icon to the right of each person’s name. Select the menu next to the user whose permissions you’d like to tweak.
Step 5: Click Change Account Type
A small dropdown will appear. Click Change account type.
Helpful hint: Click Deactivate account if you’d like to remove the member.
Step 6: Choose an Option
You can grant the user permission to create private Slack channels by selecting the Workspace Owner or Workspace Admin bubbles. Or, you can revoke their permissions by selecting Full Member.
Click Save when you set the individual’s permissions.
Private Slack Channels
Although there are some rules and processes to be aware of, making a Slack channel private is pretty straightforward. As long as you have permission to do so and you’re okay with never making the channel public, the steps above will work for you.
You can create a new private slack channel or convert an existing one to private (on a desktop). After completing the steps above, your channel is only viewable by those you invite, making things safer and more secure.
