Everything you can do in a Slack call can now be done in a huddle. To give organizations one tool for real-time conversations in Slack, all audio, video, and screen sharing capabilities are now unified in huddles.
What you need to know
Slack calls will be available until March 29, 2023.
Starting March 30, all live audio and video conversations will take place in huddles.
Making calls with third-party apps will remain unchanged and support will continue for any calling app you use in Slack.
Notes for admins
Members of your workspace will see in-product banners with information about switching to huddles whenever they try to make a call.
If you’d like, you can turn off Slack calls ahead of March 30 to simplify tool management and encourage huddles usage in your organization.
Coming soon: We're working on providing the ability to join huddles from multiple devices simultaneously, and improvements to huddles invites so they're more noticeable.
FAQs
Who can use huddles?
On the free plan, huddles can have a maximum of two participants. On paid plans, huddles can have up to 50 participants, and anyone in a conversation can join a huddle once it starts.
How are huddles different from calls?
Huddles allow for informal collaboration in real time, so you’re not limited to talking with only the people you decide to call. Unlike calls, huddles are faster, easier and more informal, and people can join and leave as they please.
Do huddles have all of the same features as calls?
Huddles now offer all of the functionality available in Slack calls and more — video, multi-person screen sharing, a dedicated message thread, and reactions, stickers, and effects. Compare the features of calls to huddles below:
Feature
Calls
Huddles
Video
Yes
Yes*
Screen share
Yes (one person can share their screen at a time)
Yes (two people can share their screens at once)*
Drawing on shared screens
Yes
Yes*
Thread for messages, links, and files
No
Yes*
Emoji reactions, animated effects, and stickers
Emoji reactions
Emoji reactions, effects, and stickers*
Live captions
Yes
Yes
Notifications
Yes (calls ring for all invitees)
Yes (for DMs; in channels, you’ll only be notified if you’re invited to a huddle that’s taking place)*
*New features added to huddles in September 2022
What will the calls experience be between now and March 2023?
A few weeks after you have access to the new huddles features, you’ll see notifications in Slack prompting you to try huddles when you attempt to make a call. Slack calls will continue to work until March 29, but will be completely unavailable starting March 30.
Will I still be able to make calls with third-party apps?
Yes. The experience for third-party calling apps will remain unchanged and support will continue for any apps you’ve integrated with Slack.
Where can I learn more about huddles?
Read more about huddles features and how to use them to work side-by-side with your team in our Help Center.
Note: During the transition to huddles, support for troubleshooting calls issues will be limited.
