How to Schedule a Microsoft Teams Meeting from Teams or Outlook
Applies to
Microsoft Teams for Windows, macOS, web, iPhone, Android, Outlook, work, school, and personal accounts
Last updated
6 July 2026
Problem
You want to schedule a Microsoft Teams meeting, but you are not sure whether to create it in Teams or Outlook. Some users accidentally create a normal calendar event without a Teams meeting link, invite the wrong people, or forget to check meeting options before sending the invite.
Scheduling Teams meetings correctly ensures attendees receive the right link, calendar entry, and joining details.
Solution
Create the meeting from the Teams calendar or Outlook calendar, add the required attendees, confirm the Teams meeting link is included, then review meeting options such as lobby settings, presenters, and recording permissions where needed.
Step by step instructions
Schedule a meeting from Microsoft Teams
Open Microsoft Teams or go to:
Select Calendar from the left side menu.
Choose New meeting.
Enter a clear meeting title.
Add required attendees.
Choose the date, start time, and end time.
Add a location only if there is also a physical meeting place.
Add meeting details in the description box.
Select Send to create the meeting and invite attendees.
Schedule a meeting from Outlook
Open Outlook.
Go to your calendar.
Select New event or New meeting.
Add a meeting title.
Add attendees.
Choose the date and time.
Select the option to make it a Teams meeting.
This may appear as Teams Meeting, Add online meeting, or Online meeting, depending on your Outlook version.
Confirm that a Teams meeting link appears in the invite body before sending.
Schedule a meeting from Outlook on the web
Open Outlook on the web at:
Sign in with your Microsoft account.
Open the Calendar section.
Select New event.
Add the meeting title, attendees, date, and time.
Enable the Teams meeting or online meeting option.
Check that the invite includes online meeting details.
Select Send.
Add the right attendees
When adding attendees, check names and email addresses carefully.
For work or school accounts, internal users may appear automatically when you type their name.
For external users, enter the full email address.
Before sending, check whether attendees are:
- Required
- Optional
- Internal users
- External guests
- Distribution lists
- Shared mailbox addresses
- Room or resource calendars
This helps avoid inviting the wrong people or missing key attendees.
Add a useful meeting description
Use the description area to explain the meeting purpose.
A good meeting description may include:
- Agenda
- Expected outcome
- Documents to review
- Preparation required
- Links to relevant files
- Contact person for questions
This makes the meeting easier for attendees to understand before joining.
Check scheduling availability
If your organisation uses Microsoft 365 calendars, Teams or Outlook may show attendee availability.
Use the scheduling assistant if available.
Check for conflicts before sending the invite.
If many attendees are unavailable, choose another time.
Review meeting options
After creating the meeting, open the meeting details.
Look for Meeting options.
Depending on your account and organisation settings, you may be able to control:
- Who can bypass the lobby
- Who can present
- Whether attendees can use microphones
- Whether attendees can use cameras
- Whether meeting chat is enabled
- Whether reactions are allowed
- Whether recording is allowed
For formal meetings, lessons, webinars, or external meetings, review these options before the meeting starts.
Send updates if details change
If the date, time, attendees, or agenda changes, update the meeting rather than creating a second invite.
Open the meeting from Teams or Outlook.
Make the changes.
Send the update to attendees.
This keeps everyone on the same meeting link and avoids duplicate calendar entries.
Join the scheduled meeting
When it is time to join, open Teams.
Go to Calendar.
Select the meeting.
Choose Join.
You can also join from the Outlook calendar invite or directly from the meeting link.
Cancel a Teams meeting
If the meeting is no longer needed, open it in Teams or Outlook.
Choose Cancel meeting.
Add a short cancellation message if useful.
Send the cancellation so attendees’ calendars update correctly.
Optional methods or tools
- Use https://teams.microsoft.com to schedule meetings if the desktop app is unavailable
- Use https://outlook.office.com to schedule from Outlook on the web
- Use Scheduling Assistant where available to check attendee availability
- Add links to OneDrive or SharePoint files in the meeting description
- Use meeting options for external meetings, lessons, interviews, or formal sessions
Best practices or tips
- Use clear meeting titles so attendees understand the purpose
- Confirm the Teams meeting link is included before sending
- Add an agenda for meetings longer than a quick catch up
- Review lobby and presenter settings for external meetings
- Update existing invites instead of creating duplicate meetings
Scheduling a Microsoft Teams meeting from Teams or Outlook is straightforward once you know where the Teams meeting link is added. The most important step is confirming that the invite includes online meeting details before sending it to attendees.
Using Teams, Outlook, and Outlook on the web gives you flexible ways to create meetings depending on how you manage your calendar. By checking attendees, agenda, availability, and meeting options, you can avoid common scheduling problems and make Teams meetings easier for everyone to join.
