Scheduling a meeting for a whole department doesn't have to mean fifty separate names. Just add a distribution list or Microsoft 365 group as an attendee. Everyone in the group gets the invitation with the Teams link. This article shows how to invite a group, the difference between both kinds of groups and how replies, the lobby and the group calendar behave.
Distribution list or Microsoft 365 group?
- A distribution list is an email address that forwards messages to all members. The invitation lands in each member's calendar, just as if you had invited everyone separately.
- A Microsoft 365 group has its own mailbox and a group calendar. The meeting goes into that group calendar. Members also get the invitation in their own mailbox if they follow the group, depending on the group's settings.
Don't have a list yet? Read create a distribution list in Microsoft 365.
Invite a group
- Create a new meeting in Teams or Outlook. Working from the calendar in Teams? Also read schedule a Teams meeting.
- In the attendees field, type the name or email address of the distribution list or Microsoft 365 group and pick the group from the suggestions.
- Check that the Teams meeting option is turned on.
- Fill in the rest and select Send.
Expand a group
In Outlook you can select the plus sign next to a distribution list to put its members on the invite one by one. Then you see per person who accepted. That works best with smaller groups. Note: the expanded list is no longer updated when the group changes. Dynamic distribution groups, whose members are determined automatically, can't be expanded.
Good to know
- Replies: without expanding, the overview of who's attending is less complete. If you want to know exactly, expand the group or ask people to respond.
- Lobby: whether group members count as invited for the People I invite option depends on how you invite them. Test it beforehand, or choose People in my organization for an internal meeting.
- New members who join a distribution list later don't automatically get an existing recurring meeting in their calendar. Resend the invitation or add them separately.
- Group calendar: for a Microsoft 365 group, the meeting also lands in the group calendar when you add the group as an attendee. New members do see the meeting there.
- Channel meeting: for a meeting with a fixed team you can also schedule a channel meeting. The conversation and the recording then live in the channel.
- In person or online: for a hybrid meeting, invitees can let you know whether they join in person or online.
- Forwarding: is the meeting meant only for the group? Read how to prevent a Teams meeting invite from being forwarded.
Large groups
A regular Teams meeting has a maximum number of participants who can actively take part. If you invite a very large group to a presentation, such as an all-staff meeting, a town hall or webinar is often a better fit. There you have more control over who speaks and who only watches.
Common problems
A colleague didn't receive the invitation.
Check whether that person is a member of the group. With a Microsoft 365 group, they may also not be following the group in their mailbox.
External members of the list have to wait in the lobby.
That's normal behaviour for guests and external people, depending on the lobby settings. External people without an account can join without a Microsoft account.
Tip for admins
Admins can restrict who is allowed to send to a distribution list. Anyone without permission then gets an error when sending the invitation. Check that setting when someone reports that the invitation doesn't arrive.
Nederlandstalige versie: Een distributielijst of Microsoft 365-groep uitnodigen voor een Teams-vergadering