How guest accounts work in Teams

Overview

Microsoft Teams allows organizations to collaborate not only with internal team members but also with external users through Guest Access. Guest accounts enable external users (such as clients, vendors, or partners) to participate in Teams without needing a company account.

This document explains how guest accounts function in Teams, including setup, permissions, and best practices for secure collaboration.

1. What is a Guest Account?

A Guest Account in Teams is a type of external user access that allows people outside your organization to:

Participate in Teams chats.
Join team meetings.
Access shared files and resources (with permissions).
Collaborate in channels.
Guests use their own email accounts (work, school, or personal like Gmail) to sign in.

2. How Guests Are Invited

Team Owner Invitation

Team owners can add a guest by selecting Add member in their team settings and entering the guest's email address.

The guest receives an invitation email to join the team.

Acceptance & Authentication.
Guests click the invitation link.

They may need to sign in and verify your email.
After acceptance, you will be labeled as "Guest" in Teams.

3. What Guests Can Do

Feature Guest Access Join Teams meetings ✅ Participate in team chat ✅ Access files in Teams (SharePoint) ✅ (if granted) Edit files in Teams ✅ (if permission given) Use private channels ❌ (only if added) Create or delete teams ❌ Access Planner tasks ✅ (if enabled) View org charts ❌

Note: Guest capabilities depend on the organization's settings and policies.

4. Security Considerations

Conditional Access: Enforce policies such as MFA (Multi-Factor Authentication) for guests.
Review Guest Accounts Regularly: Regular audits help remove inactive or outdated guest accounts.
Limit Sharing: Only share necessary files and channels.
Use Sensitivity Labels: Protect sensitive information by classifying and controlling access.

5. How Guests Switch Between Tenants

Guests can easily switch between organizations in Teams:

Click their profile picture in the top right corner of Teams.
Select the desired organization from the drop-down list.
Switching between tenants might take a few seconds, and notifications are specific to the active organization.

6. Best Practices for Guest Access

Use Teams policies to manage guest capabilities.
Inform guests of your collaboration guidelines.
Train internal users on how to safely collaborate with guests.
Regularly review guest access logs for security.

8. Troubleshooting Guest Access

Issue Solution Guest not receiving invitation Check spam folder, resend invite, ensure correct email. Guest cannot access files Verify permissions in SharePoint and Teams settings. Guest account sign-in errors Ensure the guest has a valid Microsoft account linked to their email.