Microsoft 365 includes a wide range of notification and focus features designed to keep you informed without overwhelming you. With the right configuration, you can reduce unnecessary alerts, manage interruptions more effectively, and create a digital workspace that supports the way you work.

This guide brings together practical ways to:

  • Control how and when you receive notifications
  • Prioritise important messages and mentions
  • Reduce visual and audio distractions
  • Use focus tools to protect uninterrupted time

There is no single “correct” setup. The most effective notification strategy depends on your role, workload, and working style. By understanding what each setting does, you can tailor Microsoft 365 and Windows to strike the right balance between staying connected and maintaining focus.

Taking control of your environment

Microsoft Teams notifications

Microsoft Teams can generate a high number of alerts throughout the day. Taking a few minutes to adjust how notifications behave can help you stay informed without being constantly interrupted.

Note: You do not need to change every Teams notification setting. The purpose of this section is to help you understand what each option controls, so you can adjust only the settings that support your working style. The best setup is one that balances staying informed with avoiding unnecessary interruption.

Expand the sections below to view the instructions and additional information

What are Microsoft Teams notifications

Microsoft Teams notifications keep you informed about chat messages, channel activity, mentions, meetings, and calls. They are designed to ensure you do not miss important communication while collaborating with others.

How Teams notifications work

Teams sends notifications based on the type of activity and your chosen settings. You can control how notifications are delivered and which types of activity trigger alerts.

  • Chat messages and channel posts can appear as banner notifications or in the Activity feed
  • @mentions highlight messages that are directed specifically at you
  • Meeting reminders and call alerts notify you when live interaction is required
  • Sounds, badges, and taskbar flashing can be enabled or disabled

Notifications can appear as on-screen banners, be shown only in the Activity feed, or be turned off entirely, depending on your preferences.

Why you would adjust Teams notifications

Adjusting Teams notifications helps you strike the right balance between staying connected and avoiding constant interruption.

If you belong to multiple teams or channels, tailoring notification settings can reduce background noise while ensuring important messages, mentions, and meetings still stand out.

Accessing Teams notification settings

You can review and adjust your notification settings directly within Microsoft Teams.

  1. Within Microsoft Teams, select More option (...) in the top right corner and choose Settings. 
  2. From the left navigation bar, select Notifications and activity.

From here, you can customise how and when Teams alerts you to messages, meetings, and other activity.

General settings

Teams includes a range of notification options that control what you are alerted about, how alerts appear, and when Teams should remain quiet. Review each area below to reduce unnecessary interruptions while still receiving the updates that matter.

 

Muting notifications

Mute all notifications (except for calls and meetings) Temporarily silences most Teams alerts (such as chat and channel activity) while still allowing calls and meeting notifications to come through. Useful when you need focused time but still want to remain reachable.
Always allow urgent and priority contact notifications Ensures urgent messages and notifications from priority contacts are still delivered, even when other notifications are muted. Helpful if you want to reduce noise without blocking important communication.

Sound settings

Play sounds with notifications Plays an audible alert for notifications. Consider turning this off if you prefer fewer disruptions and rely on visual notifications instead.
Play sounds with urgent and priority contact notifications Plays sounds for urgent messages and priority contacts only. Useful if you want important alerts to stand out without enabling sounds for all activity.
Play sounds with incoming calls, requests to join, and meeting start notifications Limits sounds to calls and meeting-related prompts. Helps ensure you do not miss live interactions while keeping chat notification sounds to a minimum.
Play sounds when I’m busy or in a meeting Allows notification sounds even when your status is Busy or you are in a meeting. Leaving this off can help reduce interruptions during calls, meetings, and focused work.

Display settings

Show message and content previews in notifications Displays a short preview of messages or shared content in notifications. Turning this off can reduce visual distraction and improve privacy.
Show notifications during calls and meetings Keeps notifications visible even when you are on a call or in a meeting. Disabling this can help you stay focused on the conversation.
Flash taskbar when notifications are received Flashes the Teams icon on the taskbar to indicate new activity (this only works if taskbar flashing is enabled in Windows). A subtle alternative to on-screen banners.
Dismiss notifications after a set time Controls how long notification banners remain visible before disappearing. Shorter times reduce clutter; longer times give you more time to read alerts.
Notification position and size Lets you choose where notifications appear and how large they are. Useful for preventing pop-ups from covering important content on screen.

Missed activity emails

Missed activity emails Sends email summaries of Teams activity you may have missed while offline or inactive. Turning this off can reduce inbox clutter if you check Teams regularly, while keeping it on can help you catch up if you rely on email for updates.

Chats and channels settings

The Chats and channels settings control how you are notified about new chat messages, mentions, replies, reactions, and activity in channels. Adjusting these options is one of the quickest ways to reduce notification overload in Teams, particularly if you are a member of multiple teams and channels.

 

Chats

Chat message notifications Controls how you are notified when a new chat message arrives. Choose a less intrusive option (such as Activity only) if you receive high chat volume, or keep banners enabled if you need immediate prompts for direct messages.

@mentions

@Mentions (main toggle) Turns mention notifications on or off. If you switch this off, you will not receive alerts when someone uses @mentions to get your attention. This is not recommended unless you are trying to significantly reduce notifications and can rely on manual check-ins.
Channel and team @mentions Notifies you when a whole channel or team is mentioned (for example, @Team or @Channel). This can generate a lot of alerts in busy spaces, so many people choose to show these in the Activity feed only.
Tag @mentions Notifies you when someone uses a tag that includes you (for example, a group tag created within a team). This is useful for role-based notifications, but can be noisy if tags are used frequently.
Everyone in chat @mentions Notifies you when someone uses an “everyone” mention in a group chat. This is typically used to get the attention of all members and may indicate something time-sensitive.
Personal @mentions Notifies you when someone mentions you directly using your name (for example, @Sean). This is usually the most important mention type to keep enabled, as it is targeted specifically at you.

Channel activity

Replies to my channel posts and replies Notifies you when someone replies to a thread you started, or replies within a thread you have contributed to. Useful for staying on top of conversations you are actively involved in without enabling notifications for all channel posts.
Likes and reactions Notifies you when someone reacts to your messages or posts (for example, likes, emojis, or other reactions). This can be helpful for feedback and acknowledgement, but can become noisy in active channels.
Posts in all shown channels Controls whether you are notified about new posts across all channels you can see. This is one of the highest-volume notification settings and is usually best kept off, unless you only belong to a small number of low-traffic channels.

Include replies (if available) extends this to thread replies as well, which can significantly increase alert volume.

Meeting settings

Meeting notification settings control how and when Teams alerts you about upcoming meetings, meeting chat activity, and ad-hoc meetings. Adjusting these options can help you stay on schedule without being overwhelmed by meeting-related notifications.

 

Meetings

Meeting start notifications Notifies you when a scheduled meeting is about to start. This helps ensure you do not miss meetings, particularly if you are moving between tasks or working away from your calendar.
Show meeting join bar Displays a persistent join bar at the top of Teams when a meeting is about to start or is in progress. This provides a clear visual reminder and quick access to join without searching for the meeting link.
Meeting chat notifications for meetings I’ve accepted Controls how meeting chat messages are delivered for meetings you have accepted. Keeping this unmuted allows you to see updates or shared information before the meeting starts, while muting can reduce noise for large or low-priority meetings.
Meeting chat notifications for meetings marked as tentative or no response Determines how chat notifications behave for meetings you have not yet accepted. Muting chat until you join or send a message helps reduce notifications from meetings you may not attend.
Meet now start notifications Alerts you when a “Meet now” session starts. This is useful for spontaneous or ad-hoc meetings where there may be no scheduled calendar reminder.

Presence settings

Presence notifications allow you to track when specific people in Microsoft Teams become available or go offline. These settings are designed to support time-sensitive collaboration, but can also create unnecessary alerts if overused.

 

Presence

Presence notifications Presence notifications let you receive alerts when selected people change their status, such as becoming available or going offline. This can be helpful when you regularly need to contact someone as soon as they are free.

Managing status notifications

Add people Add specific people to receive notifications when their presence changes. You will be notified when they appear available or go offline. This is best used sparingly for key contacts rather than large numbers of people, to avoid frequent and unnecessary alerts.

Calendar settings

Calendar notification settings control how Teams alerts you to changes related to meetings in your calendar. These options help you stay informed about updates without generating unnecessary notifications.

 

Calendar

New invites, updates and cancellations sent to me Controls how you are notified when you receive a new meeting invitation, or when an existing meeting is updated or cancelled. Keeping this visible in the Activity feed allows you to stay aware of changes without interrupting your work with banners or sounds.
When people forward meetings I’ve organised Notifies you when someone forwards a meeting that you organised to another person. This can be useful for keeping track of who has been added to your meetings, particularly for larger sessions or externally shared events.

Microsoft Outlook notifications

Microsoft Outlook plays a central role in managing email and calendar activity, which can result in frequent notifications during the day. Reviewing and adjusting these settings can help you stay informed about what matters most, while keeping interruptions to a minimum.

Note: There is no single correct Outlook notification setup. This guidance is intended to explain what each setting does, allowing you to tailor notifications to suit how you manage email and calendar activity. Adjust only the options that improve focus and reduce distraction for you.

Expand the sections below to view the instructions and additional information

What are Microsoft Outlook notifications

Microsoft Outlook notifications alert you to new emails, calendar updates, mentions, reactions, and shared document activity. They are designed to help you stay aware of important communication and upcoming commitments.

How Outlook notifications work

Outlook generates notifications based on email activity and calendar events. You can control how these alerts appear and whether they include sounds, desktop banners, or visual indicators.

  • New email alerts can appear as desktop notifications or remain silent
  • Calendar reminders notify you before meetings and appointments
  • @mentions highlight emails that are directed specifically to you
  • Reactions and document comments can trigger notifications

Notifications can be adjusted to show as pop-ups, appear only in the notification pane, or be turned off entirely, depending on how you prefer to manage email activity.

Why you would adjust Outlook notifications

Reviewing Outlook notification settings can help reduce unnecessary interruption, particularly if you receive a high volume of email.

By limiting alerts to priority contacts, mentions, or calendar reminders, you can stay informed about what matters most without reacting to every incoming message.

Accessing Outlook notification settings

You can adjust how Outlook alerts you to email and calendar activity directly within the app.

  1. Within Microsoft Outlook, select the Settings cog in the top right corner.
  2. From the left navigation bar, select General, then Notifications.

From here, you can control how new emails, reminders, and other alerts are delivered.

General settings

Outlook notification settings control how and when you are alerted to new emails, calendar updates, and account activity. Adjusting these options can help you stay informed without constant interruptions, particularly if you receive a high volume of email.

 

Notifications in Outlook

Notifications in Outlook This main setting controls whether Outlook can send notifications at all. When turned on, Outlook is able to display alerts for new emails and calendar activity. Turning this off stops all Outlook notifications on the device.
Allow notifications to play sounds Controls whether Outlook notifications include an audible alert. Disabling sounds can reduce disruption if you prefer to check email at set times, while keeping sounds enabled may be useful if you need immediate awareness of incoming messages.
Send notifications when Outlook is closed Allows Outlook to continue sending notifications even when the app is not open. This is useful if you rely on alerts to prompt you to check email, but may be unnecessary if you prefer to manage email only when Outlook is open.
Accounts included for notifications Determines which email accounts on the device can generate notifications. You can choose to receive alerts from all accounts, or limit notifications to specific accounts to reduce overall notification volume.

Mail settings

Mail notification settings in Outlook control how you are alerted to new emails, reactions, and mentions. These options allow you to reduce email-related interruptions while still highlighting messages that may need your attention.

 

Mail

New email Controls how you are notified when a new email arrives in your inbox. You can choose to show a desktop notification, or turn notifications off entirely if you prefer to check email at planned times.
Notification style Determines whether new email notifications appear as desktop alerts or are disabled. Desktop notifications briefly appear on screen and then disappear automatically.
Show an envelope badge in the taskbar Adds an envelope icon to the Outlook taskbar icon when new mail is received. This provides a subtle visual indicator without showing a pop-up notification.
Only from favourite people Limits new email notifications to messages from contacts you have marked as favourites. This can significantly reduce notification volume while ensuring key contacts still reach you.
Play sound Controls whether a sound is played when a new email notification appears. Disabling this can help minimise disruption, particularly during focused work.

Reactions

Reactions to messages Controls notifications when someone reacts to one of your emails. These alerts can be useful for quick acknowledgement, but may not always require immediate attention.
Show in notifications pane Displays reactions in the Outlook notifications pane rather than as on-screen alerts. This keeps reactions visible without interrupting your workflow.
Play sound Plays a sound when a reaction notification is received. Many users choose to disable this to reduce minor notification noise.

Mentions

@mentions in email Notifies you when someone mentions you directly in an email using @mentions. This helps important or action-focused messages stand out from general email traffic.
Show in notifications pane Displays mention notifications in the notifications pane, allowing you to review them when convenient rather than interrupting your work.

Calendar settings

Calendar notification settings in Outlook control how you are reminded about upcoming events and meetings. These options help ensure you do not miss important appointments, while allowing you to manage how visible and disruptive calendar reminders are during the day.

 

Calendar

Event reminders Controls whether Outlook sends reminders for upcoming calendar events. When enabled, you will receive notifications ahead of meetings and appointments to help you prepare and join on time.
Notification style Determines how event reminders appear. Desktop notifications briefly appear on screen and then disappear automatically, while reminder-style notifications remain visible until dismissed. You can also choose to turn reminders off entirely.
Play sound Controls whether a sound is played when a calendar reminder appears. Disabling sounds can reduce disruption, while keeping them enabled may be helpful if you rely on audible alerts to prompt you between meetings.

Document settings

Document notification settings in Outlook control how you are alerted to activity in shared files, such as comments, edits, and mentions. These notifications help you stay aware of collaboration activity without needing to constantly check documents manually.

 

Documents

Comments and mentions Controls notifications when someone adds a comment to a document or mentions you directly using @mentions in a shared file or Loop component. This helps highlight feedback or actions that require your attention.
Show in notifications pane Displays document-related notifications in the Outlook notifications pane rather than as on-screen alerts. This allows you to review document activity when convenient, without interrupting your current work.

Viva Insights: Focus

Viva Insights focus time is designed to help protect uninterrupted periods in your day by automatically reducing notification noise. By scheduling dedicated focus sessions, you can concentrate on priority work while notifications from tools like Teams and Outlook are temporarily silenced.

Expand the sections below to view the instructions and additional information

What is Viva Insights focus time

Viva Insights focus time helps you set aside protected time in your working day to focus without constant interruptions. It reduces notification noise and lets others know when you are working on individual, concentration-heavy tasks.

How focus time works

When focus time is set up, Viva Insights adds dedicated focus sessions directly to your calendar. While a focus session is active, the same behaviour is applied automatically across Microsoft 365.

  • Your status in Teams changes to Do Not Disturb
  • Notifications from Teams are silenced
  • Incoming Teams calls are sent to voicemail

Each focus session runs for the time shown in your calendar and ends automatically, with normal notifications resuming afterwards.

Why you would use focus time

Focus time is useful when you need uninterrupted space to work on tasks that require more attention, such as writing, planning, reviewing information, or preparing work.

Rather than muting notifications manually or reacting to interruptions as they happen, Viva Insights helps you plan focus time in advance and build it into your normal working routine.

Setting up focus time in Viva Insights

Focus time is set up through Viva Insights, which is available as an app within Microsoft Teams. It allows you to add protected focus sessions to your calendar without needing to block time manually.

Accessing Viva Insights

  1. In Microsoft Teams, select More apps (…) from the left-hand navigation.
  2. Search for Viva Insights and open the app.
  3. If you plan to use it regularly, you can pin Viva Insights to the navigation bar by right-clicking and selecting Pin.

Booking a one-off focus session

A one-off focus session is useful if you only need focused time on a specific day, rather than as part of a regular routine.

  1. In Viva Insights, make sure you are on the Overview tab.
  2. Locate the Book focus time section.
  3. Use the arrows to move between days and view available focus time slots.
  4. Select Book next to a time that suits you.

Once booked, the focus session is added to your calendar as a single focus event. During that time, focus behaviour is applied automatically and ends when the session finishes.

Starting a daily focus plan

A focus plan is designed to make focused work a regular part of your working day. Instead of booking sessions individually, Viva Insights automatically schedules focus time for you.

  1. From the Overview tab in Viva Insights, select Start a daily focus plan.
  2. Choose how many hours of focus time you want each day (between 1 and 4 hours).
  3. Select whether you prefer focus time in the morning or afternoon.
  4. Confirm your choices to start the plan.

When a focus plan is started, Viva Insights adds focus sessions to your calendar in advance, typically for the next two weeks. These sessions can be moved or removed later if needed.

Starting a focus plan is recommended if you want focus time to become a consistent, planned part of your working routine rather than something you need to remember to set up each day.

Managing and modifying your focus plan

Once a focus plan has been set up, you can adjust it at any time to better suit your working pattern. This ensures focus time remains helpful rather than restrictive.

From within Viva Insights, select Change settings and then Configure your focus plan. Here you can:

  • Choose how much focus time to schedule each day (between 1 and 4 hours)
  • Select whether focus time is scheduled in the morning or afternoon
  • Decide whether Teams chat notifications should be silenced

When you save your changes, Viva Insights adds up to two weeks of focus sessions to your calendar. These sessions behave like normal calendar events, meaning you can:

  • Move focus sessions to a different time
  • Delete individual sessions if needed
  • Keep or remove focus time depending on your workload

Viva Insights also offers an optional quiet time feature, which allows you to mute notifications outside of working hours, helping to support a healthier boundary between work and personal time.

Windows 11: Focus

Windows 11 Focus is designed to help you minimise on-screen distractions by temporarily reducing notifications and visual alerts on your device. By starting a focus session when needed, you can concentrate on a task without being interrupted by pop-ups, badges, or flashing apps.

Expand the sections below to view the instructions and additional information

What is Windows 11 Focus

Windows 11 Focus helps you reduce on-screen distractions on your device so you can concentrate on a task for a set period of time. It is designed to minimise interruptions from notifications, alerts, and visual prompts while you work.

How Windows 11 Focus works

When a Focus session is started in Windows 11, it temporarily changes how notifications and visual alerts behave on your device for the duration of the session.

  • Do Not Disturb is turned on in Windows
  • Notification banners are suppressed and sent to Notification Centre
  • App badges and taskbar flashing are hidden

Focus sessions run for the length of time you choose and end automatically, with normal notification behaviour returning once the session finishes.

Why you would use Windows 11 Focus

Windows 11 Focus is useful when you need short, distraction-free periods to concentrate on a specific task, such as reading, writing, studying, or completing focused work.

Unlike tools that rely on calendar scheduling, Windows 11 Focus is intended for ad-hoc focus sessions that you can start quickly when you need them, without planning ahead.

Setting up Windows 11 Focus

Windows 11 Focus is built directly into the operating system and can be started at any time. It allows you to quickly reduce notifications and visual distractions on your device without needing to schedule time in your calendar.

Accessing Windows 11 Focus

  1. Select Start and open Settings.
  2. Go to System and then select Focus.

From here, you can start focus sessions and control how notifications and visual alerts behave while you are focusing.

Starting a one-off focus session

A Focus session in Windows 11 is designed for ad-hoc use, making it ideal when you need immediate, distraction-free time for a specific task.

  1. In Settings > System > Focus, choose how long you want the session to last.
  2. Select which focus options you want to apply, such as hiding notification badges or turning on Do Not Disturb.
  3. Select Start focus session.

Once started, the focus session runs for the selected time and ends automatically. Normal notification behaviour resumes when the session finishes.

Customising Focus behaviour

Before starting a session, you can adjust how Focus behaves on your device. These settings control what is hidden or suppressed during focus time.

  • Turn Do Not Disturb on or off
  • Hide notification badges on taskbar apps
  • Stop taskbar icons from flashing
  • Choose whether to show the session timer in the Clock app

Windows 11 Focus does not create calendar events or recurring plans. It is intended for quick, flexible focus sessions that you can start whenever you need uninterrupted time.

Managing and adjusting Windows 11 Focus

Windows 11 Focus sessions are designed to be flexible and easy to adapt. You can adjust focus behaviour at any time to suit how and when you prefer to work, ensuring focus sessions remain helpful rather than restrictive.

Focus settings are managed directly within Windows, rather than through a calendar or recurring plan. This means changes apply immediately and affect all future focus sessions you start.

In Settings > System > Focus, you can choose how Focus behaves on your device. Here you can:

  • Turn Do Not Disturb on or off during focus sessions
  • Choose whether notification badges are hidden on taskbar apps
  • Stop apps from flashing on the taskbar when activity occurs
  • Decide whether the focus timer is shown in the Clock app

These settings control what is suppressed while a focus session is running, but they do not schedule or plan focus time in advance. Each focus session is started manually and runs for the duration you select.

Because Windows 11 Focus does not create calendar events or recurring sessions, it is best suited to short, ad-hoc focus periods that you can start when needed. This makes it a useful complement to tools like Viva Insights, which are designed for planned, calendar-based focus time.

Enable University alerts

Turn on notifications for critical updates like closures, safety alerts, and urgent service disruptions.