# Internal chat
In Missive, everything external is email, everything internal is chat—and both live together in unified conversations. No more switching between your email client and a separate chat app to collaborate with your team.
## When to use internal chat
Internal chats are useful in many situations:
* **External communication:** Discuss messages received from outside the company (email, SMS, social media, etc.)
* **Ask for help:** Need guidance on how to respond? @mention a colleague directly in the email thread
* **Share context:** Provide background information before someone else replies
* **Express opinions:** Discuss ideas before taking action
Instead of forwarding an email or calling a manager, @mention someone and ask for help directly in the thread. They can access the full context instantly and guide you through the chat.
## Types of chat conversations
### Chat in any conversation
Every conversation has a chat box where you can talk with teammates. These internal chats are never seen by external recipients.
To start collaborating:
1. Open any conversation
2. Type in the chat box at the bottom
3. Use **@username** to mention specific people
{% hint style="info" %}
You can also click **New conversation** from the **+** menu to start a chat-only conversation with your team, or as notes for yourself.
{% endhint %}
### Team chat rooms
Teams can have dedicated chat rooms where all members can discuss together. Team rooms are automatically created when you configure a team with this option enabled.
Team chat rooms make it easy to **@team** several people at once. Each team can also have a dedicated **team inbox** where messages from shared accounts are directed.
Teams can represent anything:
* **A function or role:** Support, Sales, Marketing
* **A client group:** Delta Materials, Disney
* **A project:** Construction Site ABC, Spring 2026 Campaign
* **A social space:** General room, Random Facts channel
To configure team chat rooms:
1. Go to **Settings** > **Teams**
2. Select your team and click **Edit**
3. Enable or disable **Chat room**
### Organization room
Missive automatically creates a general chat room for your organization where all members can connect and engage beyond emails.
### 1-1 room
Missive also creates private 1-1 rooms between each team member. Start a conversation by clicking on a coworker's avatar in the sidebar or using the command bar.
## Creating a chat room
Missive is flexible with internal chats. A chat can be short-lived for a single discussion, or long-lived for an ongoing project.
1. Click the **+** button, then **New conversation**
{% hint style="info" %}
**New conversation** creates a conversation that behaves like email conversations: it can be labeled, archived, snoozed, assigned, etc.
{% endhint %}
2. Pick a title, choose who should have access, and start chatting
3. Optionally, customize the icon by prepending an emoji to the conversation title
### Pin to sidebar
Pinned conversations stay right where you put them in your sidebar—unlike your Inbox where new conversations push older ones down. Use **Pin to sidebar** to keep important chat rooms easily accessible.
{% hint style="info" %}
Create custom sections in your sidebar to group pinned items however you like.
{% endhint %}
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