Quick Start Guide: Using Microsoft Teams with a screen reader

Read chats

1. Press Ctrl+2 to open the Chat app.

   Note: The key number ‘2’ signifies the sequential position of the Chat app within the app bar. This position may vary depending on the individual setup.

2. Press the Up or Down arrow key until you find the chat you want.

3. Press the Spacebar or Ctrl+M to readthe latestmessage(s) in the selected chat.

4. Use the Up and Down arrow keys to move between the messages.

5. Press the Esc or Ctrl+L key to return to the chat list.

Reply to chats

1. Press Ctrl+2 to open the Chat app.

   Note: The key number ‘2’ signifies the sequential position of the Chat app within the app bar. This position may vary depending on the individual setup.

2. Use the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the name of the contact or group you want to chat with, followed by the last message in the chat.

3. Press Enter or Ctrl+R to move the focus to the Type a message box and type your message.

4. Press Enter again to send the message.

5. Press the Esc or Ctrl+L key to return to the chats list.

Start a new chat

1. To start a new chat, press Ctrl+N.

2. Type the name of the person you want to chat with in the Enter name email, group, or tag box. The suggestions will appear in the list as you start typing.

3. Navigate through the suggestions using the Down and Up arrow keys.

4. Select the contact by pressing Enter.

5. Press Tab to jump to the Type a message box.

6. Type your message and press Enter again to send the message.

Read posts in a channel

1. Press Ctrl+3 to open the Teams and channel app.

   Note: The key ‘3’ signifies the sequential position of the Teams and channel app within the app bar. This position may vary depending on individual setup.

2. Use the Up and Down arrow keys to navigate to the channel you want to follow. To expand or collapse a team's list of channels, press Enter.

3. After you have reached the desired channel, press Enter to open the post.

4. To browse the messages, press Spacebar to move the focus to the most recent post, and use the Up and Down arrow keys to move between the posts.

Navigate and read replies

When you read posts, your screen reader announces the number of replies they have. If the post has at least one reply, you need to navigate into the post to read the replies.

1. To open the post, press Enter. You hear the main post.

2. To engage with the post, press Enter.  You will now be able to move through the main post and replies.

3. To navigate the post replies, press the Up or Down arrow key. Your screen reader reads the post and replies as you move through it.

4. To move the focus back to the main post, press Esc.

5. To leave the post, press Esc again.

Reply to posts

1. While reading a post, regardless of the number of replies, press Ctrl+R.

   • Press Enter and then use the Down arrow key until you hear the "Reply, button." Press Enter.

2. Type the reply and press Enter to add the reply to the selected post.

Start a new post

1. Press Ctrl+3 to open the Teams and channels app.

   Note: The key number ‘3’ signifies the sequential position of the Teams and channels app within the app bar. This position may vary depending on individual setup.

2. Use the Up and Down arrow keys to navigate the channel you want to follow. To expand or collapse a team's list of channels, press Enter.

3. After you have reached the required channel, press Enter. The focus will move to the latest post in that channel.

4. To start a post, press the Tab key and then the Enter key on the Start a post button to open the post edit box.

   1. Type the subject of your post.

   2. Press the Tab key until you reach the edit box and type your message.

   3. Press Ctrl+Enter to post the message in the channel.

   • Use the Tab key to get to the Post button and press Enter to post the message.

5. Press Esc to move out of a channel.

   Notes: 

   • For screen reader users, the detail whether it is a new post or has new replies is announced to help you decide if you wish to know more details.

   • If you want to reply to an ongoing post instead of starting a new one, refer to Reply to posts.

Start a call

1. Press Ctrl+E to go to the search box.

2. Type /call, press Enter, and type the name of the person you want to call. The search results are updated as you type.

3. To navigate the list of results, press the Down or Up arrow key. When you hear the name of the person you want to call, to start an audio call, press Enter. 

Answer a call

1. When a contact calls you, the Microsoft Teams notification window opens, and you hear the ringing sound and the caller's name.

2. Do one of the following:

   • To answer an audio call, press Ctrl+Shift+S.

   • To answer a video call, press Ctrl+Shift+A.

   • To decline the call, press Ctrl+Shift+D.

3. To end the call, use Ctrl+Shift+H.

Join a meeting

After you have received a meeting invitation, joining is simple.

1. In Microsoft Teams, press Ctrl+4 to go to the Calendar app. 

   Note: The key number ‘4’ is the numeric position of the Calendar app on the app bar. This position may vary depending on individual setup.

2. Press the Tab key to move the focus to the next meeting in your Calendar.

   1. If it's not the meeting you want to join, press the Tab key until you find the right one. Your screen reader announces its name and time.

   2. If the meeting is in progress or about to start you can Tab to the Join button for the meeting.

   • Press Enter to open the meeting details and press Alt+Shift+J to join. The focus moves to the Join now button.

3. To join the meeting with the default audio and video settings, press the Spacebar. You are connected to the meeting and the focus moves to the Mute mic button in the call controls toolbar.

   • To mute your mic, use Ctrl+Shift+M to mute.

   • To turn on or off your video, press Ctrl+Shift+O.

Start a call

1. In Microsoft Teams, press Command+E to go to the search box.

2. Type /call, press Return, and type the name of the person you want to call. The search results are updated as you type.

3. To navigate the list of results, press the Down or Up arrow key. When you hear the name of the person you want to call, to start an audio call, press Return. To start a video call, press Option+Shift+V.

4. To end the call, press Command+Shift+H.

• Press the Tab key until you reach the Hang up button, and press Return.

  Tips: 

  • If your organization has calling enabled, you can also type in phone numbers and press Return to call.

  • If you have the Calls app available in Microsoft Teams, you can also use its options to call a contact, browse your call history, and check your voicemail. To go to the Calls app, press Command+5. The key number ‘5’ signifies the sequential position of the Calls app within the app bar. This position may vary depending on individual setup.

Answer a call

1. When a contact calls you, the Microsoft Teams notification window opens, and you hear the caller's name.

2. Do one of the following:

   • To answer an audio call, press Command+Shift+S.

   • To answer a video call, press Command+Shift+A.

   • To decline the call, press Command+Shift+D.

3. To end the call, press Command+Shift+H.

• Press the Tab key until you reach the Hang up button, and press Return.

Start a chat

1. Tap with four fingers near the bottom of the screen, flick left until you hear "Chat, tab," and double-tap the screen.

2. Swipe left until you hear "New chat, button," and then double-tap the screen. The New Chat window opens and the focus is on the To field.

3. To search for a contact, use the on-screen keyboard to type the name of the contact.

   Tip: If the contact you seek has a common name, type it out until you get to the part that separates it from the rest. For example, if you type John, you might get dozens of results, so try typing his full name before browsing the results.

4. The search results are listed above the on-screen keyboard as you type. To go to the results, flick left until you hear a contact's name, and keep flicking until you find the result you want. To select the contact, double-tap the screen.

5. Flick right until you hear "Type a new message," and then double-tap the screen.

6. Type your message using the on-screen keyboard. To send the message, flick left past the first key of the on-screen keyboard until you hear the "Send, button," and then double-tap the screen.

7. To close the keyboard and return to the Chat view, tap with 4 fingers near the top of the screen. You hear: "Chat, back button." Double-tap the screen.

Read and reply to chats

1. Tap with four fingers near the bottom of the screen, flick left until you hear "Chat, tab," and then double-tap the screen.

2. Flick left until you find the chat you want to read, and then double-tap the screen to open it.

3. Flick right until VoiceOver reads one of the messages in the chat, and then flick left or right to navigate to earlier or later messages.

4. To reply to the chat, flick right until you hear "Type a new message," and then double-tap the screen.

5. Type your message using the on-screen keyboard. To send the message, flick left past the first key of the on-screen keyboard until you hear the "Send, button," and then double-tap the screen.

6. To close the keyboard and return to the Chat app, tap with four fingers near the top of the screen. You hear: "Chat, back button." Double-tap the screen.

Start a post

1. Tap with four fingers near the bottom of the screen, flick left until you hear "Teams, tab," and then double-tap the screen.

2. Flick left until you find the team you want. If the team is in a collapsed view, double-tap the screen to expand it so that you can browse its channels.

3. Flick left or right until you find the right channel, and double-tap the screen to open the channel.

4. Tap with four fingers near the bottom of the screen. You hear: "New post." Double-tap the screen. You hear: "Type a new message."

5. Type the message using your on-screen keyboard.

6. To send the message, flick left past the first key of the on-screen keyboard until you hear the "Send, button," and then double-tap the screen.

7. To close the keyboard and return to the Teams app, tap with four fingers near the top of the screen. You hear: "Back button." Double-tap the screen, and then tap with four fingers near the top of the screen. You hear: "Back button." Double-tap the screen.

Read and reply to posts

1. Tap with four fingers near the bottom of the screen, flick left until you hear "Teams, tab," and then double-tap the screen.

2. Flick left or right until you find the team and channel you want, and double-tap the screen to open the channel. If the team is in a collapsed view, double-tap the screen to expand it so that you can browse its channels.

3. To go to the channel's posts, flick right until you hear a message. To browse to other conversations, flick right or left. VoiceOver announces the posts as you move.

4. If the post has more than a couple of messages, all of them are not shown in the channel app. To open the post, when VoiceOver announces the number of replies and their senders, double-tap the screen. The post will open.

5. Flick right until VoiceOver reads the first message in the post. To read the follow-up messages, keep flicking right.

6. To reply to a post, flick right past all messages until you hear "Reply, text field," and double-tap the screen. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your message. To send the message, flick left past the first key of the on-screen keyboard until you hear the "Send, button," and double-tap the screen.

7. To close the keyboard and return to the Teams app, tap with 4 fingers near the top of the screen. You hear: "Back button." Double-tap the screen.

Start a call

1. Tap with four fingers near the top of the screen, flick right until you hear "Search, button," and double-tap the screen.

   Note: If you hear "Teams would like to access your contacts," flick right until you hear "OK, button," and double-tap the screen.

2. To search for a contact, use the on-screen keyboard to type the name of the contact.

   Tip: If the contact you seek has a common name, type it out until you get to the part that separates it from the rest. For example, if you type John, you might get dozens of results, so try typing his full name before browsing the results.

3. The search results are listed above the on-screen keyboard as you type. To go to the results, slide your finger around the screen until you hear a contact's name, and flick right or left until you hear the name you want. To select the contact, double-tap the screen.

4. Flick right until you hear the "Call, button," and double-tap the screen.

5. To end the call, flick right until you hear the "Hang up call, button," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Back button." Double-tap the screen.

6. To close the search view, tap with four fingers near the top of the screen, flick right until you hear the "Cancel, button," and double-tap the screen.

Start a chat

1. Flick right or left until you hear "Chat tab," and then double-tap the screen.

2. Flick right until you hear the "New chat button," and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "Edit box, To, Search for contacts here." The on-screen keyboard will open in the bottom half of the screen. To go to the keyboard, place a finger on the screen and drag it around until you hear a keyboard element.

3. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your search words in the To field. The number of search results is announced as you type. Flick right until you reach the first search result. To move in the list, flick right or left until you hear the contact name you seek. To select the contact, double-tap the screen.

   Tip: If the contact you seek has a common name, type it out until you get to the part that separates it from the rest. For example, if you type John, you might get dozens of results, so try typing his full name before browsing the results.

4. Flick right until you hear "Type a new message," and then double-tap the screen.

5. Type your message using the on-screen keyboard. To send the message, flick right until you hear the "Send message button," and then double-tap the screen. The focus returns to the Type a new message box.

6. When the person replies to your message, you hear "Message received, showing items," followed by the number of the current item and its position in the list of items.

Read and reply to chats

1. Flick right or left until you hear "Chat tab," and then double-tap the screen.

2. Flick left until you find the chat you want to read, and then double-tap the screen.

3. Flick right or left until TalkBack reads one of the messages in the chat, and then flick left or right to navigate to earlier or later messages.

4. To reply to the chat, flick right until you hear "Type a message here," and then double-tap the screen. The on-screen keyboard opens in the bottom half of the screen. To go to the keyboard, place a finger on the screen and drag it around until you hear a keyboard element.

5. Type your message using the on-screen keyboard. To send the message, flick right until you hear the "Send message button," and then double-tap the screen. The focus returns to the Type a message here box.

Start a post

1. Flick right or left until you hear: "Teams tab." Double-tap the screen to select. The Teams app will open. To browse the channels, flick left. As you move, TalkBack announces the channel names.

   Tip: If your Team has lots of channels, all of them may not fit on the screen at the same time. To scroll the list, swipe up or down with two fingers.

2. When on the channel you want, double-tap the screen. The channel will open.

3. Flick left until you hear: "New conversation, button." Double-tap the screen.

4. Double-tap the screen to open the on-screen keyboard in the bottom half of the screen. To go to the keyboard, place a finger on the screen and drag it around until you hear a keyboard element.

5. Type your message using the on-screen keyboard. When done, flick down-then-left to close the keyboard, flick right until you hear "Send message, button," and double-tap the screen.

Read and reply to posts

1. Flick right or left until you hear: "Teams tab." Double-tap the screen to select. The Teams app will open. To browse the channels, flick left. As you move, TalkBack announces the channel names.

   Tip: If your Team has lots of channels, all of them may not fit on the screen at the same time. To scroll the list, swipe up or down with two fingers.

2. When on the channel you want, double-tap the screen. The channel will open.

3. To go to the latest post, flick right until you hear a message. To browse to older posts, flick left. TalkBack announces the posts as you move.

4. To open the post, when on a message in the conversation, double-tap the screen. The Post view opens.

5. Flick right until TalkBack reads the first message in the conversation. To read the follow-up messages, keep swiping right.

6. To reply to a conversation, flick right past all messages until you hear "Reply, edit box," and double-tap the screen. The on-screen keyboard opens in the bottom half of the screen. To go to the keyboard, place a finger on the screen and drag it around until you hear a keyboard element.

7. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your message. To send the message, swipe down-then-left to close the keyboard, flick right until you hear "Send message, button," and double-tap the screen.

8. To close the Post app, swipe down-then-left. The focus returns to the selected channel.

Read and reply to chats

1. Press Ctrl+Shift+2 to open the Chat app.

   Note: The key number ‘2’ signifies the sequential position of the Chat app within the app bar. This position may vary depending on the individual setup.

2. Press the Up or Down arrow key until you find the chat you want.

3. Press Alt+Shift+M to read the latest message in the selected chat.

4. Use the Up and Down arrow keys to move between the messages.

5. To move the focus back to the Type a message box, press Ctrl+F6 or F6 until you hear: "Type a new message."

6. To reply to a chat, type your message in the box, and press Enter.

Start a new chat

1. Press Ctrl+Shift+2 to open the Chat app.

   Note: The key number ‘2’ signifies the sequential position of the Chat app within the app bar. This position may vary depending on the individual setup.

2. Press the Up and Down arrow keys to find the contact or group you want to chat with, followed by the last message in the chat.

3. Press Enter. You hear "Type a new message."

4. Type your message and press Enter to send it.

5. When the person replies to your message, you hear "Message from," followed by the person's name and the text in the message.

6. Press the Esc key or Alt+Shift+L to return to the chat list.

Read posts in a channel

1. Press Ctrl+Shift+3 to open theTeams and channels app.

   Note: The key ‘3’ signifies the sequential position of the Teams and channels app within the app bar. This position may vary depending on individual setup.

2. Use the Up and Down arrow keys to navigate to the channel you want to follow. To expand or collapse a team's list of channels, press Enter.

3. After you have reached the desired channel, press Enter to open the post. 

4. To browse the messages, press Shift+Tab to move the focus to the most recent post, and use the Up and Down arrow keys to move between the posts.

Navigate and read replies in a post

1. When you read posts, your screen reader announces the number of replies they have. If the conversation has at least one reply, you need to navigate into the threaded conversation to read the replies.

2. To open the threaded conversation, press Enter. You hear the first message in the thread.

3. To move between messages in a threaded conversation, press the Up or Down arrow key. Your screen reader reads the messages as you move through them.

4. To open a message for further actions, press Enter.

5. To move the focus back to the main post, press Esc.

6. To leave the post, press Esc again.

Reply to posts

1. While reading a post, regardless of the number of replies, press Ctrl+R.

   • Press Enter and then use the Down arrow key until you hear the "Reply, button." Press Enter.

2. Type the reply and press Enter to add the reply to the selected post.

Start a new post

1. Press Ctrl+Shift+3 to open the Teams and channels app. 

   Note: The key ‘3’ signifies the sequential position of the Teams and channel app within the app bar. This position may vary depending on individual setup.

2. Use the Up and Down arrow keys to navigate the channel you want to follow. To expand or collapse a team's list of channels, press Enter.

3. After you've reached the required channel, press Enter. The focus moves to the message compose box.

4. Type your message, and press Enter to send it to the channel.

Start a call

1. Press Ctrl+Alt+E to go to the search box.

2. Type /call, press Enter, and type the name of the person you want to call. The search results are updated as you type.

3. To navigate the list of results, press the Down or Up arrow key. When you hear the person you want to call, press Enter to start an audio call. To start a video call, press Alt+Shift+V.

   • If you get a popup (in Chrome) asking for permission to use your microphone, press the Tab key until you reach the Allow button and press Enter.

4. To end the call, press Ctrl+Shift+H.

   • Alternatively, press the Tab key until you hear "Hang up," then press Enter.

Answer a call

To know that someone is calling you, ensure you have the Sound notifications turned on in the Microsoft Teams Settings. To learn more on how to change your notification settings, refer to the section "Customize the notification settings" in Use a screen reader to check recent activity in Microsoft Teams.

1. When a contact calls you, the Microsoft Teams notification window will open, you hear the ringing sound, and the caller's name.

2. Do one of the following:

   • To answer an audio call, press Ctrl+Shift+S.

   • To answer a video call, press Ctrl+Shift+A.

   • To decline the call, press Ctrl+Shift+D.

3. To end the call, press Ctrl+Shift+H.

   • Alternatively, press the Tab key until you hear "Hang up," then press Enter.