How to change your working hours in Teams

Microsoft Teams lets you set working hours so colleagues know when you are and are not available. You control this through your calendar settings, and the hours you set appear as a status indicator to other people in your organization. Teams does not enforce these hours — it does not log you out or block messages — but it signals to coworkers that messages outside those times may not get a quick response.

The process differs slightly depending on whether you are using Teams on desktop, web, or mobile, and whether your organization uses Microsoft 365 work accounts or a different setup. Most people set working hours once and leave them, but you can change them at any time if your schedule shifts.

Key Takeaways

  • Working hours in Teams are set through Outlook calendar settings, not through Teams itself, even though the status shows in Teams.
  • On desktop, go to your profile picture, select Settings, then Calendar, then Working Hours to enter your schedule.
  • On the web version, the same path works: Settings > Calendar > Working Hours.
  • Your working hours appear to colleagues as a calendar status, helping them decide when to expect responses.
  • You can set different hours for each day of the week, and you can turn working hours off entirely if you do not want them displayed.

Changing working hours on the Teams desktop app

Open Teams and select your profile picture in the top right corner. A menu will appear with several options. Click Settings. In the Settings window, find Calendar in the left sidebar and click it. You should see an option for Working Hours — click that.

A form will open where you can enter the days and times you work. By default, Teams shows Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. You can change each day individually. If you do not work on a particular day, uncheck the box next to that day. If your hours vary — for example, you work 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM on Mondays but 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Wednesdays — set each day separately. When you are finished, the changes save automatically.

Changing working hours on Teams web

Log into Teams through your web browser. Click your profile picture in the top right corner and select Settings. In the left sidebar, click Calendar, then Working Hours. The form is identical to the desktop version: you enter your schedule by day, and changes save when you close the window.

If you do not see a Working Hours option, your organization may not have enabled this feature, or you may need to update your browser or clear your cache. Try refreshing the page or logging out and back in. If the option still does not appear, contact your IT department.

Changing working hours on Teams mobile

On the Teams mobile app (iPhone or Android), tap your profile picture at the bottom right of the screen. Tap Settings. Scroll down and tap Calendar. Look for Working Hours and tap it. You can then set your schedule the same way as on desktop — by day and time. Tap Save when you are done.

Mobile versions sometimes have fewer options than desktop. If you cannot find Working Hours on mobile, you can always set it on desktop or web instead — the setting syncs across all devices once you save it.

What happens after you set working hours

Once you save your working hours, other people in your organization can see them. When someone hovers over your name in Teams or looks at your calendar, they will see your working hours displayed. This helps colleagues decide whether to send you an urgent message or wait until your next working day. Outside your working hours, your status may show as "away" or "offline" even if you are actively using Teams, depending on your organization's settings.

Your working hours do not prevent people from messaging you, calling you, or assigning you tasks at any time. Teams does not enforce the hours you set. They are purely informational — a courtesy to let others know your typical availability.

Turning off working hours or updating them for schedule changes

If your schedule changes, go back to the same settings path (Profile > Settings > Calendar > Working Hours) and update the times. You can change your hours as often as you need to. If you want to stop displaying working hours altogether, uncheck all the days of the week. This removes the working hours status from your profile without deleting the information — you can turn it back on later by checking the days again.

Some people turn off working hours during vacation or leave periods, then turn them back on when they return. Others keep the same hours year-round. There is no penalty for changing your working hours frequently, and no one is notified when you make changes.

Troubleshooting working hours that do not appear

If you set working hours but they do not show up in your Teams profile or calendar, first check that you actually saved the changes. Close the Settings window completely and reopen it to confirm the hours are still there. If they disappeared, try setting them again.

If the Working Hours option does not appear at all, your organization may have disabled this feature for your account or your Teams license may not include it. Some organizations restrict calendar settings for security or compliance reasons. Contact your IT department or help desk to ask whether working hours are turned on for your account. You can also check whether you are signed in with the correct work account — if you have multiple accounts in Teams, make sure you are using the one your organization issued to you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do working hours in Teams stop people from messaging me outside those times?

No. Working hours are informational only. People can message, call, or assign tasks to you at any time, regardless of the hours you set. Teams does not block incoming communication based on working hours. The hours simply tell colleagues when you typically work so they can manage their expectations about response time.

Can I set different working hours for different days of the week?

Yes. In the Working Hours settings, each day has its own time fields. You can set Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM and Saturday from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM, for example. You can also uncheck any day you do not work, so weekends or specific days off will not appear as working hours.

Will my working hours sync across Teams desktop, web, and mobile?

Yes. Once you set working hours on any device, they sync to all your devices within a few minutes. You only need to set them once. If you change them on desktop, the change appears on mobile and web automatically.

What if my organization uses a different calendar system, not Outlook?

Teams working hours are tied to Outlook calendar settings. If your organization does not use Outlook or Microsoft 365, the working hours feature may not be available. Check with your IT department about what calendar system your organization uses and whether working hours are supported.

Can my manager or IT department see my working hours?

Your working hours are visible to anyone in your organization who can see your Teams profile or calendar. They are not hidden from managers or IT staff. If you want to keep your schedule private, do not set working hours, or set them to match your official work schedule only.