Slack Reminders

Slack reminders let you ask Slackbot to nudge you at a specific time about any message, task, or custom note. Instead of relying on memory or switching to a separate to-do app, you set a reminder inside Slack and let it do the follow-up work for you.

Two Types of Reminders

TYPE 1: REMIND ME ABOUT A MESSAGE
  → Right-click any message → "Remind me about this"
  → Slackbot resurfaces that exact message at your chosen time

TYPE 2: CREATE A CUSTOM REMINDER
  → Use /remind command with any text you want
  → Slackbot sends you a DM at the chosen time

How to Set a Reminder on a Message

1. Hover over any message in a channel or DM.
2. Click the three-dot menu (⋯).
3. Select "Remind me about this".
4. Choose a time: 20 minutes, 1 hour, 3 hours, tomorrow, next week, or a custom date and time.

At the chosen time, Slackbot sends you a DM with a link to jump directly back to the original message. You never have to remember where it was — Slackbot brings it back to you.

REMINDER FLOW

  Message you need to act on
          ↓
  ⋯ → "Remind me about this" → Choose time
          ↓
  Slack confirms: "I'll remind you about this at 3 PM"
          ↓
  3:00 PM: Slackbot DMs you:
  "Here's a reminder about a message from Alice:
  [link to the original message]"

How to Set a Custom Reminder with /remind

The /remind slash command lets you create reminders for anything — not just existing messages. Type it in any message box:

/remind me [what] [when]

EXAMPLES:
  /remind me to submit the weekly report every Friday at 4pm
  /remind me to call the client in 2 hours
  /remind me about the Q4 launch every Monday at 9am
  /remind @alice to send the invoice tomorrow at 10am
  /remind #project-alpha to update the status board every Monday

Slack confirms the reminder and shows the date and time it will trigger. At that moment, Slackbot sends the reminder as a direct message.

Setting Reminders for Other People

Use /remind @username to send a reminder to a teammate. Slackbot delivers the reminder to them as a DM at the specified time. This is useful for following up with a colleague without nagging them yourself.

/remind @bob to review the proposal by Friday at 5pm
→ Bob receives a Slackbot DM on Friday at 5 PM:
  "Reminder: review the proposal"

Setting Reminders for a Channel

Remind an entire channel with /remind #channel-name. Slackbot posts the reminder message in the channel at the specified time. Use this for recurring team nudges like weekly status updates or deadline reminders.

/remind #dev-team to update Jira tickets every Friday at 3pm
→ #dev-team receives a Slackbot message each Friday at 3 PM

Viewing and Managing Your Reminders

Type /remind list in any message box to see all your active reminders. Slack shows a list with the reminder text, time, and options to mark as complete or delete.

/remind list OUTPUT:

  🔔 UPCOMING REMINDERS

  1. "Submit weekly report" — Friday at 4:00 PM (recurring)
     [Mark as complete] [Delete]

  2. "Call client" — Today at 3:30 PM
     [Mark as complete] [Delete]

Natural Language Time Formats

Slack understands many natural language time expressions in the /remind command:

WHAT YOU TYPE           WHEN IT TRIGGERS
──────────────────────  ────────────────────────────────
in 30 minutes           30 minutes from now
tomorrow at 9am         Tomorrow, 9:00 AM
next Monday at noon     Next Monday, 12:00 PM
every weekday at 8am    Every Mon–Fri at 8:00 AM
every Friday at 5pm     Every Friday at 5:00 PM
on December 15 at 2pm   December 15, 2:00 PM

Reminders vs Saved Items

REMINDERS                       SAVED ITEMS (Bookmarks)
──────────────────────────────  ───────────────────────────────
Active at a specific time       Available anytime you open them
Slackbot notifies you           No notification — you browse them
Best for time-sensitive tasks   Best for reference material
Great for follow-ups            Great for "read later" items

Key Takeaways

• Hover over any message → three-dot menu → "Remind me" to resurface it at a chosen time.
• Use /remind me [what] [when] to create custom reminders from scratch.
• Set recurring reminders with "every Monday at 9am" or "every weekday at 8am."
• Remind teammates or entire channels using /remind @person or /remind #channel.
• Type /remind list to view and manage all your active reminders.