Slack Set Your Status
Your Slack status is a short message with an emoji that tells teammates what you are up to right now. It appears next to your name in messages, the member list, and direct messages. A good status reduces unnecessary interruptions and helps colleagues decide whether to reach out now or wait.
What a Status Looks Like
WITHOUT STATUS WITH STATUS ───────────────────────── ─────────────────────────────── 👤 Alice Chen 👤 Alice Chen 🎧 Heads down (just a name) "Heads down — back at 2 PM"
The emoji appears inline next to your name in conversations. The text appears when someone hovers over your name or views your profile.
How to Set a Status
- Click your profile photo in the top-right corner of Slack.
- Select "Update your status".
- Choose a suggested status or type a custom one.
- Pick an emoji by clicking the emoji icon to the left of the text field.
- Set a duration (clear after 30 minutes, 1 hour, today, this week, or never).
- Click Save.
Suggested Status Options
Slack pre-populates several status options so you can set one in a single click:
PRESET STATUSES 🎧 In a meeting 🤒 Out sick 🌴 Vacationing 🏠 Working remotely 🚂 Commuting 🏖️ On vacation 📵 Do not disturb
These cover most common situations. You can customize the text and emoji for any situation that is not on the list.
Creating a Custom Status
Custom statuses let you communicate exact context to your team. The text field holds up to 100 characters.
CUSTOM STATUS EXAMPLES 🎧 Deep work — back at 2 PM 📞 On a client call ✈️ Traveling — async only today 🏥 Doctor appointment — back by noon 📝 Writing — pinging me OK for urgent 🔌 Tech issues — email me if urgent
A good custom status tells teammates two things: what you are doing and when you will be available again.
Setting a Status Expiry
Set your status to clear automatically after a chosen period so you never forget to remove it. Choose from:
- 30 minutes
- 1 hour
- 4 hours
- Today (clears at midnight your local time)
- This week (clears Friday end of day)
- Don't clear (stays until you manually remove it)
STATUS DURATION EXAMPLE Status: 🎧 In a meeting Set to: Clear after 1 hour → At the end of the hour, status clears automatically → Teammates see you are available again ✓
How Others See Your Status
Your status emoji appears in several places across Slack:
WHERE YOUR STATUS SHOWS Next to your name in messages 👤 Alice 🎧 In the member list of channels Alice Chen 🎧 On your profile popup card (hover your name) In direct messages At the top of the DM In search results Next to your name
When someone opens a DM with you and sees your status "🎧 Deep work — back at 2 PM", they know not to expect an instant reply. This context prevents awkward follow-up messages like "Hey, did you see my last message?"
Status vs Do Not Disturb
STATUS DO NOT DISTURB ────────────────────────── ──────────────────────────────── Shows what you are doing Silences notification sounds Informational only Actively blocks alerts Does NOT block pings Holds notifications until DND ends You still receive alerts Others see the moon icon 🌙
For maximum focus, combine both: set a status ("🎧 Deep work") AND enable Do Not Disturb. Your teammates see your status and receive a DND warning if they try to send you an urgent notification.
Clearing Your Status
Click your profile photo and select "Clear status" to remove it immediately. If you set an expiry time, Slack clears it automatically — you do not need to remember to do it manually.
Key Takeaways
- A Slack status is a short emoji + text that tells teammates what you are doing right now.
- Set a status through your profile photo menu in under 10 seconds.
- Always set an expiry time so your status clears automatically when you are done.
- A clear, specific status (emoji + text + return time) reduces unnecessary interruptions.
- Combine a status with Do Not Disturb for maximum focus without missing urgent messages.