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A Telegram user ID is a numeric identifier for a user or bot; it is different from a username, phone number, chat ID, or message ID. To find your own ID, message the third-party bot @userinfobot; to find another person’s, forward one of their messages if Telegram exposes its sender. Developers can read the sender’s ID from message.from.id in a Bot API update.

What is a Telegram user ID?

Telegram’s Bot API identifies users and bots with the numeric User.id field. A user ID differs from:

  • Username: a public handle such as @alex, which may change or be absent.
  • Display name: the name shown in a profile or chat.
  • Phone number: separate account information governed by privacy settings.
  • Chat ID: the identifier for a private chat, group, supergroup, or channel.
  • Message ID: the identifier for an individual message.

User IDs can exceed the range safely handled by a 32-bit integer. If storing one in software, use a 64-bit integer or an equivalent safe numeric type.

Find your own Telegram user ID with an ID bot

The quickest option for most users is @userinfobot, a third-party bot that displays basic Telegram user information.

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  1. Open Telegram on your phone, tablet, or computer.
  2. Tap or click the search field.
  3. Search for @userinfobot.
  4. Open the result named User Info • Get ID • IDbot. Check the exact username because search results may include similar bots.
  5. Select Start, or send any message if you have already started the chat.
  6. Read the number shown next to Id or ID.

That number is your user ID. The bot does not need your login code, password, phone number, session file, or account token. Never send those items to a bot. Telegram bots cannot initiate a private conversation with you; you must message a bot first or add it to a group.

Find another person’s Telegram user ID

You can try forwarding a message from that person to @userinfobot:

  1. Open the conversation containing the person’s message.
  2. On mobile, press and hold the message. In Telegram Desktop, right-click it.
  3. Choose Forward.
  4. Select @userinfobot as the recipient.
  5. Send the forwarded message.
  6. Read the numeric ID the bot returns.

This works only when Telegram includes a visible user as the forwarded message’s origin. Forwarding privacy, protected content, channel posts, or anonymous administrators may prevent the individual’s ID from being shown.

Why forwarding may not show the person’s ID

Telegram’s forwarded-message privacy setting is under Settings → Privacy and Security → Forwarded Messages. Depending on the sender’s settings, a forwarded message may show an unlinked display name or hide the original sender. In that case, an ID bot cannot reliably recover the individual’s ID.

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Other common causes include:

  • Protected content: a group or channel may prevent its messages from being forwarded.
  • Channel posts: the channel, rather than an individual, may be the sender.
  • Anonymous administrators: a post may identify the group or channel instead of the administrator’s personal account.
  • Deleted or inaccessible messages: unavailable messages cannot be forwarded.
  • Similar bot names: an untrusted clone may return different information or request unsafe credentials.

Find a user ID with your own Telegram bot

For developers, the authoritative method is to read the incoming update sent to your bot.

Create or select a bot

Open Telegram’s official @BotFather, create a bot if needed, and copy its Bot API token. Treat the token like a password: anyone who obtains it can control the bot.

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Send the bot a message

Open the bot’s private chat and send a message, for example /test. A bot receives messages from a user’s private chat after that user has contacted it.

Request updates

Open this URL in a browser or call it with an HTTP client, replacing <TOKEN> with your bot token:

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https://api.telegram.org/bot<TOKEN>/getUpdates

In the JSON response, the sender’s user ID is at result[].message.from.id. For example:

{ “ok”: true, “result”: [ { “update_id”: 123456789, “message”: { “from”: { “id”: 987654321, “is_bot”: false, “first_name”: “Alex”, “username”: “alex” }, “chat”: { “id”: 987654321, “type”: “private” }, “text”: “/test” } } ] }

In this example, 987654321 is the user ID. Do not confuse it with update_id, which identifies the update, or message.chat.id, which identifies the chat. In a private one-to-one chat, the chat ID often has the same value as the user ID, but they are separate API fields and are not interchangeable in general.

If getUpdates returns a webhook error

getUpdates and webhooks cannot be used at the same time. If the bot has an active webhook, you may see an error saying it cannot get updates while a webhook is active. For testing, remove the webhook by calling:

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https://api.telegram.org/bot<TOKEN>/deleteWebhook

Then send a new message to the bot and call getUpdates again. Telegram retains pending updates for no longer than 24 hours.

Read a user ID from a forwarded message in the Bot API

A forwarded message delivered to a bot may include a forward_origin object. For a forward from a visible user, the structure is conceptually:

{ “forward_origin”: { “type”: “user”, “sender_user”: { “id”: 987654321 } } }

Other origin types include MessageOriginHiddenUser, MessageOriginChat, and MessageOriginChannel. If the origin is hidden, Telegram does not provide the original individual user’s ID. Check the current Bot API schema when implementing this, because older examples use legacy forwarding fields.

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Find a Telegram group, supergroup, or channel ID

If you need to identify a group or channel, you need a chat ID, not a user ID. Send a message in that chat to a bot and inspect result[].message.chat.id.

Entity Field to read Typical ID pattern
Individual user message.from.id Positive numeric ID
Private chat message.chat.id Often the same value as the user ID
Basic group message.chat.id Negative number
Supergroup or channel message.chat.id Normally a larger negative number beginning with -100

For channel posts or anonymous group messages, the sender may be represented by message.sender_chat.id. That identifies the channel or chat posting the message, not necessarily the individual administrator.

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Why a bot in a group may not receive a message

Bots normally have Privacy Mode enabled in groups. They receive relevant commands, replies directed to them, messages sent through them, and certain service messages—not every ordinary group message. Bot administrators and bots with Privacy Mode disabled receive ordinary group messages, except messages sent by other bots.

To change a bot’s group Privacy Mode:

  1. Open @BotFather.
  2. Send /setprivacy.
  3. Select your bot.
  4. Choose whether the bot should receive all group messages.

If you disable Privacy Mode, Telegram generally requires you to remove the bot from the group and add it again for the change to take effect. Disable it only when your application genuinely needs all group messages.

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Can you find a user ID from a Telegram username?

A username such as @example is a public handle, not the numeric user ID. Searching for a username can help you locate or contact an account, but it does not reveal the ID in Telegram’s standard interface. A bot or API client may resolve an accessible account through an interaction or API lookup, but private or inaccessible accounts cannot always be resolved.

Common mistakes

Incorrect assumption What is actually true
The profile always displays the numeric ID. Telegram’s standard profile interface is not a dependable universal source for user IDs. Use an ID bot or the Bot API.
The username is the user ID. A username is a public handle; the numeric ID is a separate API field.
The ID is the person’s phone number. Phone numbers and user IDs are separate. Phone visibility is controlled by privacy settings.
Any forwarded message reveals its sender. Forwarding privacy, protected content, anonymous posting, and channel origins can hide the individual sender.
Every negative number is a user ID. Negative Bot API IDs normally identify groups, supergroups, or channels.
The first number in getUpdates is the user ID. The top-level number is usually update_id; the user ID is nested at message.from.id.
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Quick reference

What you need Where to look
Your own user ID Message @userinfobot
Another person’s user ID Forward their message to @userinfobot if the sender is visible
User ID in your bot message.from.id
Private or group chat ID message.chat.id
Channel or anonymous chat sender message.sender_chat.id
Forwarded sender message.forward_origin

FAQ

How do I find my Telegram ID without a bot?

Telegram’s standard user-facing interface is not a dependable universal place to display the numeric ID. The quickest practical option is the third-party bot @userinfobot. Developers can read their ID from message.from.id in a Bot API update.

Is a Telegram username the same as a user ID?

No. A username is a public handle such as @alex; a user ID is a separate numeric identifier. Usernames can be changed or removed.

Can I find someone’s Telegram ID by forwarding their message?

Sometimes, if the message exposes the original sender. Forwarding privacy, protected content, anonymous administrators, channel posts, or deleted messages can prevent the individual ID from being returned.

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Is a Telegram user ID the same as a phone number?

No. Telegram assigns a numeric user ID separately from the phone number. Knowing a user ID does not reveal the user’s phone number.

What is the difference between a Telegram user ID and chat ID?

A user ID identifies an individual account or bot. A chat ID identifies a private conversation, group, supergroup, or channel. In a private chat, the values often happen to match, but they represent different API fields.

Why does getUpdates show no message?

First send a new message to the bot. If the bot uses a webhook, remove it with the deleteWebhook method, then call getUpdates again. In a group, Privacy Mode may also prevent the bot from receiving ordinary messages.

Is @userinfobot an official Telegram bot?

No. It is a third-party bot commonly used to display Telegram user information. It should not need your login code, password, phone number, session file, or Bot API token.

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The Bottom Line

For a quick answer, search Telegram for @userinfobot and send it a message. To identify another user, try forwarding one of their messages, keeping in mind that privacy and protected-content settings may hide the sender. If you are building a bot, use message.from.id for the user ID and message.chat.id for the chat ID; neither is a username, message ID, or update_id.

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