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One free scan finds every outdated or missing driver and matches the right update for your exact hardware.Free scan · exact hardware matchIn Microsoft Teams, a call is usually an unscheduled, person-to-person conversation started from the calling controls. A meeting is an organized session with meeting-specific controls such as participant roles, a lobby, chat, recording, and transcription.
The distinction is not simply a short conversation versus a long one: a Meet now session starts immediately but is still a meeting. Calls may also support recording, transcription, external users, or PSTN phone numbers, depending on policy and configuration.
Quick comparison: Teams call vs. meeting
| Capability | Call | Meeting |
|---|---|---|
| How it starts | Usually from a person’s profile, chat, or the Calls app | From Calendar, a channel, a meeting link, or Meet now |
| Typical use | Immediate person-to-person conversation | Planned or immediate collaboration with meeting controls |
| Participant roles | No ordinary organizer, presenter, and attendee model | Organizer, co-organizer, presenter, and attendee roles |
| Lobby controls | Not normally presented as a meeting-lobby experience | Organizer and administrator settings control admission and lobby bypass |
| Meeting chat | Uses the call or chat experience, not meeting-chat controls | Can be On, Off, or In meeting only, subject to policy |
| Recording and transcription | Voice-calling policies govern one-to-one and PSTN calls | Meeting policies govern meetings; group calls use meeting or group-call controls |
| Phone participation | Depends on Teams Phone and PSTN configuration | Dial-in or dial-out depends on Audio Conferencing, calling plans or Direct Routing, and policy |
| Attendance scale | Not governed by meeting attendee limits | Up to 10,000 attendees; after approximately 900, additional attendees may receive view-only access |
What counts as a Teams call?
Microsoft describes calls in this context as unscheduled, peer-to-peer Teams client sessions between internal or external Teams users. You can usually start one by selecting the audio or video call button in a one-to-one chat, opening a person’s profile, or using the Calls app.
A call is a good fit when you need to speak to one person immediately and do not need a formal event around the conversation. Examples include asking a colleague a quick question, returning a customer’s call, or calling an ordinary telephone number through Teams Phone.
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A call does not normally provide the meeting-specific organizer, presenter, attendee, and lobby model. It can still support features such as video, screen sharing, captions, recording, transcription, call forwarding, music on hold, and PSTN connectivity, depending on tenant configuration, licensing, and policy.
What counts as a Teams meeting?
A meeting is an organized Teams session with controls for how people join and participate. Supported types include:
- Private meeting: scheduled in Teams Calendar.
- Channel meeting: associated with a team and channel.
- Meet now meeting: started immediately from a chat or another Teams context.
Scheduling is not the defining test. Meet now is unscheduled, but it is still a meeting because it uses the meeting experience and its participant controls.
Meetings are useful when you need a join link, control over presenters, meeting chat, or a recording and transcript associated with the session.
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Participant roles are a major difference
Meetings have a role model. The organizer owns the meeting configuration, while co-organizers can help manage the meeting. Presenters can share content and perform presenter actions; attendees have more limited permissions.
To change someone’s role while a meeting is running:
- Select People in the meeting controls.
- Hover over the participant.
- Select More options.
- Choose Make a presenter or Make an attendee.
For a scheduled meeting, configure roles by opening Calendar, selecting the event, choosing View event, and then selecting Options. Under Roles, choose co-organizers and set the Who can present option, then save. These options can be configured before or during the scheduled meeting.
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Keep these details in mind:
- In a recurring meeting, role changes through Calendar apply to future occurrences. Changes made through People during the meeting affect only that occurrence.
- Co-organizers cannot change the meeting before it starts, and the organizer role itself cannot be changed. Selecting specific presenters is unavailable for channel meetings.
- If a participant leaves and rejoins, Teams restores the last role assigned to that participant.
Lobby and admission controls apply to meetings
Meetings can use a lobby. Depending on organization and meeting settings, the organizer can control who bypasses it and who must wait for admission. Settings can also affect anonymous participants and whether dial-in users may bypass the lobby.
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Meeting chat is not the same as a normal chat
Organizer-facing meeting-chat choices are:
- On: chat can be available before, during, and after the meeting.
- Off: meeting chat is disabled.
- In meeting only: participants can chat while the meeting is running, but not before or after.
Administrators can restrict these choices with the Teams Meeting chat policy. Its values include On for everyone, On for everyone but anonymous users, Off, and In-meeting only for everyone. If the policy is Off, the organizer cannot turn chat back on. If it is limited to in-meeting use, chat is unavailable before and after the meeting even if the organizer interface appears to offer a broader choice.
The Meeting chat policy does not apply to channel meetings. Channel conversations are governed through the channel and team experience instead.
For meetings and events with up to 1,000 attendees, meeting chat can support replies, mentions, reactions, formatting, images, and files, subject to policies and service limits.
Recording and transcription: calls are not automatically excluded
Teams supports convenience recording for calls, meetings, and events. One-to-one and PSTN calls may be recorded or transcribed when the relevant voice-calling policy, licensing, and organization configuration allow it.
Policies are separated by communication type:
- Voice calling policies govern one-to-one Teams calls, including internal calls, external Teams calls, and PSTN calls.
- Meeting policies govern meetings and group calls.
- Events policies govern events.
This separation explains why a user may be able to record or transcribe a meeting but not a one-to-one call: the organization may have assigned a restrictive calling policy. Changing the meeting policy will not necessarily fix call recording.
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For meetings, the organizer setting is named Record and transcribe automatically. If administrators allow it, it is Off by default for meetings, so the organizer must enable it for each meeting. It is On by default for events. Teams Premium meeting templates or sensitivity labels may enforce the setting.
For PSTN convenience recording, licensing can matter. Microsoft documents eligibility involving Microsoft 365 E5, Office 365 E5, or Microsoft 365 or Office 365 E3 with the Teams Phone Add-on, along with the applicable configuration.
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Call behavior is managed separately from meeting behavior. In the Teams admin center, create a calling policy by selecting Voice, then Calling policies, then Add.
Relevant settings include Make private calls, Cloud recording for calling, Transcription, Real-time captions in Teams calls, Web PSTN calling, call forwarding, simultaneous ringing, delegation, music on hold, and busy-on-busy behavior.
The Make private calls setting controls Teams calling capabilities. Turning it off disables calling functionality in Teams, even though users may still be able to join meetings.
Administrators managing policies with PowerShell use cmdlets such as:
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One compliance-related setting is Require participant agreement for recording and transcription. When enabled, participants’ audio, video, and content sharing are disabled until they agree to be included in the recording and transcript.
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Calling a telephone number from a meeting
A meeting can include a phone participant, but meeting dial-out is not automatic. During the meeting, select Add people, enter the number in Invite someone or dial a number, and include the country or region code in an international format such as E.164.
For this to work, the organizer must join through Teams and have the required PSTN capability. Depending on the organization, that may be Audio Conferencing, an online calling plan, or Direct Routing. The organizer also needs an online dial-out policy that permits dial-out from conferencing-enabled meetings, and the destination must be in a supported country or region.
If the dial-out option is missing or unusable, check these points:
- Did the organizer join through the Teams client rather than only by phone?
- Does the organizer have Audio Conferencing or Teams Phone/PSTN service?
- Does the assigned policy allow conference dial-out?
- Is the destination country or region supported?
- Was the complete number entered with the country code?
A normal Teams call to a telephone number has its own Teams Phone and PSTN requirements. Meeting dial-out is not a substitute for those services.
Meeting size and the 1,000-attendee misconception
Teams meetings can support up to 10,000 attendees. After approximately 900 participants, additional attendees may receive a view-only experience. View-only attendees cannot use meeting chat, share content, or share video. If view-only mode is disabled, attendance is limited to the first 1,000 participants.
A meeting is the appropriate model for a large presentation, but a normal call is not designed around this attendee-management model. For large public or broadcast-style sessions, check whether a Teams event type is more appropriate.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Which should you use?
| Use a call when… | Use a meeting when… |
|---|---|
| You need an immediate conversation with one person. | You need a join link, calendar event, or planned agenda. |
| You do not need a lobby or formal participant roles. | You need an organizer, presenters, attendees, or co-organizers. |
| You are calling a colleague or a phone number directly. | You need several people, external guests, or controlled admission. |
| The conversation is primarily a quick exchange. | You need meeting chat, recording, transcription, captions, or structured content sharing. |
Choose a meeting even if you start immediately when roles, admission, or a persistent meeting conversation matter. Choose a call when speed and simplicity matter more than event controls. If recording, transcription, PSTN access, or external participation is essential, verify the relevant policy and license instead of assuming the Teams label alone guarantees the feature.
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FAQ
Can a Teams call be recorded?
Yes. A one-to-one Teams call or PSTN call may support recording and transcription when the assigned voice-calling policy, licensing, and organization configuration allow it. Meeting recording policy does not control every call.
Is Meet now a call or a meeting?
Meet now is an unscheduled meeting. It starts immediately but uses the meeting experience, including meeting roles and other meeting controls.
Can a Teams meeting have a lobby?
Yes. Meeting settings and administrator defaults can determine who bypasses the lobby, who waits for admission, whether anonymous users can join, and whether dial-in users can bypass the lobby.
Can I make someone a presenter in a Teams call?
The documented presenter and attendee role model applies to meetings. A normal peer-to-peer call does not provide the same meeting-role workflow. Start or use a meeting when presenter management is required.
Why can I record meetings but not Teams calls?
Recording and transcription for one-to-one and PSTN calls are governed by voice-calling policies, while meetings and group calls use meeting policies. Your calling policy may be more restrictive than your meeting policy.
Can I call a phone number from a Teams meeting?
Usually, if the organizer joins through Teams, has the required Audio Conferencing or Teams Phone/PSTN capability, has a permitted dial-out policy, and is calling a supported destination. In the meeting, use Add people and Invite someone or dial a number.
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