If you’re in the Google ecosystem or use Google Workspace at work, Google Chat is a popular choice for messaging and collaboration. The app replaced Hangouts in Gmail (RIP), which originally launched for business before rolling out to everyone. Whatever the context of using Google Chat, there are some hacks to maximize its features.
Add Chat to Gmail to Keep Everything in One Tab
If you already have lots of tabs open — and one of them is Gmail — you don’t really need a second tab for Google Chat. Instead, you can add chats to your Gmail taskbar and toggle between your inbox and chat interface in the same tab (as long as they’re under the same Google Account). Beat settings Gear at the top of your Gmail window and tap View all settings. select chat and meet Tab and press the radio button next to it google chat. You can also manage your chat settings from this tab. For Gmail on mobile, go to Settings > Chat and toggle show chat tab But.
Google Chat has a desktop app if you use Chrome
For those who prefer a desktop app instead of a browser window, you can download the Google Chat app. Although this is a standalone app rather than an extension, Chrome must be open and running for the app to work. However, you don’t have to use Chrome for your default browser. Open to install app chat.google.com in chrome and click either to install icon or go to More > Install Google Chat. From there, you can launch the chat from your desktop.
Schedule chat messages for later
The ability to schedule messages for later means you can draft chats when they’re top of mind, but send them when you actually want them to be seen by the recipient. This is useful for communicating with coworkers who have different work hours, saving a message for someone returning from vacation, or scheduling a recurring check-in chat. Draft your message and click the down arrow next to it Send button, then choose either a suggested send time or set a custom one.
set do not disturb period
If you don’t want to receive notifications all the time, set Do Not Disturb to activate when you’re done. This will mute alerts from Google Chat during the set time frame. In your chat window, go to Settings > Notifications and scroll down Don’t disturb the schedule. You can toggle to one of the default options or hit new construction To create a custom schedule. make sure to enable Match Do Not Disturb schedules by time zoneEspecially if your team is spread across multiple time zones.
Receive email notifications for unread messages
There may be times when you have turned off Google Chat or turned off push notifications, but you still want to see a summary of important messages. You can enable email notifications for unread direct messages or @mentions to receive reminders for chat messages that you haven’t read for more than 12 hours. On desktop, go to Settings > Notifications and toggle Receive email notifications for unread direct messages or @mentions But.
Open multiple chats in window mode
To avoid toggling back and forth between multiple conversations in Google Chat on desktop, you can open them in a pop-out window to view them together. From your home screen in a chat, tap the three vertical dots (Option) to the right and hit Open in a pop-up. Alternatively, you can press the pop-up icon at the top of any DM or Space. Note that you cannot pop out individual threads.
Add individual messages to tasks
Google Chat apparently plays nice with other Google apps, including Tasks. If there is an action item in a chat conversation, you can put it in your to-do list by pressing Three-dot menu > Add to tasks. Long press the message on mobile and go to More > Add to tasks. If you’ve added tasks to your right-hand panel in a chat, you can view and organize your list in the same window as your conversation.
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Use search filters to find specific messages
Like other Google apps, Chat has advanced filters to help you narrow down search results and find specific messages in your Spaces and conversation history. Type your query in the search bar at the top of the window, then select one of the following filters:
You can further sort by recency and relevance.
Turn off chat history to automatically delete messages
For sensitive messages that you don’t want saved in your chat history, Google Chat has a feature like disappearing messages that will delete new messages from your chat log after 24 hours. To enable it, open a conversation, click the down arrow next to the chat title and select Turn off history. Your log will show which messages have been sent on and off with a history so you know which messages will be deleted.
Get conversation summaries from Gemini
If you have a Google Workspace account, you can ask Gemini to summarize read and unread conversations in chat so you don’t have to go back and review each message individually. Summaries are available for DMs (group and individual), spaces and threads. Conversation summaries are enabled by default for eligible accounts – to use the feature, select a read or unread conversation in Google Chat or a chat in Gmail, hover over it in the Home tab, and click Summarize. You can also summarize unread messages in a conversation by opening the conversation and selecting summarize unread.
