Want your work and personal Teams accounts in one app without signing out every time? Add each one through your profile picture > Add another account, then switch, pin, and set notifications per account under Settings > Accounts and orgs (Microsoft Support).
How to Add Multiple Accounts in Microsoft Teams: Quick Reference
| What you want to do | Where to do it |
|---|---|
| Add a second work, school, or personal account | Profile picture > Add another account |
| Switch your main Teams window to another account | Profile picture > select the account |
| Use a client’s or partner’s Teams as a guest | Usually appears automatically under your signed-in account once you accept the invite; some invitations require redeeming the guest account or signing in separately |
| Turn notifications on or off for one account or org | Settings and more (...) > Settings > Accounts and orgs |
| Keep your most-used accounts one click away | Pin them to the sidebar (up to three) |
| Check missed activity without switching | Activity in your other accounts and orgs (opens in a separate window) |
What Is Multi-Account Support in Microsoft Teams?
Multi-account support lets one Teams desktop app stay signed in to several accounts: work, school, and personal Microsoft accounts, in any combination. Your main window shows one account at a time. You pick another from the account list under your profile picture instead of signing out and back in. Exact menu wording can vary slightly between Windows and macOS.
Two related things often get mixed up:
- A second account is a separate sign-in that you add yourself, such as your personal Microsoft account next to your work account.
- A guest organization is another company’s or school’s Teams that invited you as a guest. In most cases you don’t add it as a separate account — once you accept the invitation, it appears automatically under the account that received it.
Some guest invitations work differently. Depending on the inviting organization’s policies, you may first need to redeem the guest account, sign in with it directly, or accept additional permissions before that organization shows up (Microsoft Support).
Which Teams app this covers: These steps are for the current Teams desktop app (Microsoft also calls it “new Teams”). The older classic Teams client stopped working on July 1, 2025, according to Microsoft. If a menu described below is missing, the cause could be an out-of-date app, your account type, or an organization policy (see Fix #4 and Fix #6).
Prerequisites
- The current Microsoft Teams desktop app installed on Windows or macOS (how to get Teams)
- One account already signed in to Teams (work, school, or personal)
- The email address and password for the second account you want to add
- For a free personal account: a Microsoft account. Teams for personal use is free (Microsoft Teams free).
- For a guest organization: the guest invitation email from that organization
- For a work or school account: your normal sign-in details. Your organization’s policies may also limit whether the account can sign in on your device.
| Requirement | Details |
|---|---|
| Device | Windows PC or Mac |
| App | Current Microsoft Teams desktop app |
| Accounts | Any mix of work, school, and personal Microsoft accounts |
| Pin limit | Up to three accounts pinned to the sidebar |
Mobile note: On the iOS and Android Teams apps, the option is labeled Add account instead of Add another account, and the menus differ from desktop. Use Microsoft’s mobile instructions rather than these desktop steps.
Step-by-Step Guide
Step 1: Open Teams and Sign In With Your First Account
The steps inside Teams are the same on both platforms. Only the launch method differs.
On Windows
- Click Start.
- Type
Teamsand select Microsoft Teams from the results.
- If Teams asks you to sign in, enter the email and password for your main account.
On macOS
- Open Finder > Applications. You can also press
Cmd + Spaceand typeTeams. - Double-click Microsoft Teams.
- Sign in with your main account if prompted.
Expected result: Teams opens to your main account, and your profile picture shows in the top-right corner.
Step 2: Add a Second Work, School, or Personal Account
- Select your profile picture in the top-right corner of Teams.
- Select Add another account.
- Pick one of the two options Teams shows:
- Choose an account you’ve used before. Use this if the account is already known to your PC or Mac.
- Create or use another account. Use this to type in a new email address.
- Enter the email address for the second account and select Next.
- Enter the password and finish any sign-in prompts, such as a code from your authenticator app.
Expected result: Teams finishes signing in. The new account now appears in the list when you select your profile picture (Microsoft Support).
Tip: Repeat this step for a third account, such as work, school, and personal. Microsoft’s support documentation specifies a three-account pin limit for the sidebar, but it doesn’t detail an overall limit on how many accounts you can keep signed in beyond that.
Step 3: Switch Between Accounts and Organizations
- Select your profile picture.
- In the list of accounts and orgs, select the one you want to use.
Expected result: Your main Teams window reloads into that account, with its chats, teams, and calendar.
Selecting an account from the profile menu is the primary way to change your main window. Microsoft documents that selecting activity from another account or org opens it in a separate window and doesn’t switch your main window (Microsoft Support). Many people miss this detail.
Step 4: Find Your Guest Organizations
In most cases, you don’t need to sign in separately to a guest organization. After you accept the invitation, it typically appears automatically under the account that received it.
Some invitations work differently. Depending on the inviting organization’s settings, you may need to redeem the guest account, sign in with it directly, accept additional permissions, or follow an account-switching link in the invitation email before the organization shows up.
- Accept the guest invitation from the email the organization sent you.
- Select your profile picture in Teams.
- Look under the account that received the invitation. The guest organization usually appears there automatically.
- If it doesn’t appear, check the invitation email for a sign-in or redemption link and follow those steps instead.
- Select the organization to switch to it.
Expected result: You see that organization’s teams and chats that you have access to as a guest. Check Settings > Accounts and orgs to see whether notifications for the guest organization are turned on, and adjust them if needed.
Step 5: Pin Accounts to the Sidebar
Pinning keeps an account visible in the Teams sidebar. You can switch with one click and see activity for just that account.
- Select your profile picture.
- Hover over the account or org you want to pin.
- Select the pin icon next to it.
Expected result: The account appears in the sidebar. From there you can view its activity or select Switch to move your main window to it. You can pin up to three accounts (Microsoft Support). Unpin one before you add a fourth.
Configuration
Turn Notifications On or Off for Each Account
- In Teams, select Settings and more (the
...next to your profile picture). - Select Settings.
- Select Accounts and orgs.
- Find the account or org in the list.
- Turn its notification toggle on to get desktop notifications from it, or off to silence it.
This works well for a tenant you rarely use. Silence it, and keep your main work account loud.
Check Missed Activity Without Switching
When you have unread activity in an account you’re not viewing, Teams shows Activity in your other accounts and orgs. Select an item there to read it in a separate window. Your main session stays where it is.
Calls on a Personal vs. Work Account
Free personal Teams has different limits than work plans. For example, group meetings on Teams free run up to 60 minutes, and 1:1 calls run up to 30 hours (Microsoft Teams free). If you take calls on both accounts, check which account is active before you join.
Tips and Troubleshooting
Fix #1: Switch From the Profile Menu, Not a Notification
Symptom: You “switched” accounts, but your main window still shows the old account.
- Close any extra Teams window that opened when you clicked a notification.
- Select your profile picture in the main window.
- Select the account you want.
Activity notifications from other accounts are designed to open in a separate window. Only the profile menu (or the sidebar Switch button) changes the main view.
Fix #2: Turn On Notifications for the Second Account
Symptom: You get no notifications from your personal account or a guest org.
- Go to Settings and more (
...) > Settings > Accounts and orgs. - Find the silent account or org.
- Turn its notification toggle on.
Notifications are controlled per account, so one toggle being off is the most common cause.
Fix #3: Accept the Guest Invite and Restart Teams
Symptom: An organization that invited you doesn’t appear anywhere in Teams.
- Search your email for the guest invitation from that organization.
- Open it and accept the invitation. If the email includes a separate sign-in or redemption link, use that link rather than just marking the invite accepted.
- Quit Teams completely. On Windows, right-click the Teams icon in the system tray and select Quit. On macOS, press
Cmd + Q. - Reopen Teams and select your profile picture to check for the org.
- If it’s still missing, sign out of that account and sign back in.
If the org still doesn’t show, that organization’s settings may limit guest access. Their organization’s IT admin would need to change that setting.
Fix #4: Update to the Current Teams App
Symptom: There’s no Add another account option in the profile menu.
- Make sure you’re in the Teams desktop app, not a browser tab or the Teams mobile app, which uses different menus.
- If your copy of Teams is old or won’t update, download the current app from Microsoft’s official page (How do I get Microsoft Teams?).
- Install it, sign in, and repeat Step 2.
If the option is still missing on a work or school account, your organization may restrict it (see Fix #6).
Fix #5: Quit and Reopen Teams
Symptom: After adding accounts, Teams gets stuck loading or shows outdated info.
Quit Teams completely (as in Fix #3), reopen it, and select each account once so it loads. If one account keeps failing, sign out of just that account and sign back in. Clearing the Teams cache is a heavier step that resets local data, so try it only after these simpler checks.
Fix #6: Ask Your IT Department About a Blocked Work Account
Symptom: A work or school account won’t add, or sign-in is blocked with a policy message.
Your organization’s IT admin may control whether that account can sign in on your device, use guest access, or run alongside other accounts, depending on your tenant’s policies. You can’t change this from Teams settings.
Send your IT department the exact error text and ask whether multi-account sign-in is allowed for your tenant. If the block is about unmanaged devices, they may tell you to use a company laptop or the web version instead.
Wrapping Up
For most people, the whole setup is profile picture > Add another account, plus one trip to Accounts and orgs to tune notifications. The real time-saver is understanding the notification window behavior: once you know activity from other accounts opens in a separate window, the “it won’t switch” confusion goes away.
If an account still won’t add or stay signed in, check with your IT department before changing anything else on your PC.
| Step | Action | Applies To |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Open Teams and sign in | Windows, macOS |
| 2 | Profile picture > Add another account | Work, school, personal |
| 3 | Profile picture > select account to switch | All accounts and guest orgs |
| 4 | Accept invite; org usually appears automatically (some invites require redeeming the guest account separately) | Guest organizations |
| 5 | Pin up to three accounts to the sidebar | All accounts |
| 6 | Settings > Accounts and orgs toggles | Per-account notifications |
Resources
Sources retrieved from Microsoft Support.