Zoom offers multiple methods to schedule a meeting. A host has control over the options for their scheduled meetings, except for settings that an administrator has locked for all users in the account or for all members of a specific group.
- Schedule from the Zoom desktop client or mobile app
- Schedule from the Zoom web portal
- Schedule for someone else – PDF Guides for Executive Assistants (Outlook, Google)
For instructions on scheduling using our plugins and extensions, see:
- Scheduling from the Outlook add-in
- Scheduling from the Outlook plugin
- Scheduling from the Chrome Google Calendar extension
- Scheduling from the Firefox Google Calendar extension
- Scheduling using the G Suite Google Calendar add-in
Notes:
- Your scheduler settings are synced from the Zoom web portal.
- The asterisk (*) means your admin can restrict access to the setting/options, or the setting has additional prerequisites. These settings may not be visible. Click the relevant embedded links for more information.
- If you set up calendar and contacts integration, install the Zoom add-in for your calendar service for a better experience. When scheduling or editing meetings, use your third-party calendar service instead of the Zoom desktop client.
- If you’ve set up calendar and contacts integration and used the Zoom add-in to schedule a meeting, editing the meeting in the Zoom web portal may cause the third-party calendar service to re-send the invitation email to all invitees.
- If you schedule a meeting with your Personal Meeting ID and use a custom topic name, that custom topic name will not be reflected in reporting.
- Sign in to the Zoom desktop client.
- On the Home
tab, click Schedule 
.
This will open the scheduler window. - Select your meeting settings. Note that some of these options might not be available if they were disabled and locked to the off position at the account or group level.
- Topic: Enter a topic or name for your meeting.
- Date & Time:
- Start: Select a date and time for your meeting, but remember you can start your meeting at any time before the scheduled time. You can also manually enter any time. For example, you can enter 15 in the minutes field.
- Time Zone: By default, Zoom will use your computer’s time zone. Click the drop-down menu to select a different time zone.
- Recurring meeting: Choose if you would like a recurring meeting (the meeting ID will remain the same for each session).
- Meeting ID
- Generate Automatically: Generate a random unique meeting ID.
- Personal Meeting ID*: Use your Personal Meeting ID.
- Security
- Passcode: Enter a meeting passcode. Joining participants will be required to input this before joining your scheduled meeting.
Note: The meeting passcode must meet complexity requirements set by your admin. - Waiting Room: Enable Waiting Room for the meeting.
- Only authenticated users can join: Restrict access to the meeting so that only signed-in users can join.
Note: If you select Sign in to Zoom with specified domain, you can’t add any domains that are included on the domain block list.
- Passcode: Enter a meeting passcode. Joining participants will be required to input this before joining your scheduled meeting.
- Encryption: Choose between the standard Enhanced encryption (encryption keys stored in the cloud) and End-to-end encryption (encryption keys stored on your local device) for your meeting.
- Video
- Host: Choose if you would like the host’s video on or off when joining the meeting. Even if you choose off, the host will have the option to start their video.
- Participants: Choose if you would like the participants’ videos on or off when joining the meeting. Even if you choose off, the participants will have the option to start their video.
- Audio*: Allow users to call in using Telephone only, Computer Audio only, Both, or 3rd Party Audio (if enabled for your account).
- Dial in From: If Telephone or Both is enabled for this meeting, click Edit to select the dial-in countries to include in the invitation. By default, this includes your Global Dial-In Countries listed in your meeting settings.
- Calendar: Select a calendar service to add the meeting and send out invites to participants.
- Outlook: Open the Outlook desktop app and create an event for the meeting.
Note: You will see Outlook when using the Windows client. - iCal: Open iCal and create an event for the meeting.
Note: You will see iCal when using a macOS. - Google Calendar: Open Google Calendar in your default browser and create an event for the meeting.
- Other Calendars: Open a new window, where the meeting text can be copied pasted into the user’s preferred communication method. You can also down an ICS file which can be opened in most email applications.
- Outlook: Open the Outlook desktop app and create an event for the meeting.
- Advanced Options: Click the arrow to view additional meeting options.
- Allow participants to join before start time: Allow participants to join the meeting without you or before you join. If enabled, you can also choose how far in advance of the scheduled start time you wish them to be able to join: 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes, or Anytime.
Note: The meeting will end after 40-minutes for Basic (free) users. - Mute participants on entry: If join before host is not enabled, this will mute participants as they join the meeting. Participants can unmute themselves after joining the meeting.
Note: To mute all participants currently in a meeting, see the options to manage participants. - Request permission to unmute participants: Participants will be prompted to provide the host with consent to be unmuted at will by the host. If declined, the host will still have the option to Ask to unmute.
- Automatically record meeting: Select if you want to record Locally (to your computer) or In the cloud.
- Enable focus mode when meeting starts: Automatically start the meeting with focus mode enabled, in order to provide fewer distractions to all meeting participants. This feature requires client version 5.9.0 or higher.
- Enable additional data center regions for this meeting*
- Approve or deny entry to users from certain regions and countries: Host can either allow only participants from specific countries/regions to join, or block all participants from specific countries/regions.
- Schedule for*: If you have scheduling privilege for another user, you will be able to choose who you want to schedule for from the drop-down menu.
Note: When you assign scheduling privileges to other users in the Zoom web portal, you can choose if these users can manage your meetings that are marked as private in Outlook or Google Calendar. If the users cannot manage private events, they cannot see the invite link, meeting topic, or attendee list. - Show in Public Event List: Add the meeting to a public calendar associated with your vanity URL.
- Alternative hosts: Enter the email address of another Licensed Zoom user on your account to allow them to start the meeting in your absence. If enabled, you can also select the check box to Allow alternative hosts to add or edit polls. This feature requires Zoom client version 5.8.0 or higher.
- Allow participants to join before start time: Allow participants to join the meeting without you or before you join. If enabled, you can also choose how far in advance of the scheduled start time you wish them to be able to join: 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes, or Anytime.
- Interpretation (only supported in Windows and macOS clients): Enable language interpretation (audio) and sign language interpretation (video) for the meeting. You also have the option to enter the email for the interpreter and their language or sign language they are interpreting, or you can assign it during the meeting.
- Click Save to finish, and open the selected calendar service to add the meeting.
Note:- If you are scheduling a recurring meeting, you will need to set the recurrence in your calendar service.
- Choosing Other Calendars will allow you to copy and paste the scheduled meeting information such as date, time, and meeting URL.
Notes:
- A non-recurring meeting ID will expire 30 days after the meeting is scheduled for. If you restart the same meeting ID within those 30 days, it will remain valid for another 30 days. You can restart the same meeting ID as many times as you would like before it expires.
- A recurring meeting ID will expire 365 days after the meeting is started on the last occurrence. You can re-use the meeting ID for future occurrences.
- Scheduled meetings can be started at any time before the scheduled time. The links will not expire or become invalid unless it is past the 30-day period for a non-recurring meeting, has not been used for over 365 days for a recurring meeting, or has been deleted from your Zoom account. An instant meeting link will expire as soon as the meeting is over.