Whether you need to walk a client through a PowerPoint presentation, show a coworker a bug in a spreadsheet, or demonstrate a new software tool, verbal explanations are rarely enough. Microsoft Teams includes a powerful screen-sharing feature that allows you to broadcast exactly what is on your monitor directly to everyone else in the meeting in real-time.
Unlike basic video chat software, Teams offers highly granular controls. You don’t have to share your entire messy desktop; you can choose to broadcast only a single specific application, ensuring your privacy while presenting.
How to Start Sharing Your Screen
You can share your screen during any active video or audio call, provided the meeting organizer has not restricted participant permissions.
- Join the Microsoft Teams meeting.
- Move your mouse to wake up the meeting control toolbar (usually located at the top right of the meeting window or hovering near the bottom center, depending on your version of Teams).
- Click the Share button. (It looks like a square or rectangle with an arrow pointing upward).
Choosing What to Share (Crucial Step)
Once you click Share, a menu will pop up offering several different broadcasting options. Choosing the correct one prevents embarrassing privacy mistakes.
- Desktop / Screen: This broadcasts absolutely everything on your monitor. If you open your email, the entire meeting sees your email. If a sensitive Slack notification pops up, everyone sees it. This is best used if you need to switch rapidly between three different apps (like Word, Excel, and a web browser) during your presentation.
- Window: (Highly Recommended) This allows you to select one specific, currently open application (e.g., only the Excel window). If you choose this, the meeting will only see the spreadsheet. If you minimize Excel and open your email, the meeting will just see a frozen image of the spreadsheet until you bring Excel back to the front. This is the safest option.
- PowerPoint Live: This integrates directly with Microsoft 365. It allows you to share a presentation flawlessly, giving you presenter notes that the audience cannot see, and even allows attendees to navigate backward through the slides at their own pace without interrupting you.
Click on the specific Screen or Window you want to broadcast.
Including Computer Audio
If you are sharing a YouTube video or a training module that has sound, the meeting will only see the video. They will not hear the audio unless you explicitly grant Teams permission to broadcast your system sound.
Before you click on the Window or Screen you want to share, look at the top of the Share menu tray. Toggle the switch that says Include computer sound (or “Include system audio”) to the ON position. Now, any audio that plays through your speakers will be routed into the meeting.
How to Know You Are Broadcasting
When screen sharing begins, Teams will minimize the main video gallery.
The most important indicator that you are actively broadcasting is the Red Border. A bright red line will appear, tracing the exact perimeter of the screen or window you are sharing. If the red border is around your Excel window, they can only see Excel. If the red border surrounds your entire physical monitor, they can see everything.
How to Stop Sharing
When your presentation is over, you must manually turn off the broadcast.
- Locate the Teams meeting window or the small floating presenter toolbar.
- Click the Stop Sharing button. (It looks like a square with an ‘X’ in it).
- The red border will disappear from your screen, confirming your broadcast has ended, and the meeting will return to the standard video gallery view.