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How to schedule Slack messages with ease

How to schedule Slack messages with ease

Judy Tsuei
Writer
November 29, 2021
Updated on:

How to schedule Slack messages with ease
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In November 2021, Portugal made it illegal for bosses to contact their employees after work hours. And in France, the “right to disconnect” has been in effect through a similar law since 2016. Talk about work-life balance! While we don’t all live in countries with laws that protect us from late-night work notifications, thankfully there is something that every Slack user can do to promote better boundaries: Schedule messages to send later. 

Maybe as you’re logging on for the day your colleagues in different time zones are logging off. Maybe you’re a night owl and prefer to work while other team members are fast asleep. Or maybe you know the perfect time to ping someone for the quickest response. Whatever the case, you can schedule your Slack messages to deliver at a specific time that’s convenient for everyone. We’ll show you how.

In this article, you’ll learn:

  • How to schedule a Slack message for a later time 
  • How to manage your scheduled Slack messages
  • How to schedule recurring messages to a specific Slack channel

How to schedule a Slack message

Whether it be a direct message or one sent to a channel, you can schedule it to deliver later. Here’s how to do it:

On the Slack desktop app (Mac, Microsoft Windows, or Linux) or Slack.com

  1. Compose your message in the text field
  2. Click on the green downward-pointing arrow icon
  3. Choose from one of the dates and times on the list, or click “Custom time” to specify your own
  4. Click “Schedule Message”

And you’re all set!

Image source: Slack.com

On the Slack mobile app (Android and iOS)

  1. Compose your message in the text field
  2. Tap and hold the green paper plane icon
  3. Choose from one of the dates and times on the list. Or click “Custom time” to specify your own
  4. Click “Schedule Message”

And you’re all set!

How to manage scheduled Slack messages

When you schedule a Slack message, you can make changes before it sends.

For example, you can: 

  • Edit a scheduled message
  • Reschedule a message
  • Send a scheduled message now
  • Cancel a scheduled message and save it to your drafts
  • Delete a scheduled message entirely

Here’s how:

On the Slack desktop app (Mac, Microsoft Windows, or Linux) or Slack.com

  1. Click “Scheduled” on the sidebar to view your schedule list
  2. Hover over the message you want to manage, so that the icons appear in the upper-right corner
  3. Click on whichever action you wish to take: edit message, reschedule message, cancel schedule, etc.

On the Slack mobile app (Android and iPhone)

  1. In the “Home” tab, tap “Scheduled” at the top of the list
  2. Tap and hold the message you want to manage
  3. Click on whichever action you wish to take: edit message, reschedule message, cancel schedule, etc.

What about third-party apps?

Slack’s native message scheduling feature is not the only way to queue a message for later. You’ll find a huge selection of third-party apps in Slack’s App Directory that also let you schedule messages like Easy Message Scheduler and Send It Later. Some even let you schedule recurring messages, a function that isn’t available to Slack users natively. 

(The ability to schedule messages is a new feature for Slack, so it’s pretty bare-boned at the time we’re writing this article.)

How to schedule recurring messages using Timy

Our pick for scheduling recurring messages in Slack is an app called Timy.

Why Timy? Here’s a quick breakdown of some of what you can do with its paid plan:

  • Schedule one-time messages up to one year in the future
  • Schedule recurring messages (every week, every month, etc.)
  • Pause recurring messages whenever you need to (eg. when you’re out office, on vacay)
  • Attach files to scheduled messages using the Timy web app
  • Use slash commands (which are essentially shortcuts!) for quick access to Timy features

Timy PRO costs $6.67 per workspace per month when billed annually or $8.34 when billed monthly. That makes it much more affordable than its competitors, one of which costs $20 per workspace per month. A free version of Timy does exist, but it doesn’t offer any features that aren’t already available with the native Slack scheduler. 

How to use Timy to schedule a recurring message:

Now we’ll walk you through scheduling a recurring (or repeating) message with Timy. Let’s say you’d like everyone in #marketing to update you every Monday with what they’re working on for the week. Setting up an automated reminder is as easy as sending a slash command.

  1. Navigate to the Slack channel or DM conversation where you’d like to set up the recurring message. For our example, you’d open the #marketing channel
  2. In the message field, use the /schedule command. Type /schedule followed by your message (eg. /schedule Happy Monday! What is everyone working on this week?)
  3. Hit the send button, which will cause a Timy form to appear
  4. Fill the form out with the appropriate details: time zone, how often to send the message (eg. every Monday), what time to send the message, and so on
  5. Hit the green OK button

Voilà! Every Monday, Timy will send your message in the #marketing channel at the designated time. And better yet, the messages will appear in the conversation as though they’re coming from you — not a bot.

Note: Timy’s scheduling options for recurring messages don’t allow for specific schedules like “Every Monday and Friday.” You can choose from the following:

  • Every Monday
  • Every Tuesday
  • Every Wednesday
  • Every Thursday
  • Every Friday
  • Every Saturday
  • Every Sunday
  • Every weekday
  • Every weekend
  • Every 2 weeks
  • Every month
  • Every year

If you want to schedule a message for every Monday and Friday, you can work around this limitation by scheduling two separate messages.

Additional resources

About the author

Judy Tsuei

Judy Tsuei is a Simon & Schuster author, speaker, and podcast host. She’s been featured in MindBodyGreen, BBC Travel, Fast Company, Hello Giggles, and more. As the founder of Wild Hearted Words, a creative marketing agency for global brands, Judy is also a mentor with the Founder Institute, the world's largest pre-seed accelerator. Judy advocates for mental and emotional health on her popular podcast, F*ck Saving Face. Follow along her journey at WildHeartedWords.com.

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