What are event chats?
Event chats give organizers and attendees a dedicated place to communicate before, during, and after an event. They make it easy for organizers to post updates, answer questions, and build community while allowing attendees to connect before meeting in person.
Meetup supports two ways to chat for your events:
- Built-in Meetup chats: A native group conversation created automatically inside Meetup. Confirmed attendees are added as soon as they RSVP "Going".
- Third-party chat channels: Organizers can link their existing external chat (such as WhatsApp, Discord, Telegram, Signal, or Facebook Groups) directly to the event.
Event chats vs. direct and group messages: An event chat is created automatically for an event and includes all confirmed attendees. Direct and group messages are personal conversations started manually between members.
Event chats are available across web, iOS, and Android.
Joining and participating in an event chat
- Automatic access upon RSVP: When you RSVP "Going" to an event with a chat enabled:
- Built-in Meetup Chat: You are added to the group conversation automatically. An "Open event chat" button will appear on the RSVP confirmation screen.
- Third-Party Chat (WhatsApp, Discord, etc.): A prompt will display the organizer's group invite link with a one-click "Join group chat" button and a copy link option.
- Waitlist handling: If you are placed on a waitlist, chat access is granted automatically as soon as a spot opens and your RSVP is confirmed.
- Changing your RSVP: If you change your RSVP to "Not Going", you will no longer be able to send new messages in the built-in Meetup chat (you can still read earlier messages). For third-party platforms, invite links are only displayed to confirmed attendees.
- Accessing your chat: For built-in Meetup chats, you can return to the conversation at any time through the Messages page or via the Messages tab on the event page.
Notifications and preferences
For built-in Meetup chats, you receive mobile push notifications whenever someone posts in an event chat you belong to. You can mute notifications or archive individual conversations at any time through the conversation settings menu.
Note: For external chats (such as WhatsApp or Discord), notification settings and delivery are managed directly within that third-party app.
Safety and moderation
Built-in Meetup chats are governed by Meetup's Community Guidelines. If you encounter spam, harassment, or inappropriate conduct, you can block or report members directly inside the chat interface. Organizers also have the ability to remove individuals from their event conversations when necessary.
When joining third-party platforms like WhatsApp or Discord, interactions are subject to the policies and moderation controls of those external platforms.