Does Teams Show Away When Minimized? Desktop, Web and Mobile

No. The Microsoft Teams desktop app does not show you as Away when you minimize it. Once its window is minimized or hidden, Teams asks your computer every 20 seconds how long it has been since the last keyboard or mouse input, in any app, and keeps you Available until that reaches 5 minutes. So you stay green while you work in Outlook, Excel or a browser. Locking the computer sets Away at once. Teams on the web is different: a browser tab cannot read the computer's idle time, so it can show Away while you work in another tab or app, unless you turn on a setting added in late 2025. The phone app shows Away as soon as it goes to the background.

Many people run both Teams and Slack, and the two apps treat a minimized window in opposite ways, so the Slack answer is at the end.

Teams desktop vs web vs mobile status

Microsoft's admin guide, "User presence in Teams", says that on a computer "a user's presence becomes Away automatically if they're inactive for a few minutes or if the computer is locked; and it becomes Offline when the computer enters sleep mode". On a mobile device, presence "becomes Away whenever the Teams app is in the background". Minimizing a desktop window is not on the list.

Why the desktop app stays green when minimized

We read the Teams client code on 4 November 2026. New Teams on Windows and Mac runs the same web client that teams.microsoft.com serves, inside a desktop shell, so the code shows what the desktop app does. A short Python script downloaded the client without signing in and checked the idle logic; this is its output:

Teams web client fetched 2026-11-04 07:05 UTC
in-window input that counts: ["scroll","DOMMouseScroll","mousewheel","touchstart","touchmove","mousemove","keydown"]
in-window idle timer (ms): 3e5
window hidden or minimized -> in-window state Inactive at once: True
system idle threshold (ms): 3e5
asks the OS for system idle time every (ms): 2e4
polls the OS only while the window is not active: True
OS idle under the threshold -> Active: True
idle time comes from the desktop host module: osutils
no host module (a browser tab) -> Unknown: True
screen locked -> Idle at once: True

Teams tracks two things. Inside its own window it counts mouse moves, scrolls, touches and key presses. When you minimize the window, that in-window state drops to Inactive at once, and Teams switches to the second source: every 20,000 ms (20 seconds) it asks the desktop shell's osutils module for the computer's idle time. While that idle time is under 300,000 ms (5 minutes), Teams keeps you Active. That count covers every app, so typing in Word or moving the mouse over a browser keeps a minimized Teams green. A locked screen sets Idle at once, without waiting for the 5 minutes.

Closing the Teams window with the X does not quit it either. New Teams keeps running in the system tray or menu bar and keeps your status. You go Offline only when you quit Teams from the tray, sign out, or the computer sleeps. What Teams shows once the computer sleeps or the lid closes is in does Teams stay green when the computer is asleep.

If the desktop app shows Away while you are working, the cause is something other than minimizing. The common ones, with fixes, are in Teams status stuck on Away: another signed-in device setting your status, a status you set by hand, or stale presence that needs a restart.

Why Teams on the web shows Away

A web page cannot read input from other apps. In a browser tab the same code finds no osutils module, so the computer's idle time comes back as Unknown (the no host module line in the output above). Until late 2025, Teams in a browser saw only clicks and keys inside its own tab. Work in another tab or in a desktop app for a few minutes, and Teams on the web set you Away.

Microsoft added a per-user setting that uses the browser's idle detection permission. With it on, Teams checks whether the device is in use, not what you are doing. It works in Chrome 94 or later and Edge 114 or later, and it is off by default. Where to find it and how to fix a blocked prompt: keep my current status when active outside of Teams.

• Open Teams in Chrome or Edge.
• Click ... next to your profile picture, then Settings.
• Open Notifications and activity, then the Presence section.
• Turn on Keep my current status when I'm active outside of Teams on the web.
• Click Allow when the browser asks for permission.

If you turn the setting on but block the permission, Teams still cannot see activity outside its tab and still shows Away. If your company manages the browser, IT may block the permission.

Teams web status unknown

Status unknown means Teams could not load a person's presence. You see it most for people outside your organization when presence is not shared between the two companies, and during connection problems. If your own status shows as unknown, sign out and back in, or reload the page. Microsoft lists Status unknown as a state Teams sets, not one you can choose.

Does Teams show Away on your phone when the app is in the background?

Yes, right away. The phone app shows Available only while it is on screen. When it goes to the background, Teams shows Away, and after 24 hours without use it shows Offline. If you are signed in on both a computer and a phone, Teams uses the device you used most recently, so a background phone app can make you look Away after your computer goes idle. Details are in does Teams stay green on mobile.

Slack works the same way on desktop

The Slack desktop app counts keyboard and mouse input anywhere on the computer (Slack desktop 4.52.178 code, checked 7 Oct 2026). Minimize Slack, work in other apps, and your Slack dot stays green; it turns grey only after 10 minutes with no input at all. Slack in a browser tab is different: a tab cannot see other apps, and our untouched test tab stayed active for 30 minutes, so we do not state a rule for it. How Slack decides is in how Slack decides when you are away, and the browser case is in keep Slack active in the browser.

For Teams timers side by side, see how long before Teams shows Away. For ways to stay Available through breaks, see how to keep your Teams status Available.

FAQ

Does Teams show Away when minimized?

Not the desktop app. It stays Available while you use other apps. It shows Away after about 5 minutes with no input anywhere, or when you lock the computer.

Why does Teams on the web show me as Away?

In a browser, Teams sees only activity inside its tab. Turn on "Keep my current status when I'm active outside of Teams on the web" in Settings, Notifications and activity, and allow the browser permission.

Does closing Teams make you Away?

Closing the window does not; Teams keeps running in the tray. Quitting Teams or signing out makes you Offline after a few minutes, unless you are active on another device.

Does Teams show Away when the screen is locked?

Yes, at once, in every version.

Does Teams show Away if I am on another screen?

No. The desktop app counts input on any screen and in any app.