How to Quote a Message in Slack: Block Quote, Link or Forward

To quote a message in Slack, type > at the start of an empty line in the message box, or select text you already typed and press Cmd+Shift+9 on a Mac (Ctrl+Shift+9 on Windows). Slack puts a grey bar next to the line, and you write your answer on the line below it. We tested both in the Slack web app on 31 October 2026: the > turned the line into a quote the moment we typed it, and the shortcut turned a selected line into a quote and lit the Block quote button in the toolbar. Slack has no quote-reply button, so to show the whole original message with a link back to it, copy the message link and paste it, or use Forward message.

Here are the three messages we sent in a test channel: a line quoted with the shortcut, a line quoted with > with a normal reply under it, and a pasted message link, which Slack expanded into a card that quotes the first message and names the channel it was posted in.

Three ways to quote in Slack

A block quote is text only: readers see the words but cannot jump to the original. A link or a forward shows a preview card that opens the original message.

How to block quote in Slack

• Copy the text you want to quote.
• Click in the message box where you want to answer. If you already typed something, press Shift+Enter to start a new line.
• Type >. On an empty line it turns into a quote at once, so the space after it is optional; in our test a typed space stayed in the quote as a leading space.
• Paste the text. To leave the quote, press Shift+Enter and then Backspace: the new empty line drops the grey bar. Pressing Shift+Enter alone, even twice, kept us inside the quote.
• Type your reply and press Enter to send.

If you prefer shortcuts, type or paste first, select the text, and press Cmd+Shift+9. The Block quote button in the formatting toolbar does the same, and it shows as pressed while the cursor is in a quote:



Multi-line quotes. Paste all the lines, select them, and apply Block quote once: every selected line gets the bar. If you use Format messages with markup (Preferences, Advanced), Slack shows plain text as you type and applies formatting after you send, so put > at the start of each line you want quoted.

How to quote part of a message



Slack cannot quote a selection with one click, so copy it:

• In the original message, select only the sentence you want and press Cmd+C (Ctrl+C).
• Click Reply in thread on that message, or open the conversation where you want to answer.
• Type > and a space, then paste.
• Start a new line, end the quote, and write your answer.

In a long thread with several questions, quoting each one above its answer makes the reply easy to follow. To make a thread reply visible in the channel as well, tick Also send to #channel under the reply box.

How to quote a whole message with a link

• Hover over the message, click the three dots (More actions), and choose Copy link.
• Open the channel or DM, paste the link, and add your comment.
• Press Enter. Slack expands the link into a preview of the message. In our test the card showed the author, the time, "Posted in #u2-1031-test" and the original text with its quote bar.

If the message is from a private channel or a DM, Slack asks whether to Show message or Only show link. People who cannot see the original conversation only get the link. On mobile, tap and hold the message and choose Copy Link to Message.

How to forward a message in Slack

Hover over the message and click Forward message.

Choose the channel or person, and add a note if you want.

Click Forward. To send it later, click the arrow next to Forward and choose Schedule for later.

On iPhone and Android, tap and hold the message and choose Forward message. Forwarding works on every Slack plan, for members and guests. Each forward carries one message; for a whole conversation, see how to forward multiple messages in Slack.

Block quotes in Slack bot and API messages

In mrkdwn text, start each quoted line with > and separate lines with \n. Slack's developer docs show this form. This Python example posts a two-line quote with a reply under it:

import os
import requests

text = ">We ship the beta on Thursday.\n>QA signs off Wednesday.\nConfirmed, I will post the notes."
resp = requests.post(
    "https://slack.com/api/chat.postMessage",
    headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['SLACK_BOT_TOKEN']}"},
    json={"channel": "C0123456789", "text": text},
    timeout=10,
)
print(resp.json()["ok"])

Lines without > show as normal text, so the reply after the quote is not quoted. When we read our test messages back with conversations.history, a quote typed in the app came back as a rich_text_quote element in the message's blocks, and its text field started with >, the HTML-escaped >; parse the blocks, or unescape >, if your code looks for quotes. To preview mrkdwn before a bot sends it, or to convert markdown quotes from ChatGPT or a README, use the markdown to Slack converter. It flattens nested quotes to one level because Slack has only one.

Other formatting you can use with a quote

Bold, italics, strikethrough, links and inline code work inside a quote; the markers are in how to bold text in Slack. For lists see how to make bullet points in Slack. Every formatting shortcut, including Cmd+Shift+9, is in Slack keyboard shortcuts.

FAQ

Is there a quote reply in Slack?

No. Slack has no button that quotes a message in your reply. Use a block quote with >, paste the message link, or forward the message.

What is the shortcut for a block quote in Slack?

Cmd+Shift+9 on a Mac, Ctrl+Shift+9 on Windows and Linux. Typing > at the start of an empty line does the same.

How do I quote multiple lines in Slack?

Paste the lines, select them all, and press Cmd+Shift+9 or click Block quote. In markup mode, put > at the start of every line.

How do I quote a message in a Slack thread?

Click Reply in thread, type > and a space, paste the text, then answer on a new line.

Can I quote a message from another channel?

Yes. Copy the message link and paste it, or forward the message. Readers who cannot see the original channel only see the link.