Slack Multiple Workspaces: Use, Switch and Stay Active in Each

You can use several Slack workspaces at once in one desktop or mobile app. Add another workspace from the workspace switcher, then move between them with Ctrl+Tab or Cmd/Ctrl plus a number. Each workspace is separate: you have a separate account in each (even with the same email), and your custom status, presence dot and Do Not Disturb are set per workspace. That means you can be green in one workspace and away in another. Slack has no way to merge accounts from different workspaces into one; Enterprise organizations are the exception, where one account spans the org's workspaces.

Staying active in two workspaces works the same as in one with the desktop app: when there was input on the computer, it tells every workspace it has loaded that you are active (Slack desktop 4.52.178 code, checked 7 Oct 2026). If the two workspaces are two jobs, what gives a second job away covers the work laptop, calendars and the chat dot.

To join a workspace you were invited to, follow how to join a Slack workspace; for a brand-new one, see how to create a Slack workspace.

How to add another workspace

• • Desktop: click the workspace name or the plus in the workspace switcher, choose to add or sign in to a workspace, and sign in.
• • Mobile: tap the workspace icon or Home, then the workspace list, and add a workspace.

If the switcher is hidden, press Cmd+Shift+S or Ctrl+Shift+S to show it.

What is separate in each workspace

What we measured with one email in two workspaces

On 3 October 2026 we used one person signed in to two workspaces with the same email address, in the same browser session, and read each workspace through Slack's API (auth.test, users.profile.get, users.getPresence).

The same email gave two different user IDs, U0B7L4YK420 in the first workspace and U0B7A85MCM9 in the second. Then we set a status and marked ourselves away in the first workspace only, and read both again 4 seconds later:

first workspace:   status "Testing two workspaces" :test_tube:   presence away   (manual_away: true)
second workspace:  status "" (none)                              presence active (manual_away: false)

Nothing carried over. Because the accounts are separate, changing your email in one workspace leaves the others alone; how to change your email in Slack has the steps. When we opened the first workspace again, Slack asked whether to switch back, because the away setting belongs to that workspace only:

We chose No Thanks, set presence back to automatic and cleared the status through the API, and both workspaces read active with no status again.

Switching between workspaces

More shortcuts are in the Slack keyboard shortcuts cheat sheet.

Slack status on every workspace

Status is per workspace. Set it in each one: switch workspace, press Cmd+Shift+Y or Ctrl+Shift+Y, set the status and a clear time; see Slack status clear after. The same goes for Do Not Disturb and an out-of-office status; see Slack out of office.

Keep two Slack workspaces active

With the desktop app you do not need to switch back and forth. The app reads the computer's idle time every 10 seconds, and while there was recent input anywhere on the computer, it tells every workspace it has loaded that you are active (Slack desktop 4.52.178 code, checked 7 Oct 2026). Typing in one workspace keeps the other one green too. Slack's help says you turn away after 10 minutes with no activity on the computer, and then all the loaded workspaces go away together. The rules are in how long does Slack stay active.

Two things still split them. A manual Set yourself as away belongs to one workspace only, as our test above shows. And a workspace you open only in a browser tab is not covered by the desktop app's report; that tab keeps its own session, and we have not measured a fixed browser timeout, so we do not state one.

The common gap is the computer itself: when it sleeps, locks or is closed, every workspace goes away. Slack Green is a server-side tool that keeps you active in each workspace you connect while the computer is off, asleep or locked. Using several jobs' workspaces raises its own policy questions; see whether a presence tool can get you caught.

Can you combine Slack accounts?

Not across separate workspaces. Each has its own account and data, and Slack does not merge them. You can connect two companies' channels with Slack Connect, which shares a channel between organizations without merging accounts. How that differs from a guest account, and who pays, is in Slack Connect vs guest accounts.

FAQ

Can I be logged into two Slack workspaces at once?

Yes. Add both in the same app and switch between them. In our test both stayed signed in at the same time in one browser session.

Can I open two Slack workspaces in separate windows?

In a browser, yes: each workspace opens at its own address, app.slack.com/client/ followed by the workspace ID, so you can keep one per tab or window. That address shows the ID, not the workspace URL; where to find your Slack workspace URL lists the places that show the URL. That is how we ran the test above.

Can I be active in two Slack workspaces at the same time?

Yes. With the desktop app, input anywhere on the computer keeps every workspace the app has loaded active together. A manual away set in one workspace stays in that one only.

Do I get notifications from all workspaces?

Yes, in the same app, according to each workspace's notification settings.