Microsoft Teams has six status indicators that tell your colleagues how available you are. Understanding exactly what each one means, how Teams decides to set them, and how to override automatic behavior puts you in control of how your presence appears to your entire organization.
The Six Teams Status Indicators
Available (Green)
The green dot signals that you're logged in, your computer is active, and you're available for messages and calls. Teams sets this automatically when you're signed in and your OS hasn't registered idle state. You can also set it manually to override an Away or other automatic status.
When Teams sets it automatically: On sign-in, when you resume activity after being Away, and when a scheduled "Do Not Disturb" period ends.
Busy (Red)
The red dot means you're in a meeting, on a call, or have manually set yourself as Busy. When Busy, notifications are still delivered but are visually de-emphasized for your colleagues — they can see you're occupied.
When Teams sets it automatically: When you join a Teams call or meeting. When your Outlook/Microsoft 365 calendar shows a meeting in progress. You can also set it manually when you want to signal focus time.
Do Not Disturb (Red with line)
Do Not Disturb is a stronger version of Busy. Notifications are suppressed entirely — incoming calls go straight to voicemail, and message notifications don't appear. Only "priority contacts" you designate can break through DND.
When to use it: During deep work sessions where you need complete focus, or during external calls where Teams notifications would be distracting. You can set a duration for DND, after which Teams reverts to your previous status.
Be Right Back (Yellow)
Be Right Back is a manual status you set to indicate a short absence. It doesn't trigger automatically — you have to set it yourself. It signals to colleagues that you're temporarily away but will return shortly, and they should expect a prompt reply.
Away (Yellow with clock)
Away is the status that most remote workers want to avoid. It signals that you haven't been active recently — Teams sets it automatically after approximately 5 minutes of OS-level inactivity. It's also set automatically when your screen is locked or your computer sleeps.
The core problem: Away triggers on OS inactivity, not on Teams inactivity. You can be fully working in another app and Teams still sets Away if you haven't touched the keyboard or mouse.
Offline (Grey)
Offline means you're signed out of Teams or have been disconnected for an extended period. Teams shows your last seen time when Offline. You can also manually set yourself as Offline ("Appear offline") to use Teams in a background mode where you receive notifications but appear unavailable to others.
How to Manually Set Your Status
To manually set any status in Teams Desktop or Teams Web:
- Click your profile picture in the top-right corner
- Click your current status indicator (the colored dot)
- Select your desired status from the dropdown
- Optionally click "Duration..." to set how long to hold this status before reverting
Duration options include: 30 minutes, 1 hour, 2 hours, today, this week, or custom. Choosing "This week" effectively locks your status until the following Monday, though major events (like joining a call) may still override it briefly.
Status Message: The Underused Feature
In addition to the status indicator itself, Teams lets you set a custom status message — text that appears when someone hovers over your name or opens your profile. This is extremely useful for remote workers: "Working on Q3 report, responses slower today" or "On phone calls until 3pm, messaging fine" gives colleagues useful context without requiring you to change your core status.
To set a status message: click your profile picture → "Set status message." You can also set an expiry time, after which the message clears automatically.
The Settings That Affect Automatic Status Changes
Beyond the manual status controls, several settings influence how aggressively Teams changes your status automatically:
Settings → Privacy → Status privacy: Controls who can see your presence — everyone, contacts only, or no one. For most remote workers, leaving this at the default (everyone) is appropriate, but if you're in a role where privacy matters, restricting visibility to contacts is an option.
Settings → Notifications & Activity → Presence: In Teams Web specifically, there's a setting called "Keep my current status when I'm active outside of Teams on the web." Enabling this tells Teams Web to treat activity in other browser tabs as activity in Teams — preventing Away from triggering when you switch away from the Teams tab.
Calendar integration: Teams reads your Outlook/Microsoft 365 calendar to set status for scheduled meetings. If a meeting is on your calendar, Teams will automatically show you as Busy when it starts. This behavior can't be fully disabled, but you can decline calendar events to prevent automatic status changes for meetings you won't attend.
Taking Full Control: The Reliable Approach
For remote workers who need their Teams status to accurately reflect availability throughout the day, combining two approaches works best:
First, use Teams' built-in manual status for intentional states — set Do Not Disturb during deep work, Be Right Back when stepping away briefly, and use status messages to give context.
Second, use a keep-awake tool to prevent the automatic Away trigger during legitimate work periods where you're present but not typing. This ensures your Available status reflects reality — you're at your desk, working, just not banging on the keyboard every 4 minutes to satisfy an idle timer.