How to create groups and channels on Telegram

Although WhatsApp is still the most-used messaging app on Android, more and more users are turning to Telegram. This app is known for being incredibly stable and for offering multiple features to keep conversations secure. If you have’t tried out this messaging tool yet but are interested in giving it a try, we’ll tell you how to create a channel or group in Telegram in a matter of seconds.

Create a group in Telegram and talk with multiple people

If you need to talk to various contacts at the same time from one conversation, the ideal thing to do is create a group in Telegram. It’s also worth highlighting the fact that you can add up to 200,000 people to a group. To do this, you just have to follow a few simple steps.

• Open Telegram and tap on the circular pencil button found in the lower right corner.
• Select New Group.
• Select all the contacts you want to add to the group.
• Pick a name and a photo for the group and tap on the blue check mark.

Once you’ve created the group, you can manage the permissions of the members with the following process:

• Tap on the group name in the chat.
• Long tap on the contact you want to change the permissions for.
• Choose between Promote to admin or User permissions.

This way you can choose the actions that the contacts in the group can complete. For example, it’s a good idea to limit the possibility to change the chat information or embed links and multimedia files to avoid spam.

Add channels to broadcast information

If what you need to do is spread information to huge audiences, it’s a good idea to create a channel. This way, the information you send won’t mix with the messages from the rest of the members. To create a channel, you just have to follow these steps:

• Open Telegram and tap the circular pencil icon.
• Select New Channel.
• Choose between Public Channel or Private Channel. 
• If you’ve chosen Public channel, enter a simple permanent link so that users can easily find your channel.
• Tap on the check mark in the upper right corner to confirm.

The main difference between a public channel and a private channel is that you can only join a private channel through an invite link. Otherwise, if the channel is open, anyone can find it by searching for it.

What’s the difference between a channel and a group?

You may still be trying to decide if it would be more practical to create a channel or a group for the type of communication that you want to have. To do this, it’s a good idea to recap the main differences between both options:

• Channels have a limited number of members, while groups allow up to 200,000 members.
• In groups, all the members with permission can share any type of message or information. In channels, only the admins can share content.
• When you delete a message in a channel, it will disappear for all the members. In groups, it’s only deleted for you.
• In the channels, the message is signed using the name you call the channel. In a group, anything you post appears under your nickname.
• The creator of the channel can only add the first 200 members. In a group, the creator always has control.
• In a channel, you can see how many people see the posts. In a group, it’s not possible to see the exact number of people who see each post.