How to enable waiting room for Zoom meetings

The Waiting Room feature in Zoom allows you to control when participants join a meeting. As a Zoom administrator, you can enable this feature account-wide, group-wide, or for individual users, adding a layer of security and control to your organization’s meetings. This guide will walk you through enabling the Waiting Room feature for Zoom meetings.

Prerequisites

• Zoom account with administrator privileges.
• A Zoom Pro, Business, Education, or Enterprise plan.
• Zoom desktop client or web portal access.

Enable Waiting Room at the Account Level

This setting applies to all users in your Zoom account.

1. Sign in to the Zoom web portal as an administrator.
2. In the navigation menu, click Account Management, then Account Settings.
3. Click the Meeting tab.
4. Under the Security section, find the Waiting Room setting.
5. Click the toggle to enable the Waiting Room. If a verification dialog displays, click Enable to verify the change.
6. (Optional) Customize the Waiting Room options:
   • Who should go in the waiting room? Choose from:
     • Everyone: All participants will be placed in the Waiting Room.
     • Users not in your account and not part of your allow list: Only users who are not signed in or are not on your internal allow list will be placed in the Waiting Room.
     • Users who are not in your account: Only participants who are not signed into a Zoom account, or are signed into a different Zoom account.
   • Customize Waiting Room: Click Customize Waiting Room to upload a logo, add a title, and write a description to display to participants in the Waiting Room.
7. Click Save after customizing the Waiting Room.

Enable Waiting Room at the Group Level

This setting applies to a specific group of users within your Zoom account.

1. Sign in to the Zoom web portal as an administrator.
2. In the navigation menu, click User Management, then Groups.
3. Click the name of the group you want to manage.
4. Click the Meeting tab.
5. Under the Security section, find the Waiting Room setting.
6. Click the toggle to enable the Waiting Room.
   • If the setting is disabled, click Enable to turn it on. If a verification dialog displays, click Enable to verify the change.
   • If the setting is locked at the account level, you will need to unlock it at the account level first (see previous section) before enabling it at the group level.
7. (Optional) Customize the Waiting Room options:
   • Who should go in the waiting room? Choose from:
     • Everyone: All participants will be placed in the Waiting Room.
     • Users not in your account and not part of your allow list: Only users who are not signed in or are not on your internal allow list will be placed in the Waiting Room.
     • Users who are not in your account: Only participants who are not signed into a Zoom account, or are signed into a different Zoom account.
   • Customize Waiting Room: Click Customize Waiting Room to upload a logo, add a title, and write a description to display to participants in the Waiting Room.
8. Click Save after customizing the Waiting Room.

Enable Waiting Room at the User Level

This setting applies to an individual user in your Zoom account.

1. Sign in to the Zoom web portal as an administrator.
2. In the navigation menu, click User Management, then Users.
3. Click the name of the user you want to manage.
4. Click the Meeting tab.
5. Under the Security section, find the Waiting Room setting.
6. Click the toggle to enable the Waiting Room.
   • If the setting is disabled, click Enable to turn it on. If a verification dialog displays, click Enable to verify the change.
   • If the setting is locked at the account or group level, you will need to unlock it at that level first (see previous sections) before enabling it at the user level.
7. (Optional) Customize the Waiting Room options:
   • Who should go in the waiting room? Choose from:
     • Everyone: All participants will be placed in the Waiting Room.
     • Users not in your account and not part of your allow list: Only users who are not signed in or are not on your internal allow list will be placed in the Waiting Room.
     • Users who are not in your account: Only participants who are not signed into a Zoom account, or are signed into a different Zoom account.
   • Customize Waiting Room: Click Customize Waiting Room to upload a logo, add a title, and write a description to display to participants in the Waiting Room.
8. Click Save after customizing the Waiting Room.

Enable Waiting Room for Scheduled Meetings

This setting is configured when scheduling a new meeting.

1. Sign in to the Zoom web portal.
2. Click Meetings, then Schedule a Meeting.
3. Fill in the meeting details (Topic, Description, When, Duration, etc.).
4. Under the Security section, ensure the Waiting Room checkbox is selected.
5. (Optional) Customize the Waiting Room options by configuring at the account, group or user level as described above. The customized settings configured at these levels will apply to the meeting.
6. Click Save.

Common Issues

• Waiting Room setting is grayed out: The setting might be locked at the account or group level. Check the settings at those levels and unlock them if necessary to make changes at a lower level.
• Participants complain about the Waiting Room: Ensure the Waiting Room is customized with clear instructions and your organization’s branding. A well-designed Waiting Room can improve the participant experience.
• Hosts forget to admit participants: Remind hosts to regularly check the Participants panel during the meeting to admit those in the Waiting Room. Consider assigning a co-host to assist with this task.
• External participants are always put in the Waiting Room: Check the “Who should go in the waiting room?” setting. If “Everyone” is selected, all participants will be placed in the Waiting Room. Change this to “Users not in your account” or “Users not in your account and not part of your allow list” to allow internal users to bypass the Waiting Room.
• Cannot customize the waiting room: Verify you have the necessary administrator privileges to customize the Waiting Room settings at the account, group, or user level.