---
title: "Categorising and sorting chat rooms"
description: "You can create custom chat categories, assign rooms to them, and sort conversations alphabetically or by last activity."
category: communication
section: chat-essentials
type: Tutorial
lastUpdated: 2026-08-26
locale: en
canonical: https://support.talkspirit.com/en/communication/categorize-and-sort-chat-rooms
---

# Categorising and sorting chat rooms


## Categorising and sorting chat rooms
You can organise your chat rooms with custom categories and sorting options to help you find conversations quickly. You can create categories, rename them, assign chat rooms to them, and choose whether to display rooms in alphabetical order or by last activity. These settings are personal. They apply only to your account and cannot be configured for the whole organisation by administrators.

## How do I manage chat categories?

Creating, renaming, deleting, reordering and sorting all happen in one place: the **Chats preferences** window. In the **Chat** app, open it with the sliders button beside the **Filter** field, its tooltip reads **Open preferences**.

![The Chats panel header: the Chats title, a New button, the Filter field, and the sliders button that opens preferences.](/images/communication/categorize-and-sort-chat-rooms/01-chats-panel-header.png)

Nothing you change in this window takes effect until you click **Save**.

![The Chats preferences window: a Categories list with Favorites and Conversations, each with a drag handle, a delete icon on the removable one, an Add a category button, and a "Sort each category's conversations by" choice of Last activity or Alphabetical order.](/images/communication/categorize-and-sort-chat-rooms/02-chats-preferences.png)

### How do I create a chat category?

1. Click **Add a category**.
2. Enter the name for the new category.
3. Click **Save**.

The new category is added at the top of your chat room list, marked **Empty category** until you put a room in it.

### How do I rename a chat category?

1. Click the category's name and type the new one.
2. Click **Save**.

Two rows behave differently: **Conversations** is the default category and can be neither renamed nor deleted, and **Favourites** cannot be renamed. For what the Favourites category does, see [Using Chat](/en/communication/chatting-with-users).

### How do I delete a chat category?

1. Click the trash can icon next to the category you want to delete.
2. Click **Save**. The category is only removed once you save.

Rooms in a deleted category move back to **Conversations**.

### How do I change the order of chat categories?

1. Drag the handle (three vertical dots) at the left of the category row you want to move.
2. Click **Save**.

## How do I add a chat room to a category?

There are two ways to assign a chat room to a category.

### From the list of chat rooms

1. Hover the chat room in the list and click the **More** button, the three vertical dots.
2. Select **Change category**.

   ![A chat room row hovered with its More menu open, showing Mute room, Change category and Leave room.](/images/communication/categorize-and-sort-chat-rooms/03-change-category-menu.png)

3. In the **Select a category** window, choose a category.
4. Click **Save**.

   ![The Select a category window, listing the categories as radio options with Conversations selected, and a Save button.](/images/communication/categorize-and-sort-chat-rooms/04-select-a-category.png)

### From inside the chat room

1. Open the chat room you want to categorise.
2. Click the sliders button next to the room name, its tooltip reads **Select a category**.
3. Choose from the list of existing categories.
4. Click **Save**.

![A chat room header: the room icon, its name, and the sliders button beside it that opens Select a category.](/images/communication/categorize-and-sort-chat-rooms/05-room-header-category-button.png)

The chat room is immediately placed in the selected category in your room list.

## How do I sort chat rooms?

Sorting lives in the same **Chats preferences** window, under **Sort each category's conversations by**:

- **Last activity**: the most recent conversations first.
- **Alphabetical order**: A to Z.

Choose one, then click **Save**.

The sort order applies within your categories. The order of the categories themselves is a separate setting, the one you set by dragging the rows.

## What's Next?

- [Using Chat](/en/communication/chatting-with-users)
- [Formatting chat messages](/en/communication/formatting-messages)
- [Hide a chat conversation or leave a room](/en/communication/hide-a-chat-conversation-or-leave-a-room)
- [Managing a chat room](/en/communication/managing-a-chat-room)