How to Host Webinar for ~45 People

A 45-person webinar does not require a capacity upgrade if the organizer has an eligible Teams license; Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Business Standard, Business Premium, Teams Essentials, and several enterprise or education plans support foundational Teams events for up to 1,000 attendees.^1^

Confirm your license and access

The plan name was not included, so the exact entitlement cannot be confirmed here.

1. Open Teams → Calendar.
2. Select the arrow beside New.
3. Look for Webinar.
   • If it appears, your account is enabled to schedule webinars.
   • If it does not appear, contact your Microsoft 365 administrator. By default, users who can schedule Teams meetings can schedule webinars, but an administrator can restrict webinar scheduling.^2^
4. If you manage your own subscription, check its exact name under your Microsoft 365 account’s subscriptions or billing area and compare it with the eligible plans above.

For only 45 attendees, Teams Premium and an Attendee Capacity Pack are unnecessary for capacity. Capacity Packs are intended for events exceeding the standard limits and start at 5,000 attendees.^3^

Schedule the webinar

1. In Teams → Calendar, select the arrow beside New → Webinar.
2. Enter:
   • Event title and description
   • The full date, including the correct year
   • 9:15 AM–11:00 AM Pacific time
   • Co-organizers and presenters
3. Choose the access type:
   • Public: people inside or outside your organization can register.
   • Your organization: only people in your organization can access registration.
4. Consider giving presenters an earlier preparation time while retaining 9:15 AM as the attendee-facing start time.
5. Select Save to continue to registration.^4^

Before publishing, verify the calendar entry displays the intended Pacific time and that invitees in other time zones see the corresponding local time.

Configure registration and attendee access

Open the saved webinar and select Manage event → Registration → Configuration:

1. Set Event capacity to at least 45. Consider 50–55 if substitutes or late registrations are possible.
2. Add only the registration fields you need.
3. Publish the event site and share its registration link, rather than a presenter’s join link.
4. Attendees will receive webinar information and their join link after registration.^5^

To reduce lobby management:

1. Open Manage event → Meeting options.
2. Under Meeting access, enable Attendees with a registration link can bypass the lobby.
3. Optionally enable Reject anyone who can’t bypass the lobby if attendance must be limited to registered users.
4. Select Save.^5^

Public-webinar attendees normally have restricted microphone and camera access unless an organizer or co-organizer enables those capabilities. Polls, Q&A, reactions, and chat can provide controlled interaction.^2^

Prepare before the event

• Assign at least one additional co-organizer or presenter.
• Hold a rehearsal using the same computer, microphone, camera, slides, and screen-sharing method planned for the webinar.
• Test presenter transitions, audio, video, and attendee experience.
• Decide who will present, monitor Q&A/chat, admit attendees if the lobby remains enabled, and handle technical issues.^6^
• Join early on the event day and close unnecessary applications and notifications.
• Afterward, open the webinar’s Reports area to obtain registration and attendance information.^5^

References

1. Teams events licensing overview
2. Get started with Microsoft Teams webinars | Microsoft Support
3. Attendee Capacity Pack for Teams events
4. Schedule a webinar in Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Support
5. Manage webinar registration in Microsoft Teams
6. Tips for producing large meetings and events in Microsoft Teams | Microsoft Support