Time stamp to every message

Question

Time stamp to every message

Edijs 15

Hello,

Due to the specifics of our work, is there any possibility to enable a timestamp for every message sent and received in Teams? In many cases I need to forward a screenshot of a conversation, and without timestamps the information becomes unusable.

This question applies to both the PC and mobile versions of Teams.

Thank you in advance.

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3 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

Kai-L 19,920 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Dear @Edijs,

Please correct me if I'm wrong, when you mentioned the timestamp for messages in Microsoft Teams, are you referring to what’s shown below? User's image

On the Teams mobile app, you can tap a message to display its timestamp.

If this isn’t what you’re looking for, please feel free to clarify in the comments so I can better understand your requirement and provide more targeted assistance. I’m looking forward to your reply.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it.

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Arthur ® 0 Reputation points

2026-09-30T15:13:20.06+00:00

Hi Kai-L,

Let me explain: It's about the fact that the time stamp appears only on mouse hover and only on one message at a time (the one that's being hovered by the mouse), and it's not ON by default to appear next to all messages at all times.

Although, it is selected and put ON in the Settings.

This specific "time stamp" functionality needs to be fixed.

Makes more sense now?

Thanks.

Answer 2

Edijs 15

I believe I am most likely not the only one affected by this issue, and having this functionality available in Teams would be very useful. At this point it is difficult to work efficiently without proper timestamps. Are you considering implementing this feature in the near future as well?

Edijs 15 Reputation points

2026-03-13T21:17:05.72+00:00

Hello @Kai-L ,
Thank you for your reply.

My issue is that there is currently no option to display a timestamp for every individual message in a chat. The forwarding option is not what I need — what matters for me, and for the people I forward conversations to, is the actual flow and timing of the discussion.

When problem‑solving takes anywhere between 10 and 50 minutes, it is essential to see the exact timeline of each message to understand where delays occur. I need the ability to see the timestamp of every message in real time.

On the mobile app this is possible by swiping from right to left, but on the PC version there is no equivalent functionality. At minimum, a similar solution should exist on desktop, but ideally there should be a setting (a checkbox) that enables timestamps to be shown for every message by default.

Please check screenshot in attachment.

Best Regards,
[Moderator note: personal info removed]
Kai-L 19,920 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-03-13T21:56:51.79+00:00

Dear @Edijs,

Thank you very much for taking the time to clarify your scenario and explain your requirements in detail.

I understand your use case. At the moment, Microsoft Teams on desktop does not provide an option to always display a timestamp for every individual message in real time, and there is no equivalent to the mobile gesture (swipe/tap) that temporarily reveals timestamps for all messages in the chat view. As you correctly pointed out, forwarding messages or relying on daily separators does not address the need to clearly understand the exact flow and timing of a conversation, especially when troubleshooting delays over longer periods.

I strongly recommend that you share your detailed experience and feedback directly with the Microsoft product team through their official channels. This is the most effective way to make your voice heard and influence future feature improvements and adjustments. You can visit the Microsoft Teams · Community to submit a new idea or vote on existing one. Our product team is in charge of this site, and they constantly check customer reviews and feedback. The higher the number of votes, the more attention the team will pay to it. Many features are developed and improved based on customer feedback. As a moderator, I will also pass along your feedback to the appropriate team for further consideration. While we don't directly influence product design, user feedback is actively reviewed and helps prioritize future development. If you’re unable to submit feedback yourself, please feel free to reach out to me, and I’ll be happy to submit it on your behalf.

I really understand how convenient this feature would be for your workflow. I want you to know that I wish I had a way to change it for you directly but as a moderator of Q&A forum, my ability to assist is with the existing product functionality and the power to influence its design rests entirely with our product development team.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as Microsoft continues to evolve its products. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you need anything else. I wish you a great day.

Answer 3

Teams does not provide a setting to always show a timestamp on every individual message in the chat view on either desktop or mobile.

For forwarded messages on desktop, Teams adds a timestamp in the forwarded message header. Recipients can select that timestamp to open the original chat or channel message, provided they have permission to view the original conversation. This is the only timestamp-related behavior for forwarding that is documented.

If precise timestamps are required in screenshots, the only available workaround is to manually include time information in the message content (for example, typing the date/time into the message) before sending.

References:

Forward messages in Microsoft Teams