How to organize your sidebar on Slack

beginner 8 min read Updated 2026-03-18

Quick Answer

You can organize your Slack sidebar by creating custom sections, reordering channels and DMs, and using features like starring important conversations. This helps you prioritize important channels and maintain a cleaner workspace navigation.

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Prerequisites

Active Slack account
Access to a Slack workspace
Basic familiarity with Slack interface
Desktop or web version of Slack

Step-by-Step Instructions

Access sidebar organization options

Right-click anywhere in your sidebar where channels are listed. From the context menu, select Create section to start organizing your channels into custom groups. You can also click the three dots (...) next to any channel name to access organization options.

Use descriptive section names like 'Daily Work', 'Projects', or 'Social' to make navigation intuitive.

Create custom sections

In the Create section dialog, enter a name for your new section such as 'Priority Channels' or 'Team Projects'. Click Create to add the section to your sidebar. You can create multiple sections to categorize different types of conversations.

Limit yourself to 4-6 sections to avoid over-complicating your sidebar organization.

Move channels to sections

Drag and drop channels from the default Channels section into your newly created custom sections. Alternatively, right-click on any channel and select Move to, then choose the destination section from the dropdown menu.

Group related channels together, such as all marketing channels in one section and engineering channels in another.

Star important conversations

Click the star icon next to channel names or DMs that you access frequently. Starred items will appear at the top of your sidebar in the Starred section, making them easily accessible regardless of which section they're originally in.

Use starring sparingly for only your most critical 3-5 conversations to maintain effectiveness.

Reorder sections and channels

Drag sections up or down to reorder them according to your priority. Within each section, drag individual channels to arrange them alphabetically or by importance. Place your most frequently used sections at the top of the sidebar.

Position work-related sections above social or less critical sections for better workflow focus.

Collapse and expand sections

Click the arrow icon next to any section name to collapse it and hide the channels within. This helps reduce visual clutter while keeping your organization structure intact. Collapsed sections show a number indicating unread messages.

Collapse sections you don't use frequently during specific parts of your workday to minimize distractions.

Manage section settings

Right-click on any section header to access options like Rename section, Delete section, or Move all channels. You can also choose to Sort channels within a section alphabetically or by most recent activity.

Regularly review and adjust your section organization as your team structure and projects evolve.

Customize sidebar preferences

Go to Preferences > Sidebar to adjust additional settings. You can choose to show all conversations, only unread conversations, or organize DMs in a separate section. Enable Group direct messages separately to keep them distinct from channels.

Consider enabling 'Show unread conversations only' if you're in many channels to reduce sidebar length.

Common Issues & Troubleshooting

Cannot create new sections

Ensure you're using Slack desktop or web app, not mobile. Custom sections are not available on all Slack plans - check with your workspace admin about plan limitations.

Channels won't stay in custom sections

Make sure you're dragging channels completely into the section area and releasing them. If issues persist, try refreshing Slack or logging out and back in.

Section collapsed state doesn't save

This may be a browser cache issue. Clear your browser cache and cookies for Slack, or try using the desktop app instead of the web version.

Can't see starred conversations section

The starred section only appears when you have at least one starred channel or DM. Star a conversation first, and the section will automatically appear at the top of your sidebar.

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