How do I schedule or start a new meeting?

Open the Zoom app on your computer or phone. Click "New Meeting" to start immediately, or click "Schedule" to set a future date and time. When you schedule, Zoom gives you a link and Meeting ID that you can copy and send to participants via email or text.

How do I invite participants?

Once your meeting is open, click "Participants" at the bottom, then "Invite." You can copy the meeting link and paste it into an email or text message. Alternatively, share your Meeting ID and passcode — participants enter these on the Zoom app or at join.zoom.us.

How do I admit people from the waiting room?

A popup appears whenever someone enters your waiting room. Click "Admit" to let them in, or "Admit All" to let everyone in at once. You can also click "Participants" to see the full waiting room list and admit people from there.

How do I mute noisy participants?

Click "Participants" at the bottom. Find the person making noise and hover over their name. Click "Mute" next to their name. They will see a notification that they have been muted but can unmute themselves. For group meetings, use "Mute All" if background noise is widespread.

How do I share your screen?

Click the green "Share Screen" button at the bottom. Choose which window you want to share — your whole screen, a specific app, or a photo. Click "Share." Participants will see what you share in real time. Click "Stop Share" when done.

How do I end the meeting?

When you are ready to close the call, click "End" (red button, bottom right). Choose "End Meeting for All" to close it for everyone, or "Leave Meeting" if you want to let participants keep talking without you.

TekSure — Free Tech Help for Beginners & Seniors

When you host a Zoom meeting, you have controls that regular participants do not. You can let people in from the waiting room, mute someone who has background noise, share your screen, record the call, and end the meeting for everyone when you are done.

Before you can host, you need a Zoom account. The free plan lets you host meetings up to 40 minutes with up to 100 participants — plenty for family calls, book clubs, or small group gatherings. Create a free account at zoom.us.

The waiting room is one of the most important host tools. When it is turned on, participants land in a virtual lobby instead of entering the meeting directly. You review who is waiting and admit them one by one or all at once. This prevents uninvited guests from joining.

Hosting a smooth meeting also means knowing how to mute yourself and others. Background noise — a barking dog, a fan, traffic — can disrupt the whole group. As the host, you can mute any participant at any time.

After the call, if you recorded it, Zoom saves the recording to your computer (for local recordings) or to Zoom's cloud (for cloud recordings on paid accounts). Local recordings are free and go to your Documents/Zoom folder.