Marking messages as read

Zulip automatically keeps track of which messages you have and haven’t read. Unread messages have a line along the left side, which fades when the message gets marked as read.

Zulip offers tools to manually mark one or more messages as read, and you can configure whether messages are marked as read automatically when you scroll.

Configure whether messages are automatically marked as read

You can choose how messages are automatically marked as read in the Zulip web and mobile apps. You can configure the mobile app differently from the web/desktop app.

• Always: Messages are marked as read whenever you scroll through them in the app. You may be used to this from other chat applications.
• Only in conversation views: In Zulip, a conversation is a direct message thread (one-on-one or with a group), or a topic in a channel. This option makes it convenient to preview new messages in a channel, or skim Combined feed, and later read each topic in detail.
• Never: Messages are marked as read only manually. For example, if you often need to follow up on messages at your computer after reading them in the mobile app, you can choose this option for the mobile app.

Desktop/Web

1. Go to Preferences.
2. Under Navigation, click on the Automatically mark messages as read dropdown, and select Always, Never or Only in conversation views.

Mobile

1. Tap the Menu () tab in the bottom right corner of the app.
2. Tap Settings.
3. Tap Mark messages as read on scroll.
4. Select Always, Never or Only in conversation views.

Configure whether resolved topic notices are marked as read

Zulip lets you automatically mark as read Notification Bot notices indicating that someone resolved or unresolved a topic, or do so just for topics you don’t follow.

Desktop/Web

1. Go to Notifications.
2. Under Topic notifications, configure Automatically mark resolved topic notices as read.

Mark a message as read

Desktop/Web

1. Select the message using the blue box to mark it as read. You can scroll the blue box using the mouse, or with keyboard navigation shortcuts.

Mark all messages in a channel or topic as read

Via left sidebar

1. Hover over a channel or topic in the left sidebar.
2. Click on the ellipsis ().
3. Click Mark all messages as read.

Tip: You can also mark all messages in your current view as read by jumping to the bottom with the Scroll to bottom () button or the End shortcut.

Via inbox view

1. Click on Inbox (or if the views section is collapsed) in the left sidebar, or use the Shift + I keyboard shortcut.
2. Click on an unread messages counter to mark all messages in that topic or channel as read.

Via recent conversations

1. Click on Recent conversations (or if the views section is collapsed) in the left sidebar, or use the T keyboard shortcut.
2. Click on an unread messages counter in the Topic column to mark all messages in that topic as read.

Mobile

1. Press and hold a channel or topic until the long-press menu appears.
2. Tap Mark channel as read or Mark topic as read.

Tip: You can also scroll down to the bottom of a message view, and tap Mark all messages as read.

Mark messages in multiple topics and channels as read

In the web and desktop apps, you can mark all messages as read, or just messages in muted topics or topics you don’t follow.

Desktop/Web

1. Hover over your home view in the left sidebar.
2. Click on the ellipsis ().
3. Select the desired option from the dropdown, and click Confirm.

Tip: You can also mark all messages in your current view as read by jumping to the bottom with the Scroll to bottom () button or the End shortcut.

Mobile

1. Tap the Combined feed () tab.
2. Scroll down to the bottom of the message view, and tap Mark all messages as read.

Related articles

• Marking messages as unread
• Configure where you land in message feeds
• Reading strategies
• Read receipts