Telegram chat folders

How to create a folder in Telegram

1. Open Settings → Chat Folders (some apps call it Folders) and tap Create New Folder.
2. Type a name; emoji are allowed.
3. Under Included chats, tap Add Chats and pick the ones you want — or a whole type: Contacts, Non-Contacts, Groups, Channels or Bots.
4. Optionally set exceptions under Excluded chats: single chats, or the types Muted, Read and Archived.
5. Save. A tab with the folder's name appears above your chat list.

Ready-made folders are under Recommended Folders. Tabs show while you have at least one folder of your own; on a phone, swipe the chat list to move between them. One chat can be in several folders.

How to make a folder on iPhone, Android and desktop

Folders are stored in your account, so they look the same on every device.

• iPhone. Settings is the tab at the bottom. Shortcut: press and hold Chats at the bottom and choose Add Folder (Edit Folders if you already have some). To put a chat into a folder, press and hold it and choose Add to Folder.
• Android. Settings is a tab at the bottom (in older versions, the ☰ menu). To put a chat into a folder, press and hold it, tap ⋮ and choose Add to folder.
• Desktop. In Telegram Desktop: ☰ → Settings → Folders. To put a chat into a folder, right-click it and choose Add to folder. Tabs can sit left of the chats or above them (Tabs view, in the same settings). On the web, folders are in Settings too.

How to share a folder and add someone else's by link

A folder can be shared with one link like t.me/addlist/…: whoever opens it can add the folder and join its groups and channels.

1. Press and hold the folder name in your chat list and choose Share. On desktop: Settings → Folders → the folder → Share Folder.
2. Tap Create an Invite Link and pick the groups and channels it invites people to.
3. Copy the link and send it.

A shared folder can hold only groups and channels — public ones, or those where you may create invite links. Private chats, bots, whole chat types and exclusions aren't allowed. If you add chats later, update the link: people who joined will be offered the new ones. Delete the folder and its links stop working.

To add someone else's folder, open the link, tap Add Folder, pick the chats to join and confirm.

How many folders can you have

The figures are Telegram's own as of 2 October 2026 (the Premium features page and the developer documentation). The All Chats tab isn't counted as a folder. Limits change — if you hit one, the app shows the current number.

What Premium adds to folders

• More folders and more chats in each — see the table.
• Any custom emoji in a folder's name. Regular emoji work for everyone; on custom emoji packs, see Telegram Premium emoji.
• Folder tags. The folder's name as a colored label beside every chat in the list; turning on Show Folder Tags and picking a color needs Premium.
• Tab order. You can move the All Chats tab and have the app open on the folder you want.

How to delete a folder in Telegram

• iPhone. Press and hold the folder tab → Remove → confirm. Or Settings → Chat Folders → Edit.
• Android. Press and hold the tab → Delete folder → confirm.
• Desktop. Right-click the tab → Remove → confirm.

Chats from a deleted folder stay in All Chats — a folder never hides them. To get a chat out of sight, archive it. If you delete a folder you added from someone else's link, Telegram asks whether to leave its chats too — read the question before you confirm.

The Telegram archive: where it is, how to hide it and whether it can have a password

The archive is a separate folder for chats you don't need in view. According to Telegram's blog, you send a chat to the archive with a gesture: swipe it left in the chat list. Archived chats gather in an "Archive" folder above the list.

• Notifications. If an archived chat gets a notification, it pops back into the main list. Muted chats stay archived.
• Pinning. You can pin any number of chats in the archive to keep them in the order you want.
• Hiding the archive. Swipe left on the "Archive" folder itself and it leaves the list. To see it again, drag the screen down. Gestures and names may differ a little between devices.
• A password for the archive. Telegram has no separate password for the archive or for a single chat: the request "Separate passcode lock for specific chats or Archive" is still open in Telegram's suggestions tracker. You can lock all your chats at once with the app passcode: how to set it.

More folders with Telegram Premium

In the Shiba Bank bot you can get Premium for yourself or a friend by @username for 3, 6 or 12 months, paying in crypto or with Stars from the bot's wallet: how to buy Premium. Prices are on the Premium page; the rest of the subscription is in what Telegram Premium gives you.

Frequently asked questions