Use a screen reader to set up Teams for personal and small business use

In this topic

• Download and install the Microsoft Teams for iOS app

• Sign up for a personal Microsoft account

• Sign in to Microsoft Teams with your personal account

• Switch between your work and personal accounts

• Send invites to your friends and family

• Create groups for friends and family

• Explore Teams for personal and small business use

Download and install the Microsoft Teams for iOS app

If you haven't got the Microsoft Teams app on your iPhone yet, it only takes a few minutes to download and install the app from the App Store.

If you already have the app on your phone, you don't need to download a new app. The new features for personal use are available in the same app you use for work or school. Just sign in with your personal Microsoft account to use the new features for personal use.

1. On your phone, open the App Store app. You hear: "Search."

2. Swipe right until you hear "Games, apps, stories, and more," and double-tap the screen.

3. Use the on-screen keyboard to start typing Microsoft Teams. The search results are updated as you type.

4. To move to the search results, tap at the top of the screen with four fingers, swipe right until you hear "Microsoft Teams," and double-tap the screen.

5. Swipe right until you hear "Microsoft Teams," then swipe right once more to move to the Download button, and double-tap the screen.

6. VoiceOver tells you when the download and installation are completed. The focus is on the Open button. Double-tap the screen to open the app.

Sign up for a personal Microsoft account

To sign in and start using Microsoft Teams with family and friends, all you need is a personal Microsoft account. If you’re using Skype, OneDrive, Outlook.com, or Xbox Live, then you already have a Microsoft account. If you don’t have a Microsoft account, you can sign up with your mobile phone number.

1. Open the Microsoft Teams app on your phone.

2. Do one of the following:

   • If you've already been using Microsoft Teams with your work or school account, swipe left until you hear "More menu," and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear "Add account," and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear “Microsoft corporation, Sign up for free,” and double-tap the screen. You hear: “Choose your account type.”

   • If you haven't been using Microsoft Teams before, swipe right until you hear "Add account," and double-tap the screen. You hear: “Choose your account type.”

3. Swipe right until you hear “Personal,” and double-tap the screen. The Create account page opens.

4. Swipe right until you hear “Phone number,” and double-tap the screen.

5. Use the on-screen keypad to enter your phone number, and swipe left until you hear “Next,” and double-tap the screen.

6. You hear: “Create password.” The focus is on the text field for a new password. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the password you’d like to use with your Microsoft account.

7. Swipe left until you hear “Next,” and double-tap the screen. The What’s your name page opens. The focus is on the First name text field. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your first name, swipe left until you hear “Next,” and then double-tap the screen.

8. The focus moves to the Last name text field. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your last name. Swipe left until you hear “Next,” and double-tap the screen.

9. The What’s your birth date page opens.The focus is on the Country/Region list. If necessary, to change the region or country, double-tap the screen, swipe right of left until you find the one you want, and double-tap the screen.

   To select the month of your birth, swipe right until you hear “Collapsed, Month, pop-up button,” and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear the right month, and double-tap the screen.

   To select the day of your birth, swipe right once, and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you find the right day, and double-tap the screen.

   To select your birth year, swipe right once, and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear the right year, and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear “Next,” and double-tap the screen.

10. The Verify phone number page opens. A verification code is sent as a text message to the phone number you entered in step 5. Go to your text messages, open the message from Microsoft, and listen to the security code.

    Return to the Microsoft Teams app and use the on-screen keypad to enter the code. Swipe left until you hear “Next," and double-tap the screen. Your new Microsoft account is now ready.

Sign in to Microsoft Teams with your personal account

Use your personal Microsoft account, such as a Skype, OneDrive, Outlook.com, or Xbox Live account to sign in to Microsoft Teams for life.

Switch between your work and personal accounts

You can add your account for Teams for personal and small business use to the Microsoft Teams app. Then you can easily switch between the different accounts without having to sign in and out.

Send invites to your friends and family

After you've signed in to Microsoft Teams with your personal account, invite your friends and family members to join in and stay connected.

1. While signed in with your Teams for personal and small business use account, tap at the top of the screen with four fingers. You hear "More menu," followed by the number of current notifications. Double-tap the screen.

2. Swipe right until you reach the Invite friends button, and double-tap the screen.

3. You hear the default welcome message that's sent to the people you invite to Microsoft Teams. Swipe right until you hear the app you want to use to invite your friends or family members, and double-tap the screen.

4. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the names or email addresses of the people you want to invite, swipe left or right until you hear "Send button," and double-tap the screen to send the invite.

Create groups for friends and family

Do you share a hobby with some of your friends? Are you organizing a surprise birthday party for a family member and want to keep it a secret? Create a dedicated chat group to easily communicate with the group members.

1. While signed in with your Teams for personal and small business use account, tap at the bottom of the screen with four fingers, swipe right or left until you hear "Chat tab," and double-tap the screen.

2. Tap at the top of the screen with four fingers, swipe right until you hear "New chat," and double-tap the screen.

3. The New chat view opens. Swipe right until you hear "New group chat," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Group name."

4. The focus is in the text field for the new group name. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the name for the group. Swipe left until you hear "Next," and double-tap the screen.

5. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the name, email address, or phone number of the first person you want to add to the new group chat. The search results are updated as you type. To move to the results, swipe right. When you find the name you want, double-tap the screen. Repeat this step for each person you want to add to the group.

6. To type a message to the group, swipe right until you hear "Type a message," and double-tap the screen. Use the on-screen keyboard to type a message to the group. Once you're done, swipe left until you hear "Send," and double-tap the screen.

Explore Teams for personal and small business use 

Learn what you can do in Teams for personal and small business use and where to find things in the app.

The app contains three major areas:

• The navigation bar at the top of the screen: Contains the Search button to start a search for chats, files, or people and the More menu button to access the account settings. Depending on the selected tab, you can also start a new chat, call, or create an event.

• The navigation bar at the bottom of the screen: Contains the buttons for selecting a tab such as Activity, Chat, Calendar, or Files. The More button on the far right opens a menu with additional tabs such as Calls, Safe, and Tasks. From the menu, you can also reorder the tab buttons on the navigation bar. This way you can select tab buttons you use the most and show them on the bottom navigation bar.

• The main content area between the navigation bars: Shows the tab-specific content. For example, if the Files tab is selected, this area shows files you've uploaded.

When you open the app, you land on the Chat tab. This is where all your chats are listed. From the top navigation bar you can start a new private or group chat and search for chats. To read and respond to the chat messages, select a chat in the list. From an opened chat, you can also create a dashboard that contains all the chat-specific stuff such as events, photos, files, and task list. You can even access the chat details where you can rename the chat to give it a more descriptive title and keep yourself organized.

On the Activity tab, you can keep up with your notifications. You're alerted when you've received a message, if someone has @mentioned you, liked your message, or updated a shared task. 

Got a date or appointment? On the Calendar tab, you can find your important events in a calendar grid. You can also create new events from the top navigation bar.

To keep track of and access your most recent files and files stored in OneDrive, select the Files tab.

See also

Use a screen reader to organize your life with Teams for personal and small business use

Use a screen reader with Safe in Teams for personal life

Use a screen reader to share your location with Teams for your personal life

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365

In this topic

• Download and install the Microsoft Teams for Android app

• Sign up for a personal Microsoft account

• Sign in to Microsoft Teams with your personal account

• Switch between your work and personal accounts

• Send invites to your friends and family

• Create groups for friends and family

• Explore Teams for personal and small business use

Download and install the Microsoft Teams for Android app

If you haven't got the Microsoft Teams app on your Android phone yet, it only takes a few minutes to download and install the app from the Play Store.

If you already have the app on your phone, you don't need to download a new app. The new features for personal use are available in the same app you use for work or school. Just sign in with your personal Microsoft account to use the new features for personal use.

1. On your phone, open the Play Store app. You hear: "Selected for you."

2. Swipe left until you hear "Search for apps and games," and double-tap the screen.

3. Use the on-screen keyboard to start typing Microsoft Teams. The search results are updated as you type.

4. To move to the search results, tap at the top of the screen with four fingers, swipe right until you hear "Microsoft Teams," and double-tap the screen.

5. Swipe right until you hear "Install," and double-tap the screen.

6. TalkBack tells you when the download and installation are completed. The focus is on the Open button. Double-tap the screen to open the app.

Sign up for a personal Microsoft account 

To sign in and start using Microsoft Teams with family and friends, all you need is a personal Microsoft account. If you’re using Skype, OneDrive, Outlook.com, or Xbox Live, then you already have a Microsoft account. If you don’t have a Microsoft account, you can sign up with your mobile phone number. 

1. Open the Microsoft Teams app on your phone.

2. Do one of the following:

   1. If you've already been using Microsoft Teams with your work or school account, swipe up-then-down. Swipe right until you hear "Navigation button," and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear "Add account," and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear “Microsoft corporation, Sign up for free,” and double-tap the screen. You hear: “Choose your account type.”

   2. If you haven't been using Microsoft Teams before, swipe right until you hear "Add account," and double-tap the screen. You hear: “Choose your account type.”

3. Swipe right until you hear “Personal,” and double-tap the screen. The Create account page opens.

4. Swipe right until you hear “Phone number,” and double-tap the screen.

5. Use the on-screen keypad to enter your phone number. To close the keypad, swipe down-then-left. Swipe right until you hear “Next,” and double-tap the screen.

6. You hear: “Create password.” The focus is on the text field for a new password. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the password you’d like to use with your Microsoft account. To close the keyboard, swipe down-then-left.

7. Swipe right until you hear “Next,” and double-tap the screen. The What’s your name page opens. The focus is on the First name text field. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your first name, and then swipe down-then-up. You hear: “Next.” Double-tap the screen.

8. The focus moves to the Last name text field. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your last name. To close the keyboard, swipe down-then-left. Swipe right until you hear “Next,” and double-tap the screen.

9. The What’s your birth date page opens.The focus is on the Country/Region list. If necessary, to change the region or country, double-tap the screen, swipe right of left until you find the one you want, and double-tap the screen.

   To select the month of your birth, swipe right until you hear “Collapsed, Month, pop-up button,” and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear the right month, and double-tap the screen.

   To select the day of your birth, swipe right once, and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you find the right day, and double-tap the screen.

   To select your birth year, swipe right once, and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear the right year, and double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear “Next,” and double-tap the screen.

10. The Verify phone number page opens. A verification code is sent as a text message to the phone number you entered in step 5. Go to your text messages, open the message from Microsoft, and listen to the security code.

    Return to the Microsoft Teams app and use the on-screen keypad to enter the code. To close the keypad, swipe down-then-left. Swipe right to until you hear “Next," and double-tap the screen. Your new Microsoft account is now ready.

Sign in to Microsoft Teams with your personal account

Use your personal Microsoft account, such as a Skype, OneDrive, Outlook.com, or Xbox Live account to sign in to Teams for personal and small business use.

Switch between your work and personal accounts

You can add your account for Teams for personal and small business use to the Microsoft Teams app. Then you can easily switch between the different accounts without having to sign in and out.

Send invites to your friends and family

After you've signed in to Microsoft Teams with your personal account, invite your friends and family members to join in and stay connected.

1. While signed in with your Teams for personal and small business use account, swipe left until you hear "Navigation button," and double-tap the screen.

2. Swipe right until you hear "Invite someone to your team," and double-tap the screen.

3. Swipe right until you hear the app you want to use to invite your friends or family members, and double-tap the screen.

4. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the names or email addresses of the people you want to invite. Swipe right to until you reach the app's message body and double-tap the screen. Type a message you want to send to your new team members. Swipe left or right until you reach the Send button, and double-tap the screen to send the invite.

Create groups for friends and family

Do you share a hobby with some of your friends? Are you organizing a surprise birthday party for a family member and want to keep it a secret? Create a dedicated chat group to easily communicate with the group members.

1. While signed in with your Teams for personal and small business use account, swipe down-then-up, swipe right or left until you hear "Chat tab," and double-tap the screen.

2. Swipe left until you hear "New chat," and double-tap the screen.

3. The New chat view opens. Swipe right until you hear "New group chat," and double-tap the screen. You hear: "Editing, Group chat name."

4. The focus is in the text field for the new group name. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the name for the group. Swipe left until you hear "Next," and double-tap the screen.

5. Use the on-screen keyboard to type the name, email address, or phone number of the first person you want to add to the new group chat. The search results are updated as you type. To move to the results, swipe right. When you find the name you want, double-tap the screen. Repeat this step for each person you want to add to the group.

6. To type a message to the group, swipe right until you hear "Type a message," and double-tap the screen. Use the on-screen keyboard to type a message to the group. Once you're done, swipe right until you hear "Send message," and double-tap the screen.

Explore Teams for personal and small business use

Learn what you can do in Teams for personal and small business use and where to find things in the app.

The app contains three major areas:

• The navigation bar at the top of the screen: Contains the Search button to start a search for chats, files, or people and the More menu button to access the account settings. Depending on the selected tab, you can also start a new chat, call, or create an event.

• The navigation bar at the bottom of the screen: Contains the buttons for selecting a tab such as Activity, Chat, Calendar, or Files. The More button on the far right opens a menu with additional tabs such as Calls, Safe, and Tasks. From the menu, you can also reorder the tab buttons on the navigation bar. This way you can select tab buttons you use the most and show them on the bottom navigation bar.

• The main content area between the navigation bars: Shows the tab-specific content. For example, if the Files tab is selected, this area shows files you've uploaded.

When you open the app, you land on the Chat tab. This is where all your chats are listed. From the top navigation bar you can start a new private or group chat and search for chats. To read and respond to the chat messages, select a chat in the list. From an opened chat, you can also create a dashboard that contains all the chat-specific stuff such as events, photos, files, and task list. You can even access the chat details where you can rename the chat to give it a more descriptive title and keep yourself organized.

On the Activity tab, you can keep up with your notifications. You're alerted when you've received a message, if someone has @mentioned you, liked your message, or updated a shared task. 

Got a date or appointment? On the Calendar tab, you can find your important events in a calendar grid. You can also create new events from the top navigation bar.

To keep track of and access your most recent files and files stored in OneDrive, select the Files tab.

See also

Use a screen reader to organize your life with Teams for personal and small business use

Use a screen reader with Safe in Teams for personal life

Use a screen reader to share your location with Teams for your personal life

Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365