Microsoft Teams Together mode is retiring as Gallery view becomes the main meeting layout

Microsoft is retiring Together mode in Teams meetings as it shifts users toward the modern Gallery view and a simpler meeting layout experience.

The change removes Together mode, custom scenes, and seat assignments from Teams meetings. Microsoft says Gallery view will remain the primary multi-participant layout after the retirement.

The rollout is expected in June 2026. Microsoft’s Message Center says the retirement starts in early June and completes by late June, while Microsoft’s Insider post says Together mode will no longer be available beginning June 30.

What is changing in Microsoft Teams?

Together mode was introduced in 2020 to place meeting participants into a shared virtual scene, such as an auditorium or classroom. It gave video calls a more informal shared-room look during the remote work surge.

Microsoft now says the same core need can be handled by the modern Gallery view. Gallery is the default Teams meeting layout and can show up to 49 participant videos in supported desktop meeting scenarios.

After the retirement, users will no longer see the Together mode option in the meeting View menu. Custom Together mode scenes and seat assignments will also go away.

Item	Details
Product	Microsoft Teams
Feature retiring	Together mode
Related features retiring	Custom scenes and seat assignments
Replacement layout	Gallery view
Rollout window	June 2026
Admin setting to keep it	No

Why Microsoft is removing Together mode

Microsoft says the retirement will simplify the meeting experience and reduce complexity behind the scenes. The company also wants to focus engineering work on improvements that affect every Teams meeting.

Those priorities include video quality, stability, performance, and a more consistent meeting layout across desktop, web, mobile, and Teams Rooms experiences.

The company also points to choice overload. Teams gained several meeting layout options over the years, and reducing older layout paths should make meetings easier to understand for users.

• Fewer layout options in the meeting interface.
• Gallery view as the main multi-person meeting layout.
• Less fragmentation across Teams clients and devices.
• More focus on video quality and performance improvements.
• Less reliance on custom Together mode scenes.

What users will notice

The biggest user-facing change is simple: Together mode will disappear from the Teams meeting View menu. Users who relied on it for virtual rooms will need to use Gallery view instead.

Meeting creation, meeting joining, and core meeting features will continue to work. Microsoft says the retirement affects the Together mode experience, not the basic ability to run or join Teams meetings.

Users can still use Gallery view, pin important participants, or use spotlight when a speaker or presenter needs more attention during a meeting.

What happens to custom scenes?

Organizations that used custom Together mode scenes for branded meetings will lose that specific option. This affects scenes with designed seating positions and shared visual layouts.

Microsoft recommends organization-approved meeting backgrounds as the replacement for branded visuals. Admins can upload custom meeting background images for users through the Teams admin center.

This will not recreate Together mode seating or shared virtual-room placement. It gives organizations a simpler way to keep visual branding in meetings without relying on a separate scene system.

Current use case	Recommended replacement
Shared Together mode room scene	Gallery view
Custom branded Together mode scene	Organization-approved meeting background
Seat assignments	Pinning and spotlighting participants
Large visual group layout	Large Gallery view where supported

What admins should do before retirement

Microsoft says there is no admin action required for the change. There is also no policy or setting to keep Together mode available after retirement.

Admins should still prepare users, especially if their organization used Together mode for training, events, all-hands meetings, or branded internal calls.

Helpdesk teams should also expect questions from users who cannot find the old View menu option after the rollout reaches their tenant.

1. Notify meeting organizers that Together mode is retiring.
2. Update internal Teams training materials and screenshots.
3. Replace Together mode guidance with Gallery, pin, and spotlight instructions.
4. Check whether any teams used custom Together mode scenes.
5. Upload approved branded backgrounds in the Teams admin center if needed.
6. Prepare helpdesk staff for user questions during the rollout.
7. Monitor the Microsoft 365 Message Center for tenant-specific rollout updates.

Why Gallery view is taking over

Gallery view gives Teams a more standard meeting experience. It supports the most common use case: showing several participants clearly without asking users to pick a special visual layout.

Microsoft says modern Gallery view can meet the need Together mode originally served, especially now that Teams can show larger participant grids on supported desktop devices.

For most users, this should make Teams meetings feel more predictable. The same layout model will apply more consistently across meetings, devices, and organization policies.

What this means for performance

Microsoft says removing Together mode lets it focus development on improvements that benefit all meetings. That includes stability, video quality, and meeting performance.

Maintaining multiple layout systems can increase product complexity. Each layout needs testing, rendering support, bug fixes, and cross-platform behavior checks.

By narrowing the layout system around Gallery view, Microsoft can reduce some of that complexity and move more work into the meeting experience most people use.

Area	Expected benefit
User interface	Fewer layout choices and less confusion during meetings.
Performance	More engineering focus on common video meeting improvements.
Support	Less documentation and troubleshooting around custom scenes.
Cross-platform behavior	More consistent meeting layouts across Teams clients.

Who is affected?

The retirement affects Teams tenant administrators, meeting organizers, and participants who still use Together mode. Organizations that created custom Together mode scenes will also need to adjust.

Commercial and government cloud environments are included in Microsoft’s Message Center notice, covering Worldwide, GCC, GCC High, and DoD tenants.

Users who never used Together mode may barely notice the change. Those who used it for events, classrooms, or informal team meetings should move to Gallery view and branded backgrounds where needed.

Microsoft is simplifying Teams meetings

Together mode became one of the most recognizable Teams features during the pandemic-era shift to remote work. Its retirement shows how Microsoft is now prioritizing simpler, more standard meeting layouts.

The change will disappoint users who liked virtual rooms and custom scenes. Still, Microsoft is choosing Gallery view as the main path forward because it works across more meeting types and supports broader performance work.

For organizations, the next step is practical. Update training, replace custom scene workflows, and prepare users to rely on Gallery view, pinning, spotlighting, and approved meeting backgrounds.

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