Microsoft Teams is ditching Together mode to focus on what actually matters — video quality

Published May 15, 2026, 12:08 AM EDT Simon is a Computer Science BSc graduate who has been writing about technology since 2014, and using Windows machines since 3.1. After working for an indie game studio and acting as the family's go-to technician for all computer issues, he found his passion for writing and decided to use his skill set to write about all things tech. Since beginning his writing career, he has written for many different publications such as WorldStart, Listverse, and MakeTechEasier. However, after finding his home at MakeUseOf in February 2019, he would eventually move on to its sister site, XDA, to bring the latest and greatest in Windows, Linux, and DIY electronics. Sign in to your XDA account Summary Together mode in Microsoft Teams ends June 30; it will be removed from the View menu. All scenes, custom scenes, and seat assignments are gone; use backgrounds for branding. Microsoft says consolidating to Gallery simplifies UI, boosts video quality, and frees capacity for improvements. Back in July 2020, to better serve the influx of companies moving to remote work, Microsoft added the Together mode feature to Teams. The idea was to remove the endless square grid of people's webcams and instead place people into scenes such as a theatre or a room. That way, people would feel they're together, without actually being together. Well, the world has moved on since then, and Microsoft has announced that it's going to get rid of Together mode just shy of its sixth birthday. As it turns out, Microsoft feels that Together mode was just one option too many, and believes Gallery does a better job anyway. Related Microsoft Teams' Together mode is going away on June 30th Gallery mode will be its main replacement Together Mode in Skype | Image credit: Skype As announced over on the Microsoft Tech Community website, the company is removing Together mode on June 30th. Once the change rolls out, you'll no longer see it in the View menu, and all scenes, custom scenes, and seat assignments will go away. Microsoft recommends that anyone who has used Together mode with special branding scenes instead use backgrounds. So, why is Microsoft getting rid of Together mode, anyway? Well, the company says that it already has multiple modes, including Gallery, Large Gallery, and dynamic views, and it wants to help consolidate people's options to reduce cognitive load and implementation complexity. Plus, by focusing on Gallery mode, Microsoft can achieve better things: Simplify the meeting interface and deliver a more consistent experience across devices. Deliver higher and more stable video quality across meetings by focusing on client-optimized rendering. Free up service capacity that can be reinvested into foundational video improvements that you have asked us to prioritize such as super‑resolution, denoising, and improved color accuracy As such, if you or your business relies on Together mode, now would be the best time to swap over to Gallery and get used to it before June 30th rolls around. Related