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Communities overview

Discover and join communities on Root.

What is a community?​

A community is a group of members who come together in Root to communicate and collaborate. Each community has its own set of channels for text and voice conversations, its own member list, and its own rules and culture.

There are two ways to join. Most communities are private, so you join with an invite link or an invitation from a member. Some communities are listed in Community Discovery, Root's directory of public communities, and you can join those without an invite. See Join a community and Discover communities.

Community owners manage who can join and what members can do through roles and permissions.

How communities work​

A community is organized into several parts:

  • Channels are where conversations happen. Text channels are for written messages that persist over time. Voice channels are for live audio and video calls.
  • Channel groups organize related channels together. For example, a gaming community might have channel groups for different games.
  • Members are the people who belong to the community. You can see who's online and what they're doing in the member list.
  • Roles are assigned by community owners and can give members special permissions or access to certain channels.

When you join a community, you appear in its member list and can participate in channels you have access to. Some channels may be restricted to members with specific roles.

When to join a community​

Join a community when you want to:

  • Connect with a group that shares your interests, whether it's a game, hobby, sport, or topic
  • Stay in touch with an organization like a school club, workplace team, or local group
  • Find others to play with in multiplayer games or collaborative activities
  • Learn from others who are knowledgeable about a subject you're interested in

If you don't have an invite yet, browse the public communities in Discovery. They're sorted by category, so it's a quick way to find groups that match your interests. See Discover communities.