How to Make Group Video Calls with Facebook Messenger Rooms – Complete Guide

Over the last year, video conferencing services have taken on a special relevance around the world. Zoom and Google Meet have been the main tools for video conferencing, but now a new competitor comes to the fore, Messenger Rooms de Facebook.

Integrated with the other functions of the popular social network, such as Facebook Live, this tool facilitates group video conferencing, so that you stay in close contact with your family and friends from your Facebook account. Learn how to get the most out of Messenger Rooms with the following tips.

What are the main functions of Messenger Rooms?

The purpose of Messenger Rooms is connect groups in virtual meeting rooms. It is designed for casual purposes, to allow meetings between friends or family, but it can also be used to conduct interviews and broadcast them on Facebook Live, to teach virtual classes or organize other events.

One of its most attractive features is the integration with other applications, which adds complexity to video conferences with filters, stickers and even 360 ° virtual backgrounds. Everything from ‘messaging rooms’, groups where everyone can connect through a link, even if they don’t have any Facebook app installed.

What are the correct settings to use Facebook Messenger Rooms?

On cell phones, it is recommended that you have the Facebook or Messenger application installed in their standard versions (not Lite). To use Messenger Rooms you just have to tap the camera icon to create a room and assign a name to it. Then you will see a list of contacts from which you can choose the ones you want to invite to your room.

On computers it is slightly more complex. You must access the Messenger icon and select the option ‘Create room‘. Next, you name the room. You can start the meeting immediately by pressing ‘Live’ or schedule it for a specific time. You also have the option of sending invitations or leaving the room visible to all your friends.

It should be noted that the creator of the room must log in to Facebook to be able to use this tool, that is the only essential requirement to use Messenger Rooms. The creator will have the power to cancel the invitations, deciding where the broadcast will be screened, and other common room manager functions.

How many people can connect on Facebook Messenger Rooms video call?

Although this function does not have a duration limit, it does have a maximum capacity per room. You can only invite 50 participants, which is a pretty reasonable figure when you take into account all the features you can use, like live streaming without third-party apps.

In case of reaching the limit of invitations, you can freely cancel the ones you want and send them to someone else. Or you can also lock the room during a meeting so that no one else can enter, even if there is still room in the room.

Tips and tricks for better performance on Facebook Messenger Rooms

The potential of Messenger Rooms is very great, however, it will be wasted if you do not make efficient use of everything it offers. To get the most out of it, there are a series of tricks that will help you get an improved experience with Facebook’s group video conferencing tool.

Customize the room

Before choosing your guest list, you can access the ‘Room activity’ option to choose a theme for your room, to specify the reason for the meeting, which can be from formal events such as a graduation, to something casual such as tea time. You can also change the theme of the room using the default options or by creating your own theme.

Schedule the start of the video call

When creating a room, you can start immediately or schedule the start for a custom date and timeso that your friends have time to receive the invitation and prepare for the meeting; a feature that closely resembles scheduled Facebook posts.

Use effects and filters

During the meeting, you can use several fun options to lighten the atmosphere of the video conference, such as augmented reality effects, virtual games, curious filters and another great variety of options.