GUIDE
Updated March 2026
6 topics

Chat Guide

Learn how to use project chat for quick questions, status updates, and real-time team coordination — all within your project workspace.

Jump to
What is Project Chat?Sending MessagesQuote ReplyEditing & DeletingReal-Time UpdatesBest Practices

What is Project Chat?

Every project in Workunit has a built-in chat room. Unlike Signals (which are persistent, categorized discussions), chat is for the quick, informal stuff: asking a quick question, sharing a link, coordinating who's working on what right now.

Chat messages are flat (no threads) with quote-reply for context. Messages support markdown formatting, and changes appear instantly across all open tabs via server-sent events.

Chat vs Signals — which one do I use?

Use Chat when...
  • You need a quick answer right now
  • Coordinating who is working on what
  • Sharing a link or a heads-up
  • Informal, time-sensitive back-and-forth
Use Signals when...
  • The message matters in a week
  • Recording a decision or outcome
  • Asking a question that needs a searchable answer
  • Sharing an update the whole team should find later

Sending Messages

Open the chat from the project dashboard and type in the message area at the bottom of the conversation.

1. Open chat from the project dashboard
Navigate to a project and click the Chat widget on the project dashboard, or use the View All link to open the full chat page.
2. Type your message
Messages support full markdown: headings, lists, code blocks, bold, italic, and links. The input area expands as you type. The chat auto-scrolls to the latest message when you are near the bottom of the conversation.
3. Press Enter to send
Hit Enter to post your message. Your message appears immediately in the conversation for everyone viewing the chat.
Tip: Press Shift+Enter to insert a new line without sending. Use markdown freely — backtick code blocks, **bold**, and bullet lists all render in chat.

Quote Reply

Hover over any message to see the Reply button. Clicking it shows a preview bar above the input with the original message context. Your reply will display a quoted block linking back to the original message, making it easy to follow conversations without threads.

Example — how a quote-reply looks
Earlier in conversation:
Can someone check the staging deploy? The health check is failing.
Your reply:
Can someone check the staging deploy? The health check is failing.
On it — looks like the DB migration didn't run. Fixing now.
When to use quote-reply: Use it when multiple topics are being discussed at the same time, or when responding to a message that was posted a while ago. It keeps responses anchored to the right context without needing threads. To dismiss a pending reply, click the X on the preview bar — the context clears automatically after sending.

Editing & Deleting

Hover over your own messages to reveal the Edit and Delete options. You can only modify messages you authored — other team members' messages are read-only for you.

Edit
Editing replaces the message inline with an edit form — save your changes or cancel to revert. Edited messages display an (edited) indicator so teammates know the message was updated.
Delete
Deleted messages are removed from the conversation immediately. The deletion is permanent — there is no undo. Be deliberate before deleting.
If someone replied to a message you delete, their quote-reply will show the original content as unavailable. This can break the context of a conversation — prefer editing over deleting when possible.

Real-Time Updates

Chat uses server-sent events (SSE) to push changes to all open tabs instantly. When a team member sends, edits, or deletes a message, the conversation updates automatically — no refresh needed.

What updates in real time
  • New messages from any team member
  • Edits to existing messages
  • Deletions (messages disappear immediately)
  • Quote-reply previews resolving to their source messages

Real-time updates work across browser tabs and devices. If your tab has been in the background for a while, updates may appear briefly after you switch back — this is normal behavior for SSE connections on HTTP/1.1.

Best Practices

Get the most from chat by following these patterns:

Use chat for urgent coordination

If something needs attention in the next hour — a broken deploy, a blocked PR, a quick clarification before a meeting — chat is the right place. It is fast, visible, and gets responses quickly.

Keep messages concise

Chat is a stream, not a document. Short, clear messages are easier to read and respond to. If your message needs multiple paragraphs of reasoning or background, it probably belongs in a Signal instead.

Use quote-reply for context

In an active conversation covering multiple topics, quote-reply anchors your response to the right message. It prevents confusion without needing threads and keeps the conversation readable for latecomers.

Use markdown for clarity

Code snippets, error messages, and commands are much easier to read in a code block. Use backticks inline for short values and triple-backtick blocks for multi-line output. Lists and bold text help too.

When NOT to use Chat

  • Decisions and outcomes: If a decision was made in chat, move it to a Signal Announcement so it persists and is searchable by the whole team
  • Questions that need a lasting answer: Use a Question signal — the answer won't get buried in a message history
  • Long-form context: If your message needs significant background or reasoning, a Signal body with markdown is a better format
  • One-on-one feedback: Sensitive or personal feedback is better handled privately, not in a shared project chat room
Keep going

Next Steps

Now that you understand Chat, explore related features:

Signals

Learn how to post persistent, categorized discussions for decisions, questions, and project updates.

Open guide
Project Management

Organize chat alongside workunits, assets, and check-ins inside your projects.

Open guide
Need Help?

If you have questions about using chat, ask in the community.

All GuidesCommunity Discussions