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conversations.list method

Facts​

DescriptionLists all channels in a Slack team.
Method Access
GET https://slack.com/api/conversations.list
Scopes
Content types
application/x-www-form-urlencoded
application/json
Rate LimitsTier 2: 20+ per minute

Arguments​

Required arguments

tokenstringRequired

Authentication token bearing required scopes. Tokens should be passed as an HTTP Authorization header or alternatively, as a POST parameter.

Example: xxxx-xxxxxxxxx-xxxx

Optional arguments

cursorstringOptional

Paginate through collections of data by setting the cursor parameter to a next_cursor attribute returned by a previous request's response_metadata. Default value fetches the first "page" of the collection. See pagination for more detail.

Example: dXNlcjpVMDYxTkZUVDI=
exclude_archivedbooleanOptional

Set to true to exclude archived channels from the list.

Default: false
Example: true
limitnumberOptional

The maximum number of items to return. Fewer than the requested number of items may be returned, even if the end of the list hasn't been reached. Must be an integer under 1000.

Default: 100
Example: 20
team_idstringOptional

encoded team id to list channels in, required if token belongs to org-wide app

typesstringOptional

Mix and match channel types by providing a comma-separated list of any combination of public_channel, private_channel, mpim, im

Default: public_channel
Example: public_channel,private_channel

Usage info​

This Conversations API method returns a list of all channel-like conversations in a workspace. The "channels" returned depend on what the calling token has access to and the directives placed in the types parameter.

The team_id is only relevant when using an org-level token. This field will be ignored if the API call is sent using a workspace-level token. When paginating, any filters used in the request are applied after retrieving a virtual page's limit. For example, using exclude_archived=true when limit=20 on a virtual page that would contain 15 archived channels will return you the virtual page with only 5 results. Additional results are available from the next cursor value.

Response​

Typical success response with only public channels

{
  "ok": true,
  "channels": [
    {
      "id": "C012AB3CD",
      "name": "general",
      "is_channel": true,
      "is_group": false,
      "is_im": false,
      "created": 1449252889,
      "creator": "U012A3CDE",
      "is_archived": false,
      "is_general": true,
      "unlinked": 0,
      "name_normalized": "general",
      "is_shared": false,
      "is_ext_shared": false,
      "is_org_shared": false,
      "pending_shared": [],
      "is_pending_ext_shared": false,
      "is_member": true,
      "is_private": false,
      "is_mpim": false,
      "updated": 1678229664302,
      "topic": {
        "value": "Company-wide announcements and work-based matters",
        "creator": "",
        "last_set": 0
      },
      "purpose": {
        "value": "This channel is for team-wide communication and announcements. All team members are in this channel.",
        "creator": "",
        "last_set": 0
      },
      "previous_names": [],
      "num_members": 4
    },
    {
      "id": "C061EG9T2",
      "name": "random",
      "is_channel": true,
      "is_group": false,
      "is_im": false,
      "created": 1449252889,
      "creator": "U061F7AUR",
      "is_archived": false,
      "is_general": false,
      "unlinked": 0,
      "name_normalized": "random",
      "is_shared": false,
      "is_ext_shared": false,
      "is_org_shared": false,
      "pending_shared": [],
      "is_pending_ext_shared": false,
      "is_member": true,
      "is_private": false,
      "is_mpim": false,
      "updated": 1678229664302,
      "topic": {
        "value": "Non-work banter and water cooler conversation",
        "creator": "",
        "last_set": 0
      },
      "purpose": {
        "value": "A place for non-work-related flimflam, faffing, hodge-podge or jibber-jabber you'd prefer to keep out of more focused work-related channels.",
        "creator": "",
        "last_set": 0
      },
      "previous_names": [],
      "num_members": 4
    }
  ],
  "response_metadata": {
    "next_cursor": "dGVhbTpDMDYxRkE1UEI="
  }
}

Example response when mixing different conversation types together, like im and mpim

{
  "ok": true,
  "channels": [
    {
      "id": "G0AKFJBEU",
      "name": "mpdm-mr.banks--slactions-jackson--beforebot-1",
      "is_channel": false,
      "is_group": true,
      "is_im": false,
      "created": 1493657761,
      "creator": "U061F7AUR",
      "is_archived": false,
      "is_general": false,
      "unlinked": 0,
      "name_normalized": "mpdm-mr.banks--slactions-jackson--beforebot-1",
      "is_shared": false,
      "is_ext_shared": false,
      "is_org_shared": false,
      "pending_shared": [],
      "is_pending_ext_shared": false,
      "is_member": true,
      "is_private": true,
      "is_mpim": true,
      "is_open": true,
      "updated": 1678229664302,
      "topic": {
        "value": "Group messaging",
        "creator": "U061F7AUR",
        "last_set": 1493657761
      },
      "purpose": {
        "value": "Group messaging with: @mr.banks @slactions-jackson @beforebot",
        "creator": "U061F7AUR",
        "last_set": 1493657761
      },
      "priority": 0
    },
    {
      "id": "D0C0F7S8Y",
      "created": 1498500348,
      "is_im": true,
      "is_org_shared": false,
      "user": "U0BS9U4SV",
      "is_user_deleted": false,
      "priority": 0
    },
    {
      "id": "D0BSHH4AD",
      "created": 1498511030,
      "is_im": true,
      "is_org_shared": false,
      "user": "U0C0NS9HN",
      "is_user_deleted": false,
      "priority": 0
    }
  ],
  "response_metadata": {
    "next_cursor": "aW1faWQ6RDBCSDk1RExI"
  }
}

Typical error response

{
  "ok": false,
  "error": "invalid_auth"
}

Returns a list of limited channel-like conversation objects. To get a full conversation object, call the conversations.info method.

Use conversations.members to retrieve and traverse membership.

See conversation object for more detail on returned fields.

Some fields in the response, like unread_count and unread_count_display, are included for DM conversations only.

Pagination​

This method uses cursor-based pagination to make it easier to incrementally collect information. To begin pagination, specify a limit value under 1000. We recommend no more than 200 results at a time.

Responses will include a top-level response_metadata attribute containing a next_cursor value. By using this value as a cursor parameter in a subsequent request, along with limit, you may navigate through the collection page by virtual page.

See pagination for more information.

Errors​

This table lists the expected errors that this method could return. However, other errors can be returned in the case where the service is down or other unexpected factors affect processing. Callers should always check the value of the ok parameter in the response.

Error
Description
access_denied

Access to a resource specified in the request is denied.

accesslimited

Access to this method is limited on the current network

account_inactive

Authentication token is for a deleted user or workspace when using a bot token.

deprecated_endpoint

The endpoint has been deprecated.

ekm_access_denied

Administrators have suspended the ability to post a message.

enterprise_is_restricted

The method cannot be called from an Enterprise.

fatal_error

The server could not complete your operation(s) without encountering a catastrophic error. It's possible some aspect of the operation succeeded before the error was raised.

internal_error

The server could not complete your operation(s) without encountering an error, likely due to a transient issue on our end. It's possible some aspect of the operation succeeded before the error was raised.

invalid_arg_name

The method was passed an argument whose name falls outside the bounds of accepted or expected values. This includes very long names and names with non-alphanumeric characters other than _. If you get this error, it is typically an indication that you have made a very malformed API call.

invalid_arguments

The method was called with invalid arguments.

invalid_array_arg

The method was passed an array as an argument. Please only input valid strings.

invalid_auth

Some aspect of authentication cannot be validated. Either the provided token is invalid or the request originates from an IP address disallowed from making the request.

invalid_charset

The method was called via a POST request, but the charset specified in the Content-Type header was invalid. Valid charset names are: utf-8 iso-8859-1.

invalid_cursor

Value passed for cursor was not valid or is no longer valid.

invalid_form_data

The method was called via a POST request with Content-Type application/x-www-form-urlencoded or multipart/form-data, but the form data was either missing or syntactically invalid.

invalid_limit

Value passed for limit is not understood.

invalid_post_type

The method was called via a POST request, but the specified Content-Type was invalid. Valid types are: application/json application/x-www-form-urlencoded multipart/form-data text/plain.

invalid_types

Value passed for type could not be used based on the method's capabilities or the permission scopes granted to the used token.

method_deprecated

The method has been deprecated.

method_not_supported_for_channel_type

This type of conversation cannot be used with this method.

missing_argument

A required argument is missing.

missing_post_type

The method was called via a POST request and included a data payload, but the request did not include a Content-Type header.

missing_scope

The calling token is not granted the necessary scopes to complete this operation.

missing_scope

The token used is not granted the specific scope permissions required to complete this request.

no_permission

The workspace token used in this request does not have the permissions necessary to complete the request. Make sure your app is a member of the conversation it's attempting to post a message to.

not_allowed_token_type

The token type used in this request is not allowed.

not_authed

No authentication token provided.

org_login_required

The workspace is undergoing an enterprise migration and will not be available until migration is complete.

ratelimited

The request has been ratelimited. Refer to the Retry-After header for when to retry the request.

request_timeout

The method was called via a POST request, but the POST data was either missing or truncated.

service_unavailable

The service is temporarily unavailable

team_access_not_granted

The token used is not granted the specific workspace access required to complete this request.

team_added_to_org

The workspace associated with your request is currently undergoing migration to an Enterprise Organization. Web API and other platform operations will be intermittently unavailable until the transition is complete.

token_expired

Authentication token has expired

token_revoked

Authentication token is for a deleted user or workspace or the app has been removed when using a user token.

two_factor_setup_required

Two factor setup is required.