Are you wondering when to create a SharePoint team site and when to create a communication site? In this SharePoint Online tutorial, we are going to discuss SharePoint Online team sites and communication sites.
Also, we will see what are the major differences between the SharePoint Online team site vs the communication site.
What is a SharePoint Team site?
A SharePoint Online Team site is a place where team members can collaborate with each other.
They can store, and share documents with other team members using various SharePoint document libraries. Also, team members can have conversations with their team and track the status of a project.
What is a SharePoint Communication site?
A SharePoint Online Communication site is a place where you can convey information like news, updates, etc., to the entire organization.
Now we will see the differences between the SharePoint team site and the SharePoint communication site
Difference between the SharePoint Team site vs SharePoint Communication site
Here, we will discuss the SharePoint Team site vs the SharePoint Communication site.
Team Site | Communication Site |
---|---|
The SharePoint Team site is a place, where we collaborate among different team members working on the same project. | The SharePoint Communication site is a place for the entire Organization. |
A place where members of a workgroup or a Project team can collaborate on project delivery, Track the status of a project, or exchange ideas, for that we need a SharePoint Team site. | A place where we want to “broadcast ” messages, Share Content for viewing(not editing) to large audiences or entire organizations, and for that, we need a SharePoint Communication site. |
The Team site has a navigation bar on the left. | The Communication site has a navigation bar along the top. |
By default, the SharePoint Team site is private | By default, the SharePoint Communication site is public |
On the SharePoint Team site, we can add members directly and invite members to collaborate via emails to access the site. | Example: For example, you can create a communication site for Travelling in an organization. They can publish guidelines about corporate travel. |
When we create a team site, we will get a OneNote book, shared calendar, shared mailbox, planner, office 365groups, and we can also connect to Microsoft teams. | On the SharePoint Communication site, we can’t add a discussion board to the site. |
Cannot create a subsite in SharePoint team site | When we create a communication site, it will just create a site without anything. |
Can create a subsite in the SharePoint team site | Cannot create a subsite in the SharePoint team site |
When we create a team site, we will get a OneNote book, shared calendar, shared mailbox, planner, office 365groups, and also we can connect to Microsoft teams. | On the Communication site, External sharing is disabled, but it can be enabled by only SharePoint admins. |
Example: For example, an organization’s Finance team can store Finance-related documents so their team members can access and work on them. | Example: For example, in an organization, you can create a communication site for Travelling. They can publish guidelines about corporate travel. |

Conclusion
I have explained all the major differences between the SharePoint team site and the SharePoint communication site.
You may also like:
- SharePoint Online site usage report
- How to Share a SharePoint Online Site
- How to delete a SharePoint Team site

Preeti Sahu is an expert in Power Apps and has more than 6 years of experience working with SharePoint and the Power Platform. As a Power Platform expert for Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate, Power Virtual Agents, and Power Pages, she is currently employed with TSinfo Technologies. She is the author of the book Microsoft Power Platform A Deep Dive. She also made a big technical contribution to SharePointDotNet.com in the form of articles on the Power Platform. She enjoys traveling and spending time with her family in her spare time.