Cohosts

If the host is running late or can't attend, a cohost can start and manage the meeting or webinar in their place. Cohosts can also assist the host with meeting management, which is useful for larger meetings. If the host isn’t in the meeting, a cohost assumes the host role until the original host joins.

When scheduling a meeting or webinar, hosts can assign the cohost role to one or more attendees, and those invitees join the meeting as a cohost. The host can also assign the cohost role during a meeting or webinar, including guest attendees. The option to assign the role appears dimmed for attendees who join from unsupported clients.

Add cohosts

Go to the following sections for instructions on how to add cohosts during a meeting or webinar, when scheduling your meeting or webinar, to your personal room meetings, to an existing meeting or webinar, through the scheduler in Microsoft Outlook, or using Webex Productivity Tools.

Cohost privileges

Cohosts can perform the following tasks:

• From the meeting or webinar information page:

  • Customize the registration form

  • Approve or reject pending registrants

  • Change a registrant's approval status

  • Invite or import panelists (webinar only)

  • Invite or import attendees

• During the meeting or webinar:

  • Start and host the meeting or webinar

    If the host's account has been deleted or deactivated, the cohost can't run the meeting. The cohost must create a new meeting as the host.

  • Mute or unmute some or all participants.

  • Permit or prevent attendees unmuting themselves after the host or cohost mutes them

  • Share multimedia

  • Move attendees to and from the lobby

  • Expel attendees

  • Start recording, if a cohost has assumed the host role

    After the original host joins, they assume the host role and the ability to record. Participants who have the cohost role can't record.

  • Invite and remind attendees

  • Manage breakout sessions

  • Join breakout sessions to help attendees

  • Lock or unlock the meeting or webinar

If a cohost connects to a video device, the connected device gets assigned the cohost role, too. "You are now a cohost of this meeting" displays on the device and has the same capabilities as the host. You can lock or unlock the meeting, mute all participants, and start or stop recording the meeting, but you can't end the meeting.