How to Create and Share a Google Meet Video Call Link

A Google Meet link is the simplest way to invite people to a video call. You can generate one in seconds, send it through any chat or email app, and let guests join from a browser or the Meet app. This guide covers creating the link, sharing it, and confirming that guests and your camera will work when the call starts.

Before you start

Google Meet is an online service. The meeting link is created on Google's servers and the call runs through them, so you need an internet connection. Nothing is set up on your computer beyond the browser or app you use.

• A Google account. A personal account works, and so does a work or school account.
• A current web browser on a computer, or the Google Meet app (or Gmail with Meet enabled) on a phone or tablet.
• For work or school accounts, permission from your administrator to create meetings. Administrators can limit who may start meetings or invite outside guests.
• Camera and microphone access granted to the browser or app if you plan to join the call yourself.

Plan limits differ between free and paid accounts, including call length, participant count and recording. Check your account's current limits in Google's own help pages rather than relying on figures from third-party guides.

Step-by-step instructions

Google updates the Meet interface regularly, so button labels may differ slightly from those below. The options themselves are usually the same.

On a computer (Google Meet website)

• Open Google Meet in your browser and sign in to the Google account that should own the meeting.
• Select New meeting.
• Choose Create a meeting for later to get a link without joining yet, Start an instant meeting to open the call right away, or Schedule in Google Calendar to set a date and time.
• If you chose a meeting for later, copy the link or meeting code from the window that appears.
• Paste the link into an email, chat message or document and send it to your guests.

With Google Calendar

• Create a new event in Google Calendar and set the title, date and time.
• Add guests by name or email address.
• Add Google Meet video conferencing if it was not added automatically. Many accounts attach a Meet link as soon as guests are added.
• Save the event and choose whether to send invitations. Guests get the event with the call link included.
• To remove the call from the event, edit it and remove the conferencing option, then save.

On a phone or tablet

• Open the Google Meet app, or the Meet section in Gmail if your version shows one.
• Tap New.
• Choose the option to get a meeting link to share, start an instant meeting, or schedule in Google Calendar.
• Use the share option to send the link through a messaging app, or copy it and paste it wherever you need.

A meeting created for later does not start until someone opens the link, so you can create it well ahead of time. How long an unused link stays valid depends on Google's current policy and your account type. If the meeting is important, create it shortly beforehand or schedule it through Calendar.

Check the output

Before sending the link widely, confirm it opens the right meeting. Open it in a private browser window, on another device, or from another account. You should see the pre-join screen with a camera preview and a join or ask-to-join button. If you see an error or a different meeting, create a new link.

Check your own setup on the pre-join screen. If the preview is black, look at the camera permission for the site or app and at the selected camera in Meet's settings. A laptop with an external webcam may default to the wrong device. While the preview is visible, check the lighting: a light source in front of you usually works better than a bright window behind you.

Meet adjusts video resolution, frame rate, bitrate and encoding on its own based on your connection and device. You cannot set these values directly. Some versions of the web interface offer send and receive resolution options in the video settings, and lowering them can help on a weak connection.

If you plan to record, first check whether your plan includes recording and who is allowed to start it. The recording format and storage location are set by Google and your account, so look them up in your account settings or Google's help pages before you rely on them for a deliverable.

Common problems and next steps

Searches for a Google video call link usually refer to a Meet link. Google has moved its consumer video calling into Meet, so the steps above apply whether you call it a Meet link or a Google video call link.

• Guests are stuck waiting to join: depending on the meeting's access settings, people outside your organization or without a signed-in account may need the host to admit them. Stay in the call, or change the access type in the host controls if your account offers that option.
• A guest sees a message that they cannot join: their own organization may block outside meetings, or yours may block outside guests. The relevant administrator has to change this. Changing the link will not help.
• The link works for you but not for others: make sure you copied the full link or the complete meeting code, and that you did not send a link from a different account or an old event.
• You cannot create a meeting at all: work and school accounts may have meeting creation turned off. Contact your administrator, or try a personal account if that is permitted for your use.
• Camera or microphone not detected: close other apps that may be using the device, re-allow camera and microphone permission in the browser or system settings, then reload Meet and pick the correct capture source in settings.
• Video looks blurry or freezes: improve the lighting, move closer to your router or use a wired connection, close bandwidth-heavy apps, and lower the send resolution if that option is available.

If you meet with the same people regularly, a recurring Google Calendar event keeps one link attached to every occurrence, so guests don't need a new link each time. For one-off calls, a meeting created for later is usually the quickest choice.