SharePoint team site or communication site
Choose a team site for shared work or a communication site to publish information to a broader audience.
Key insights
- Choose a team site when members need to contribute to shared work.
- Choose a communication site when a few authors publish for a broad audience.
- Expense requests and other resources can be linked from a site for easier navigation.
- The material does not specify licensing, prerequisites, or a particular site-creation menu path.
SharePoint team sites are designed for people working together, while communication sites are designed to publish information to a wider audience. The choice matters to team leads, site owners, and intranet planners deciding whether visitors should collaborate or mainly read. Dougie Wood [MVP] introduces this audience-based distinction and points to accessing resources such as expense requests through a site.
What it does
The practical difference is the direction and scale of participation. A team site gives a defined group a place to work on shared content; a communication site gives a smaller publishing group a way to share information with a broader audience. Neither label is simply a measure of site size: the key question is what people need to do there.
For a project or department where members actively contribute, a team site is the more suitable starting point. For material intended for a wider set of employees—such as general information or announcements—a communication site fits the publishing goal. A site can also make useful resources easier to find by providing a path to them from the site, as the source description’s expense-request example illustrates.
This distinction helps avoid treating every SharePoint need as the same kind of workspace. If most visitors need to find information rather than edit shared work, a publishing-oriented site is a clearer fit. If members need to contribute together, a team-oriented site better matches their work.
Who it is for and what you need
This decision is relevant to people setting up or organizing SharePoint spaces for a team, department, or wider organization. It is also useful to site owners reviewing whether a site’s purpose and audience match the way people use it. The description discusses internal collaboration and organization-wide information sharing.
The supplied material does not identify a required Microsoft 365 license, administrator role, site-creation prerequisite, or rollout stage. It also does not specify regional availability. Check your organization’s own SharePoint setup and permissions before creating or changing a site; the material does not give tenant-specific instructions.
Before choosing, define the intended audience and whether its members will create and edit content or mainly consume it. That simple distinction is the main decision rule available in the material. If a site has both goals, the material does not provide a detailed design for combining them.
How it works
Start with the audience and its expected activity, rather than the name of a department or the type of content alone. A team may need an active workspace, while a broader group may only need access to published information. Match the site type to that use.
- Identify who needs access and whether they will actively contribute or mainly read.
- Choose a team site for a defined group collaborating on shared work.
- Choose a communication site when a small group needs to share information with a broader audience.
- Organize navigation so users can reach relevant resources, including items such as expense requests when appropriate.
The material does not name a specific SharePoint menu path or provide step-by-step instructions for creating either site. It also does not describe permission settings or explain how to configure a resource link. Those details depend on the site and organization, so they should not be inferred from the general site-type distinction.
Limitations and open questions
The source gives a high-level selection guide rather than a full configuration walkthrough. It does not establish which templates, web parts, permission models, or Microsoft 365 integrations are available in a particular environment. Nor does it say that one site type is universally better; the recommendation depends on the audience and its task.
Licensing, access requirements, migration steps, and exact creation screens remain unspecified. The material also does not set out a separate approach for sites with mixed audiences or explain how to restructure an existing site. Treat the collaboration-versus-publishing distinction as a starting point, then verify configuration details against your organization’s SharePoint environment.
Sources
Frequently asked questions
When should I use a SharePoint team site?
Use a team site when a defined group needs to collaborate and contribute to shared work. The material describes team sites as suited to groups or departments working on specific projects.
When should I use a SharePoint communication site?
Use a communication site when a small publishing group needs to share information with a broader audience. It is intended for wider information sharing rather than active collaboration by all visitors.
What license do I need to create a SharePoint team or communication site?
The supplied material does not state a required license or explain who can create these sites. Check your organization’s SharePoint configuration for those requirements.