Send a message using the Google Chat API

  • The Google Chat API enables sending messages as a Chat app or on behalf of a user.

  • Chat apps can send rich messages with text, cards, and interactive elements, while user-sent messages are limited to text.

  • Messages can be sent to spaces, users directly, or within specific threads using a thread_key.

  • Developers can assign custom IDs to messages for easier retrieval and management.

  • Code examples in Node.js and Python are provided to guide developers in implementing message sending functionalities.

This guide explains how to use the create() method on the Message resource of the Google Chat API to do any of the following:

  • Send messages that contain text, cards, and interactive widgets.
  • Send messages privately to a specific Chat user.
  • Start or reply to a message thread.
  • Name a message, so that you can specify it in other Chat API requests.

The maximum message size (including any text or cards) is 32,000 bytes. To send a message that exceeds this size, your Chat app must send multiple messages instead.

In addition to calling the Chat API to create messages, Chat apps can create and send messages to reply to user interactions, such as posting a welcome message after a user adds the Chat app to a space. When responding to interactions, Chat apps can use other types of messaging features, including interactive dialogs and link preview interfaces. To reply to a user, the Chat app returns the message synchronously, without calling the Chat API. To learn about sending messages to respond to interactions, see Receive and respond to interactions with your Google Chat app.

How Chat displays and attributes messages created with the Chat API

You can call the create() method using app authentication and user authentication. Chat attributes the message sender differently depending on the type of authentication that you use.

When you authenticate as the Chat app, the Chat app sends the message.

Calling the create() method with app authentication.
Figure 1: With app authentication, the Chat app sends the message. To note that the sender isn't a person, Chat displays App next to its name.

When you authenticate as a user, the Chat app sends the message on behalf of the user. Chat also attributes the Chat app to the message by displaying its name.

Calling the create() method with user authentication.
Figure 2: With user authentication, the user sends the message, and Chat displays the Chat app name next to the user's name.

The authentication type also determines which messaging features and interfaces that you can include in the message. With app authentication, Chat apps can send messages that contain rich text, card-based interfaces, and interactive widgets. With user authentication, you can send text messages. In Developer Preview, you can also send cards, as documented in Create and update cards.

To learn more about messaging features available for the Chat API, see the Google Chat messages overview.

This guide explains how to use either authentication type to send a message with the Chat API.

Prerequisites

Node.js

Python

Java

Apps Script

Send a message as the Chat app

This section explains how to send messages that contain text, cards, and interactive accessory widgets using app authentication.

Message sent with app authentication
Figure 4. A Chat app sends a message with text, a card, and an accessory button.

To call the CreateMessage() method using app authentication, you must specify the following fields in the request:

  • The chat.bot authorization scope.
  • The Space resource in which you want to post the message. The Chat app must be a member of the space.
  • The Message resource to create. To define the content of the message, you can include rich text (text), one or more card interfaces (cardsV2), or both.

Optionally, you can include the following:

The following code shows an example of how a Chat app can send a message posted as the Chat app that contains text, a card, and a clickable button at the bottom of the message:

Node.js

chat/client-libraries/cloud/create-message-app-cred.js
import {createClientWithAppCredentials} from './authentication-utils.js';

// This sample shows how to create message with app credential
async function main() {
  // Create a client
  const chatClient = createClientWithAppCredentials();

  // Initialize request argument(s)
  const request = {
    // Replace SPACE_NAME here.
    parent: 'spaces/SPACE_NAME',
    message: {
      text:
        '👋🌎 Hello world! I created this message by calling ' +
        "the Chat API's `messages.create()` method.",
      cardsV2: [
        {
          card: {
            header: {
              title: 'About this message',
              imageUrl:
                'https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/i/short-term/release/googlesymbols/info/default/24px.svg',
            },
            sections: [
              {
                header: 'Contents',
                widgets: [
                  {
                    textParagraph: {
                      text:
                        '🔡 <b>Text</b> which can include ' +
                        'hyperlinks 🔗, emojis 😄🎉, and @mentions 🗣️.',
                    },
                  },
                  {
                    textParagraph: {
                      text:
                        '🖼️ A <b>card</b> to display visual elements' +
                        'and request information such as text 🔤, ' +
                        'dates and times 📅, and selections ☑️.',
                    },
                  },
                  {
                    textParagraph: {
                      text:
                        '👉🔘 An <b>accessory widget</b> which adds ' +
                        'a button to the bottom of a message.',
                    },
                  },
                ],
              },
              {
                header: "What's next",
                collapsible: true,
                widgets: [
                  {
                    textParagraph: {
                      text: "❤️ <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages.reactions/create'>Add a reaction</a>.",
                    },
                  },
                  {
                    textParagraph: {
                      text:
                        "🔄 <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages/patch'>Update</a> " +
                        "or ❌ <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages/delete'>delete</a> " +
                        'the message.',
                    },
                  },
                ],
              },
            ],
          },
        },
      ],
      accessoryWidgets: [
        {
          buttonList: {
            buttons: [
              {
                text: 'View documentation',
                icon: {materialIcon: {name: 'link'}},
                onClick: {
                  openLink: {
                    url: 'https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/create-messages',
                  },
                },
              },
            ],
          },
        },
      ],
    },
  };

  // Make the request
  const response = await chatClient.createMessage(request);

  // Handle the response
  console.log(response);
}

await main();

Python

chat/client-libraries/cloud/create_message_app_cred.py
from authentication_utils import create_client_with_app_credentials
from google.apps import chat_v1 as google_chat

# This sample shows how to create message with app credential
def create_message_with_app_cred():
    # Create a client
    client = create_client_with_app_credentials()

    # Initialize request argument(s)
    request = google_chat.CreateMessageRequest(
        # Replace SPACE_NAME here.
        parent = "spaces/SPACE_NAME",
        message = {
            "text": '👋🌎 Hello world! I created this message by calling ' +
                    'the Chat API\'s `messages.create()` method.',
            "cards_v2" : [{ "card": {
                "header": {
                    "title": 'About this message',
                    "image_url": 'https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/i/short-term/release/googlesymbols/info/default/24px.svg'
                },
                "sections": [{
                    "header": "Contents",
                    "widgets": [{ "text_paragraph": {
                            "text": '🔡 <b>Text</b> which can include ' +
                                    'hyperlinks 🔗, emojis 😄🎉, and @mentions 🗣️.'
                        }}, { "text_paragraph": {
                            "text": '🖼️ A <b>card</b> to display visual elements' +
                                    'and request information such as text 🔤, ' +
                                    'dates and times 📅, and selections ☑️.'
                        }}, { "text_paragraph": {
                            "text": '👉🔘 An <b>accessory widget</b> which adds ' +
                                    'a button to the bottom of a message.'
                        }}
                    ]}, {
                        "header": "What's next",
                        "collapsible": True,
                        "widgets": [{ "text_paragraph": {
                                "text": "❤️ <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages.reactions/create'>Add a reaction</a>."
                            }}, { "text_paragraph": {
                                "text": "🔄 <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages/patch'>Update</a> " +
                                        "or ❌ <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages/delete'>delete</a> " +
                                        "the message."
                            }
                        }]
                    }
                ]
            }}],
            "accessory_widgets": [{ "button_list": { "buttons": [{
                "text": 'View documentation',
                "icon": { "material_icon": { "name": 'link' }},
                "on_click": { "open_link": {
                    "url": 'https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/create-messages'
                }}
            }]}}]
        }
    )

    # Make the request
    response = client.create_message(request)

    # Handle the response
    print(response)

create_message_with_app_cred()

Java

chat/client-libraries/cloud/src/main/java/com/google/workspace/api/chat/samples/CreateMessageAppCred.java
import com.google.apps.card.v1.Button;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.ButtonList;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.Card;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.Icon;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.MaterialIcon;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.OnClick;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.OpenLink;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.TextParagraph;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.Widget;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.Card.CardHeader;
import com.google.apps.card.v1.Card.Section;
import com.google.chat.v1.AccessoryWidget;
import com.google.chat.v1.CardWithId;
import com.google.chat.v1.ChatServiceClient;
import com.google.chat.v1.CreateMessageRequest;
import com.google.chat.v1.Message;

// This sample shows how to create message with app credential.
public class CreateMessageAppCred {

  public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
    try (ChatServiceClient chatServiceClient =
        AuthenticationUtils.createClientWithAppCredentials()) {
      CreateMessageRequest.Builder request = CreateMessageRequest.newBuilder()
        // Replace SPACE_NAME here.
        .setParent("spaces/SPACE_NAME")
        .setMessage(Message.newBuilder()
          .setText( "👋🌎 Hello world! I created this message by calling " +
                    "the Chat API\'s `messages.create()` method.")
          .addCardsV2(CardWithId.newBuilder().setCard(Card.newBuilder()
            .setHeader(CardHeader.newBuilder()
              .setTitle("About this message")
              .setImageUrl("https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/i/short-term/release/googlesymbols/info/default/24px.svg"))
            .addSections(Section.newBuilder()
              .setHeader("Contents")
              .addWidgets(Widget.newBuilder().setTextParagraph(TextParagraph.newBuilder().setText(
                "🔡 <b>Text</b> which can include " +
                "hyperlinks 🔗, emojis 😄🎉, and @mentions 🗣️.")))
              .addWidgets(Widget.newBuilder().setTextParagraph(TextParagraph.newBuilder().setText(
                "🖼️ A <b>card</b> to display visual elements " +
                "and request information such as text 🔤, " +
                "dates and times 📅, and selections ☑️.")))
              .addWidgets(Widget.newBuilder().setTextParagraph(TextParagraph.newBuilder().setText(
                "👉🔘 An <b>accessory widget</b> which adds " +
                "a button to the bottom of a message."))))
            .addSections(Section.newBuilder()
              .setHeader("What's next")
              .setCollapsible(true)
              .addWidgets(Widget.newBuilder().setTextParagraph(TextParagraph.newBuilder().setText(
                "❤️ <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages.reactions/create'>Add a reaction</a>.")))
              .addWidgets(Widget.newBuilder().setTextParagraph(TextParagraph.newBuilder().setText(
                "🔄 <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages/patch'>Update</a> " +
                "or ❌ <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages/delete'>delete</a> " +
                "the message."))))))
          .addAccessoryWidgets(AccessoryWidget.newBuilder()
            .setButtonList(ButtonList.newBuilder()
              .addButtons(Button.newBuilder()
                .setText("View documentation")
                .setIcon(Icon.newBuilder()
                  .setMaterialIcon(MaterialIcon.newBuilder().setName("link")))
                .setOnClick(OnClick.newBuilder()
                  .setOpenLink(OpenLink.newBuilder()
                    .setUrl("https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/create-messages")))))));
      Message response = chatServiceClient.createMessage(request.build());

      System.out.println(JsonFormat.printer().print(response));
    }
  }
}

Apps Script

chat/advanced-service/Main.gs
/**
 * This sample shows how to create message with app credential
 *
 * It relies on the OAuth2 scope 'https://www.googleapis.com/auth/chat.bot'
 * used by service accounts.
 */
function createMessageAppCred() {
  // Initialize request argument(s)
  // TODO(developer): Replace SPACE_NAME here.
  const parent = "spaces/SPACE_NAME";
  const message = {
    text:
      "👋🌎 Hello world! I created this message by calling " +
      "the Chat API's `messages.create()` method.",
    cardsV2: [
      {
        card: {
          header: {
            title: "About this message",
            imageUrl:
              "https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/i/short-term/release/googlesymbols/info/default/24px.svg",
          },
          sections: [
            {
              header: "Contents",
              widgets: [
                {
                  textParagraph: {
                    text:
                      "🔡 <b>Text</b> which can include " +
                      "hyperlinks 🔗, emojis 😄🎉, and @mentions 🗣️.",
                  },
                },
                {
                  textParagraph: {
                    text:
                      "🖼️ A <b>card</b> to display visual elements" +
                      "and request information such as text 🔤, " +
                      "dates and times 📅, and selections ☑️.",
                  },
                },
                {
                  textParagraph: {
                    text:
                      "👉🔘 An <b>accessory widget</b> which adds " +
                      "a button to the bottom of a message.",
                  },
                },
              ],
            },
            {
              header: "What's next",
              collapsible: true,
              widgets: [
                {
                  textParagraph: {
                    text: "❤️ <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages.reactions/create'>Add a reaction</a>.",
                  },
                },
                {
                  textParagraph: {
                    text:
                      "🔄 <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages/patch'>Update</a> " +
                      "or ❌ <a href='https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/api/reference/rest/v1/spaces.messages/delete'>delete</a> " +
                      "the message.",
                  },
                },
              ],
            },
          ],
        },
      },
    ],
    accessoryWidgets: [
      {
        buttonList: {
          buttons: [
            {
              text: "View documentation",
              icon: { materialIcon: { name: "link" } },
              onClick: {
                openLink: {
                  url: "https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/create-messages",
                },
              },
            },
          ],
        },
      },
    ],
  };
  const parameters = {};

  // Make the request
  const response = Chat.Spaces.Messages.create(
    message,
    parent,
    parameters,
    getHeaderWithAppCredentials(),
  );

  // Handle the response
  console.log(response);
}

To run this sample, replace SPACE_NAME with the ID from the space's name field. You can obtain the ID by calling the ListSpaces() method or from the space's URL.

Add interactive widgets at the bottom of a message

In the first code sample of this guide, the Chat app message displays a clickable button at the bottom of the message, known as an accessory widget. Accessory widgets appear after any text or cards in a message. You can use these widgets to prompt users to interact with your message in many ways, including the following:

  • Rate the accuracy or satisfaction of a message.
  • Report an issue with the message or Chat app.
  • Open a link to related content, such as documentation.
  • Dismiss or snooze similar messages from the Chat app for a specific period of time.

To add accessory widgets, include the accessoryWidgets[] field in the body of your request and specify one or more widgets that you want to include.

The following image shows a Chat app that appends a text message with accessory widgets so that users can rate their experience with the Chat app.

Accessory widget.
Figure 5: A Chat app message with text and accessory widgets.

The following shows the body of the request that creates a text message with two accessory buttons. When a user clicks a button, the corresponding function (such as doUpvote) processes the interaction:

{
  text: "Rate your experience with this Chat app.",
  accessoryWidgets: [{ buttonList: { buttons: [{
    icon: { material_icon: {
      name: "thumb_up"
    }},
    color: { red: 0, blue: 255, green: 0 },
    onClick: { action: {
      function: "doUpvote"
    }}
  }, {
    icon: { material_icon: {
      name: "thumb_down"
    }},
    color: { red: 0, blue: 255, green: 0 },
    onClick: { action: {
      function: "doDownvote"
    }}
  }]}}]
}

Send a message privately

Chat apps can send messages privately so that the message is only visible to a specific user in the space. When a Chat app sends a private message, the message shows a label that notifies the user that the message is only visible to them.

To send a message privately using the Chat API, specify the privateMessageViewer field in the body of your request. To specify the user, you set the value to the User resource that represents the Chat user. You can also use the name field of the User resource, as shown in the following example:

{
  text: "Hello private world!",
  privateMessageViewer: {
    name: "users/USER_ID"
  }
}

To use this sample, replace USER_ID with a unique ID for the user, such as 12345678987654321 or hao@cymbalgroup.com. For more information about specifying users, see Identify and specify Google Chat users.

To send a message privately, you must omit the following in your request:

Send forced notifications or silent messages

When a Chat app sends a message, it can use one of these options to notify users:

  • Force a notification: Chat always sends a push notification to recipients, regardless of their notification settings or Do Not Disturb (DND) status. Inside Chat, the message triggers a bolding and bumping behavior in the recipients' roster or Home list, and shows a badge.
  • Send a silent message: Chat suppresses push notifications for recipients. Inside Chat, the message doesn't trigger a bolding or bumping behavior in the recipients' roster or Home list, and doesn't show a badge. If the silent message is the last message in a conversation, its content isn't shown in the Home snippet.

Whether forced or silent, these messages include a visual indicator that notifies the recipients of the special notification behavior.

Forced notifications and silent messages are only available for Chat apps using app authentication.

Forced notification and silent messages have these limitations:

  • External users: Forced notifications and silent messages don't apply to external users (guests) in a space. External users receive notifications according to their own settings.
  • Mentions: Silent messages don't support mentioning users. If you include a mention in a silent message, it's treated as plain text.
  • Threading: You can't start or reply to a thread with a silent message.
  • Space type: Forced notifications and silent messages aren't supported in direct messages (DMs) or spaces owned by people who don't have a Google Workspace account.
  • Email notifications: Silent messages don't trigger email notifications. Force-notified messages only trigger email notifications if they also include a mention for a specific user.

To force a notification or send a silent message, include the createMessageNotificationOptions field in your request and set notificationType to one of the following:

Value Behavior
NOTIFICATION_TYPE_FORCE_NOTIFY Forces a notification.
NOTIFICATION_TYPE_SILENT Sends the message silently.

The following example shows the JSON body of a request to send a message with a forced notification:

{
  "text": "Critical update: the server is down!",
  "createMessageNotificationOptions": {
    "notificationType": "NOTIFICATION_TYPE_FORCE_NOTIFY"
  }
}

Send a text message on behalf of a user

This section explains how to send messages on behalf of a user using user authentication. With user authentication, the content of the message can only contain text and must omit messaging features that are only available to Chat apps, including card interfaces and interactive widgets. In Developer Preview, you can create messages with cards on behalf of a user. For details, see Create and update cards.

Message sent with user authentication
Figure 3. A Chat app sends a text message on behalf of a user.

To call the CreateMessage() method using user authentication, you must specify the following fields in the request:

  • An authorization scope that supports user authentication for this method. The following sample uses the chat.messages.create scope.
  • The Space resource in which you want to post the message. The authenticated user must be a member of the space.
  • The Message resource to create. To define the content of the message, you must include the text field.

Optionally, you can include the following:

The following code shows an example of how a Chat app can send a text message in a given space on behalf of an authenticated user:

Node.js

chat/client-libraries/cloud/create-message-user-cred.js
import {createClientWithUserCredentials} from './authentication-utils.js';

const USER_AUTH_OAUTH_SCOPES = [
  'https://www.googleapis.com/auth/chat.messages.create',
];

// This sample shows how to create message with user credential
async function main() {
  // Create a client
  const chatClient = await createClientWithUserCredentials(
    USER_AUTH_OAUTH_SCOPES,
  );

  // Initialize request argument(s)
  const request = {
    // Replace SPACE_NAME here.
    parent: 'spaces/SPACE_NAME',
    message: {
      text:
        '👋🌎 Hello world!' +
        'Text messages can contain things like:\n\n' +
        '* Hyperlinks 🔗\n' +
        '* Emojis 😄🎉\n' +
        '* Mentions of other Chat users `@` \n\n' +
        'For details, see the ' +
        '<https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/format-messages' +
        '|Chat API developer documentation>.',
    },
  };

  // Make the request
  const response = await chatClient.createMessage(request);

  // Handle the response
  console.log(response);
}

await main();

Python

chat/client-libraries/cloud/create_message_user_cred.py
from authentication_utils import create_client_with_user_credentials
from google.apps import chat_v1 as google_chat

SCOPES = ["https://www.googleapis.com/auth/chat.messages.create"]

def create_message_with_user_cred():
    # Create a client
    client = create_client_with_user_credentials(SCOPES)

    # Initialize request argument(s)
    request = google_chat.CreateMessageRequest(
        # Replace SPACE_NAME here.
        parent = "spaces/SPACE_NAME",
        message = {
            "text": '👋🌎 Hello world!' +
                    'Text messages can contain things like:\n\n' +
                    '* Hyperlinks 🔗\n' +
                    '* Emojis 😄🎉\n' +
                    '* Mentions of other Chat users `@` \n\n' +
                    'For details, see the ' +
                    '<https://developers.google.com/workspace/chat/format-messages' +
                    '|Chat API developer documentation>.'
        }
    )

    # Make the request
    response = client.create_message(request)

    # Handle the response
    print(response)

create_message_with_user_cred()

Java

chat/client-libraries/cloud/src/main/java/com/google/workspace/api/chat/samples/CreateMessageUserCred.java
import com.google.chat.v1.ChatServiceClient;
import com.google.chat.v1.CreateMessageRequest;
import com.google.chat.v1.Message;

// This sample shows how to create message with user credential.
public class CreateMessageUserCred {

  private static final String SCOPE =
    "https://www.googleapis.com/auth/chat.messages.create";

  public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
    try (ChatServiceClient chatServiceClient =
        AuthenticationUtils.createClientWithUserCredentials(
          ImmutableList.of(SCOPE))) {
      CreateMessageRequest.Builder request = CreateMessageRequest