Direct Answer: Slack marks you “away” when it stops seeing recent activity or when your Slack client disconnects (sleep, locked screen, closed tab, network changes). You can reduce auto‑away by keeping Slack running, preventing sleep/lock during work hours (within policy), and avoiding browser tab-suspending and aggressive battery modes. If every device is asleep or offline, you can’t stay “active” locally—only a cloud-based presence scheduler can maintain presence without a running client.

How to Stop Slack Auto-Away on Mac, Windows, and Web

If you’ve searched “how to stop Slack auto away” in a panic, you’re in the right place.

If you searched for how to keep Slack always active, see the quick guide: how to keep Slack always active.

You’re working, your Slack window is open, and somehow your status still flips to “away.” A teammate pings you with “you around?” or you notice your green dot is gray right when your manager is online.

This guide explains:

• How Slack auto-away actually works
• The Mac, Windows, and browser settings you can adjust
• Quick but fragile workarounds (and why to be careful)
• When only a cloud-based presence scheduler can keep you reliably active during work hours

If your real problem is “I need to automate Slack status so expectations are clear” (calendar, focus time, DND), see the guide on automate Slack status.

If you want the bigger-picture version of this, the main article on how to keep your Slack status active all day zooms out. Here, we’ll stay tactical.

What Slack Auto-Away Actually Is

Slack auto-away is the system that flips your presence from active (green dot) to away (hollow or gray icon) when:

• Your Slack client loses its connection (laptop sleeps, tab closes, network drops)
• There’s been no activity from your device for a while
• You manually set yourself to away

Slack doesn’t publish an exact inactivity timer, but in practice:

• After several minutes of no keyboard/mouse input, your presence can change
• If your OS locks the screen or goes to sleep, the Slack client disconnects and you go away

Status text (like “Lunch, back at 1:00”) is separate—you can have a custom status while “away” or be “active” with no status at all.

To meaningfully “stop Slack auto away,” you have to work with both:

• Slack’s own behavior
• Your operating system’s sleep and lock settings

Step 1: Fix the Obvious Slack Settings

Before you start changing OS settings, check a few basics.

Make sure Slack is actually running

It sounds obvious, but:

• Closing the Slack window or tab can disconnect you
• Some “minimize to tray” settings behave differently on Mac vs Windows

On desktop:

• Keep the Slack app running (you can hide it, but don’t quit).
• In app preferences, make sure it starts automatically if that helps you.

On web:

• Keep at least one Slack tab open and signed in.
• Disable aggressive “close tabs after x minutes” extensions if you’re using them.

Don’t set yourself to “away” manually

If you’ve ever clicked your profile and set yourself to away:

• Slack will respect that choice until you change it back.
• Auto-away fixes won’t help if you’re explicitly telling Slack “I’m away.”

Set your status back to “Active” and clear any stale custom statuses that might confuse people.

Step 2: Adjust Mac Settings to Reduce Auto-Away

On macOS, the main culprits are sleep and display settings.

Tweak energy saver and lock settings

Open System Settings → Lock Screen and look at:

• “Turn display off on battery when inactive”
• “Turn display off on power adapter when inactive”

During work hours, you can:

• Increase these timers so short breaks don’t immediately lock your machine
• Keep the display on longer when plugged in

Then check System Settings → Battery:

• Ensure your Mac doesn’t sleep aggressively while the display is on
• Avoid modes that put the machine to sleep after just a few minutes

Always stay within your company’s security policies. If IT enforces specific lock times, their settings may override yours.

Keep Slack allowed in the background

If you’re using the desktop app:

• Don’t routinely force-quit Slack between tasks
• Let it run in the background so it can maintain a connection

This won’t fully “stop Slack auto away,” but it reduces avoidable status flips caused by Mac settings.

Step 3: Adjust Windows Settings to Reduce Auto-Away

On Windows, you’re dealing with display, sleep, and sometimes corporate policies.

Tweak power and sleep settings

Go to Settings → System → Power & battery:

• On “Screen,” increase “turn off after” times during work hours
• On “Sleep,” increase “put the device to sleep after” times

If you’re plugged in at a desk, it’s often reasonable to:

• Keep the screen on longer while on AC power
• Extend sleep timers so brief breaks don’t disconnect Slack

Again, if your company enforces stricter policies, you may only be able to adjust these slightly.

Check lock screen and sign-in requirements

In Settings → Accounts → Sign-in options:

• See how quickly Windows requires a password after sleep or screen off
• Match this with your organization’s security guidelines

The less often your machine locks and sleeps during normal work, the less frequently Slack will see you as gone.

Step 4: Reduce Auto-Away in Slack Web (Browser)

If you primarily use Slack in the browser:

• Keep at least one Slack tab open
• Avoid extensions that aggressively suspend or discard background tabs
• Pin Slack so you don’t accidentally close it

Some browsers or extensions “freeze” inactive tabs to save resources. When that happens:

• Slack’s connection can drop
• You silently drift into “away” even though your browser is open

If you suspect this, temporarily disable tab-suspender extensions for your Slack workspace and see if presence stabilizes.

Quick but Fragile Workarounds (Use With Care)

If you’re still flipping to away too often, you’ll hear suggestions like:

• Mouse jigglers
• Auto-move scripts
• “Just play a long YouTube video with Slack open”

These can work in the short term, but they have trade‑offs.

Mouse jigglers and scripts

Mouse jigglers—hardware or software—fake input so your OS never goes idle.

Pros:

• Simple to understand
• Often cheap or free

Cons:

• Keep your laptop constantly awake and sometimes warm
• Can conflict with security and acceptable use policies
• Look bad in audits if IT notices them

Before you go this route, read the breakdown in Slack mouse jiggler alternatives and the security‑focused piece on why not all “stay online” tools are safe.

Browser and video tricks

Some people:

• Keep a video playing in a corner
• Use browser extensions to auto‑refresh Slack

These can be brittle:

• Videos can pause if the tab is muted, minimized, or loses focus
• Extensions often need broad permissions, which raises privacy questions

If you’re worried about what apps can see, the article on keeping Slack active without giving apps access to everything is worth your time.

A More Reliable Fix: Schedule-Based Slack Presence from the Cloud

If you’ve tuned your settings and still feel like you’re fighting auto‑away all day, it may be time for a different approach.

Instead of trying to stop Slack auto-away with hacks on your laptop, you can:

• Decide when you’re supposed to be around
• Let a cloud‑based tool keep you active during that window
• Stop worrying about every micro‑idle or lid close

This is the pattern cloud-based presence schedulers use (for example, Idle Pilot).

At a high level:

1. You connect your Slack account to the tool (no desktop install, no workspace bot).
2. You set a schedule that matches your working hours—say, 9:00–17:30.
3. A cloud worker keeps your presence active during that window, even if your laptop sleeps.

Benefits:

• Works on Mac, Windows, and web with the same setup
• No mouse jigglers or scripts on your corporate device
• No need to keep Slack open on your phone just to stay green

If you’re weighing this against DIY fixes, compare trade-offs based on policy fit, privacy, and whether the solution depends on local installs.

When to Use Automation vs When to Fix Culture

There’s an uncomfortable truth here:

• If your team expects you to be constantly green in Slack, that’s a cultural issue, not a purely technical one.

Whenever it’s safe to do so, it’s worth:

• Clarifying what “responsive enough” means with your manager
• Sharing your working hours in your profile and calendar
• Using honest statuses (“Heads down, replies slower”) instead of chasing perfection

A schedule-based tool is most helpful when:

• You do work regular, honest hours
• Auto-away is causing misunderstanding or anxiety
• You’re stuck on a locked‑down device or with aggressive sleep policies

It’s a bridge between “I’m working” and “Slack thinks I’m gone,” not a way to fake working while you’re truly offline.

For a more human look at this, the culture piece on remote work without paranoia is a good companion read.

Conclusion: Stop Wrestling Auto-Away Every Hour

To recap:

• Slack auto-away is driven by client connection and device activity.
• On Mac, Windows, and web, you can reduce it by adjusting sleep, lock, and browser behaviors.
• Quick hacks like mouse jigglers and scripts work—but come with security and reputational risks.
• For many people, a small, cloud-based helper is a calmer way to stay active during real work hours, especially on locked‑down machines.

If you want a deeper, strategy‑level view, check the main guide to keeping your Slack status active all day and the broader article on Slack status automation for remote teams.

When you’re ready to move beyond duct‑tape fixes, compare options based on policy fit, permissions, and whether they can be scheduled and paused reliably.

FAQ: Stopping Slack Auto-Away

Why does Slack keep setting me to away when I’m active?

Usually because Slack is losing its connection or not seeing activity:

• Your computer may be sleeping or locking quickly.
• Your browser might be suspending the Slack tab.
• The Slack app might be quitting instead of running in the background.

Fixing those first often stabilizes presence.

Can I completely disable Slack auto-away?

There’s no official “disable auto-away” switch. Slack will always reflect some combination of activity and connection state. What you can do is:

• Keep at least one client connected reliably.
• Tune sleep and lock settings within policy limits.
• Use a cloud-based presence tool to keep you active during working hours even if your devices disconnect.

Are mouse jigglers safe to use with Slack?

They might work technically, but they’re often a bad idea:

• They can violate acceptable use or security policies.
• They rely on physical or software tricks that are easy to spot.
• They keep your laptop awake continuously, which isn’t great for hardware or battery.

If you’re tempted, read the detailed comparison in Slack mouse jiggler alternatives first.

How do I keep Slack active when my laptop is closed?

You generally can’t keep a local Slack client active when the laptop is fully asleep and the lid is closed. To stay active in that scenario, you need something running in the cloud—for example, an account‑level tool that maintains presence on your behalf according to your schedule.