--- title: "Accept and Reply to Chat Messages" slug: "accept-and-reply-to-chat-messages" description: "Learn how to accept and reply to chat messages from Customers within Gladly. Learn more in Gladly Help Docs." updated: 2026-02-27T08:16:23Z published: 2026-02-27T08:16:23Z --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.gladly.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Accept and Reply to Chat Messages When [Chat](https://help.gladly.com/docs/what-is-glad-app) routes an incoming chat to you, you may see a green notification banner at the top of your screen, with the Customer’s name and a short preview of their message. ![Incoming message from Logan Webb asking about shipping policy details.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/7047b671-c4f2-4df0-bb0a-b9b511fd2452/Images/Documentation/chat Notification banner (2).png) ## Accept an incoming chat request 1. From the green notification banner, click **Accept**. This will then take you to the Customer's Profile. The [Self-Service Handoff](/product-docs/docs/self-service-handoff) provides insight into what the Customer searched for, including which page they decided to start chat provide you context and the opportunity to provide a more personalized response.![User Katie B seeks help in the Chat after searching for assistance.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/7047b671-c4f2-4df0-bb0a-b9b511fd2452/Images/Documentation/incomingchat.png) 2. The Chat Composer will automatically pop up and ready for you to start chatting with the Customer. 3. When you finish your reply, click **Send**. You can stay on the Customer Profile and wait for them to reply or navigate away to handle other Customer requests on your My Customer list. - **If you stay** on the Customer Profile, you’ll need to watch the Conversation Timeline for any new messages from the Customer. When the Customer replies, repeat step 2 until you’re ready to end the Chat. - **If you navigate away** from the Customer Profile, you’ll see a green notification banner appear on the top of your screen when the Customer replies, prompting you to either **Dismiss** the notification or **Reply** to the Customer. ![User inquiry about placing an order in a chat interface.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/7047b671-c4f2-4df0-bb0a-b9b511fd2452/Images/Documentation/chat Notification banner chat reply.png) > [!NOTE] > Click 'Next' to receive more Messaging Customers > > The number of Messaging Customers (e.g., SMS, chat, Instagram Messaging, etc.) you're automatically routed depends on the standard messaging capacity your Administrator has set. You must click Next to receive more Messaging Customers beyond the standard capacity until the maximum number of Messaging Customers is met. > [!WARNING] > Chat character limit > > Each chat message can have up to 2048 characters. ### **Reply to an active chat** If you leave an active chat with a Customer and the Customer replies, you will see a green notification banner to **Dismiss** and **Reply** to the chat. Click **Reply** to return to the Customer's Profile and continue the chat. ### **Dismiss an active chat** If you click **Dismiss** on the chat reply notification banner, it will close. Ignoring the banner for 30 seconds will also dismiss the notification. However, you are still responsible for replying to the Customer promptly until the chat session ends mutually. ## End and close a chat Once you’ve finished helping a Customer, the next step is to [end the chat](https://help.gladly.com/docs/next-and-close-next-button-behavior#end-close-) session. A chat can end in one of two ways: - Click End Chat on the top right of the **Chat Composer**. The chat ends, but the Conversation remains open. - The chat session [auto-ends](https://help.gladly.com/docs/messaging-session-auto-end-threshold-time) because the Customer didn't respond after a specific time****— the timer begins afresh each time you send the Customer a new message. - A chat can automatically end, but the Conversation remains open. The Conversation Timeline is also updated if a chat automatically ends. ![Chat interface showing customer inquiry and response time notification for support.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/7047b671-c4f2-4df0-bb0a-b9b511fd2452/Images/Documentation/chat-auto-ended-conversation-timeline-in-gladly-1024x210.png) To close the chat and end the Conversation, click **End & Close**. > [!NOTE] > **Close Conversations that have timed out** > > - If you have a Conversation that has timed out due to no response from the Customer, think about closing the Conversation. If the Customer reaches out again at a later time, it will create a new Conversation. > - Administrators can [control the length of time](https://help.gladly.com/docs/when-does-chat-automatically-end-if-the-customer-stops-responding) a chat Conversation auto-ends (but not auto-close) if the Customer stops responding. ### Customer ends chat For a Customer, a chat ends if: - They leave [Chat](https://help.gladly.com/docs/what-is-glad-app) because they no longer need or they leave your website. - You click [End](https://help.gladly.com/docs/next-and-close-next-button-behavior#end-close) to end the chat. A chat can also [end automatically](https://help.gladly.com/docs/messaging-session-auto-end-threshold-time) if there are no additional messages from the Customer, but the Conversation remains open. Regardless of how the chat ends, the Conversation must still be closed. ### Customer abandons the chat When a Customer leaves or [abandons the chat](https://help.gladly.com/docs/configure-chat-session-settings), typically by closing the browser tab or browser window that they are using to Chat, you’ll see a “Customer left the chat" message on the Conversation Timeline and move to the *Waiting* status. The Customer will see the message: “The chat has ended. Send a new message to restart chat” on the Chat widget. > [!NOTE] > Who ows the Conversation when chat has been abandoned multuple times? > > Only the most recent Agent who was routed the Conversation at the time chat was abandoned will see the Conversation in *Waiting* status. ![Chat interface showing customer leaving the conversation after thanking Julie.](https://cdn.us.document360.io/7047b671-c4f2-4df0-bb0a-b9b511fd2452/Images/Documentation/customer%20left%20the%20chat.png) If the Customer sends a new message once chat has ended, they will be routed to another available Agent and moves from *Waiting* to *Open* status. If the Customer leaves the chat, proceed to add the Conversation Topic (if required) and add your Notes before you close the Conversation. Receive the next Chat Customer waiting by clicking **Next**. ### Decline an incoming chat request There are two ways chats can be classified as "declined" in Gladly: 1. By clicking **Decline** from the notification banner. 2. Waiting 30 seconds without accepting the chat. When a chat is declined, it is rerouted to another Agent. You'll continue to be routed to other chats regardless of whether you miss or decline previous ones unless you change your [Availability](https://help.gladly.com/docs/set-your-channel-Availability-to-help-customers) status. The time between declining/missing a chat and receiving another one depends on the Routing delay for the [next message](/docs/delay-routing-of-next-message) setting. ## File attachments Customers can attach and send files through [Chat](https://help.gladly.com/docs/what-is-glad-app/) up to 50MB. You can also paste attachments/images using 'Ctrl-V' or 'Cmd-V.'