3 Ways to Activate Users in Slack

New hires land in Slack, but their accounts sit inactive until you flip the switch. When deadlines pile up, hunting for the right toggle can slow the whole channel to a crawl.

This guide breaks down three reliable ways to activate users, directly in the workspace, in bulk, or through automated provisioning, so you can grant access fast and keep conversations flowing.

Table of Contents

• Use Slack's UI
• Use Torii
• Use Slack's API

Use Slack’s UI

Reactivating a deactivated member happens in Slack’s workspace settings.

Step 1. Open the member list

• On desktop or in a browser, click your workspace name in the top-left corner.
• Choose Settings & administration Manage members.

Slack shows everyone in the workspace.

Step 2. Switch to the deactivated view

• Above the member table, click the drop-down that defaults to All members.
• Pick Deactivated.

Only inactive accounts appear, so the list is quicker to scan.

Step 3. Find the right person

• Scroll or use the search bar to locate the member you want back online.

If the list is long, typing part of an email address helps.

Step 4. Reactivate

• Hover over the person’s row and click the Activate or Reactivate button on the far right.
• Read the confirmation pop-up, then click Activate.

Slack emails the user to let them know they’re back in.

Step 5. Double-check

• Switch the filter back to All members.
• You should see the user listed as Active.

If they’re not, refresh Slack and look again.

Done. The member keeps their messages and channels and can sign in as soon as the email arrives.

Use Torii

Skip manual changes in Slack and let Torii handle new user activation. This SaaS management hub tracks licenses, syncs integrations, and automates onboarding, offboarding, spend reviews, and other routine chores.

Route the task through Torii and the process runs on its own. After you set a trigger (a hire, a departure, or a contract renewal) the matching action fires with no one touching a keyboard. Multiply that by every repeat request and the saved minutes pile up.

To turn on a user in Slack directly from Torii, walk through the steps below:

1. Sign up for Torii

Contact Torii, and request a complimentary two-week proof-of-concept.

2. Connect your Slack account to Torii

After your tenant is activated, hook up your existing Slack workspace to Torii. Here are the instructions for the Slack integration.

3. Create a Torii workflow for Slack

Inside Torii, open the Workflows tab, choose your trigger, and add the action that activates the user in Slack. From that moment on, every time the trigger criteria are met, Slack is updated automatically.

Use Slack’s API

These steps show how to turn a deactivated Slack account back on with the SCIM API.

1. Get the right access token

• Create or pick a Slack app that already has the admin scope properly set for SCIM.
• From that app’s settings, grab the OAuth token that starts with xoxp- and carries the scim:write scope.

2. Look up the user’s SCIM ID

GET https://api.slack.com/scim/v1/Users?filter=email%20eq%20"[email protected]" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer xoxp-your-token"

• The JSON response returns any user profiles that match the email you passed in the query.
• Copy the id field for the user you plan to reactivate, and keep it handy for the next call.

3. Reactivate the account

PATCH https://api.slack.com/scim/v1/Users/U012ABCDEF \
-H "Authorization: Bearer xoxp-your-token" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"active": true}'

• Replace U012ABCDEF with the SCIM user ID you just copied from the lookup response earlier.
• A 200 OK with the updated user object means the account is active again immediately.

4. Confirm the change

GET https://api.slack.com/scim/v1/Users/U012ABCDEF \
-H "Authorization: Bearer xoxp-your-token"

• Check that "active"</b>: true now appears in the response when you pull the latest user record.
• If rate limited (HTTP 429), wait the number of seconds shown in the Retry-After header and try again.

Done. The user can sign back in right away.

Torii for SaaS Management

Looking to sharpen your SaaS Management skills and see tangible results? Torii’s SaaS Management Platform brings Finance, IT, and Security together, connecting your organization and helping you accomplish more:

• Uncover shadow apps: AI continuously scans your stack and flags unapproved tools the moment they appear.
• Cut waste: Reclaim budget by shutting down idle seats and duplicate services before they silently drain another quarter’s funds.
• Simplify onboarding and offboarding: Automated joiner and leaver workflows save hours, prevent mistakes, and give every employee the right access from day one.
• Stay ahead of renewals: Timely reminders land months ahead of expiry, letting you renegotiate or cancel contracts instead of paying by default.

Torii gives Finance, IT, and Security one shared view of every app and license, so decisions get faster.

Get the full story and schedule a live demo with our team today at Torii to see it firsthand.