The fastest way to collect registrations for a Zoom webinar

Zoom's built-in registration feature creates a sign-up link automatically when you schedule a webinar. You turn on the registration toggle, set how many people can attend, and Zoom generates a unique URL that you can share by email, on your website, or through social media. People who click the link enter their name and email, and Zoom sends them a confirmation with the webinar details and a separate join link they'll use on the day of the event.

The registration link is different from the join link — this matters because it lets you collect attendee information before the webinar starts, and it gives you control over who gets in. You can also set it to send automatic reminders to registered people before the webinar begins.

Key Takeaways

  • Turn on registration when you schedule your webinar in Zoom, and the platform generates a sign-up link you can share when ready.
  • Registered attendees receive a confirmation email with their join link, separate from the registration link you share publicly.
  • You can require custom questions during registration — for example, job title or company name — to screen attendees or gather data.
  • Zoom sends automatic reminder emails to registered people before the webinar if you enable that setting.
  • Registration data appears in your webinar report after the event, showing who registered, who attended, and how long they stayed.

How to turn on registration when scheduling a webinar

Log into your Zoom account and go to Meetings in the left sidebar. Click Schedule a Meeting. Fill in the topic name, date, time, and duration as usual. Scroll down to find the Registration toggle and turn it on.

Once registration is on, Zoom shows you options for what information to collect. By default it asks for first name, last name, and email address. You can add custom questions — for instance, "What is your job title?" or "Which product are you most interested in?" — by clicking Add Question. Each custom question can be required or optional.

Below the questions, you'll see a field labeled Approval Type. Choose Automatic if you want Zoom to send the join link when ready after someone registers. Choose Manual if you want to review registrations and approve them yourself before sending the join link. Most webinars use automatic approval unless you're limiting attendance to a specific group.

Finding and sharing your registration link

After you schedule the webinar, Zoom displays the registration link on the webinar details page. Look for a button or link labeled Copy Registration URL or Registration Link. Click it to copy the URL to your clipboard.

Paste this link into emails, your website, social media posts, or anywhere you want people to sign up. The link looks like zoom.us/webinar/register/[unique code]. Each webinar has its own unique registration link, so you can track which webinar each person registered for if you're running multiple events.

Do not share the join link (the one that starts with zoom.us/j/) before the webinar. That's the link attendees receive in their confirmation email, and sharing it publicly means anyone with the link can join, even if they didn't register.

Setting up automatic reminder emails

When you turn on registration, Zoom can send reminder emails to registered attendees before the webinar starts. To enable this, scroll down on the webinar details page and look for Email Notification or Reminder settings. Check the box to send reminders.

Zoom typically sends one reminder 24 hours before the webinar and another 1 hour before it starts. The reminder includes the join link and webinar details. You cannot customize the reminder text — Zoom sends a standard template — but you can turn reminders off if you prefer to contact attendees yourself.

Adding custom registration questions to screen attendees

Custom questions let you collect information beyond name and email. When you schedule the webinar and registration is on, click Add Question under the registration section. Type your question and choose whether it's required or optional.

Common custom questions include company name, job title, department, or "How did you hear about this webinar?" You can also ask yes-or-no questions or multiple-choice questions. Mark a question as required if you need that information from everyone; mark it optional if you want to collect it but won't reject someone for skipping it.

If you set approval type to Manual, you'll see the answers to custom questions when you review registrations. This lets you approve or deny registrations based on the answers — for instance, you might only approve people from certain companies or industries.

Viewing registration data and attendee reports

After the webinar ends, Zoom creates a report showing who registered, who attended, and how long they stayed. To view this report, go to Meetings, find the webinar in your list, and click on it. Look for a Reports tab or Participants section.

The report shows each registered person's name, email, registration time, and whether they joined the live webinar. If you asked custom questions, those answers appear in the report too. You can read this data as a CSV file to use in email lists, spreadsheets, or other tools.

This data is useful for follow-up — you can email attendees with a recording or next steps, or you can segment your list to contact only people who attended versus those who registered but didn't join.

Changing registration settings after you schedule

You can edit registration settings after you schedule the webinar, up until it starts. Go to Meetings, click on the webinar, and click Edit. Scroll to the registration section to change the approval type, add or remove custom questions, or turn registration off entirely.

If you turn registration off after people have already registered, those registrations are deleted and Zoom does not send them a notification. If you turn it back on, the registration link changes, so anyone with the old link will see an error. For this reason, it's best to finalize your registration settings before you start promoting the webinar.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I change the registration link after I share it?

No. The registration link is permanent for that webinar. If you turn registration off and back on, Zoom creates a new link. Share the link only after you've finalized your registration settings, or you'll have to reshare a new URL.

What happens if someone registers twice for the same webinar?

Zoom treats each registration as separate. The person receives two confirmation emails with two join links. When they join the webinar, Zoom counts them as one attendee. You'll see both registrations in your report, so you may want to note duplicates when reviewing your data.

Can I send a custom message to registered attendees instead of Zoom's reminder?

Zoom's reminder emails use a standard template you cannot edit. If you need to send a custom message, turn off Zoom's reminders and send your own email to the registered attendee list. You can read the registration list as a CSV file and use it in your email tool.

Do I need registration if my webinar is small or internal?

No. Registration is optional. For small meetings or internal events, you can schedule a webinar without registration and share the join link directly. Registration is most useful when you want to collect attendee information, send reminders, or limit who can join.

What if I want to approve registrations manually but I'm getting too many to review?

Switch to automatic approval and use custom questions instead. For example, ask "What is your company?" and then filter your attendee report afterward to see who came from which organizations. This lets you collect screening information without the manual review step.