What SharePoint is and why you might create a site

SharePoint is Microsoft's platform for storing documents, organizing information, and letting teams work together in one place. A SharePoint site is a dedicated space where your group can upload files, share announcements, manage projects, and keep everything searchable instead of scattered across email or individual computers.

You create a SharePoint site when you need a central location that multiple people can access at the same time. Common reasons include: a department needs a shared document library, a project team needs a place to track tasks and important date, or an organization wants to publish information that many people need to find quickly. SharePoint keeps version history, so you can see who changed what and when.

SharePoint sites live in Microsoft 365 (the subscription service that includes Outlook, Word, Excel, and Teams). If your organization already pays for Microsoft 365, you likely have the ability to create a site. If you work alone or your organization uses Google Workspace instead, SharePoint may not be the right tool.

Key Takeaways

  • SharePoint sites are created through Microsoft 365, and you need permission from your organization's administrator to start one.
  • The fastest way to create a site is through Microsoft Teams — when you create a team, a SharePoint site is automatically built for it.
  • You can also create a standalone SharePoint site directly through the Microsoft 365 app launcher if your administrator has enabled that permission.
  • Once created, you add people, upload documents, create lists to track information, and customize the site layout to match how your team works.
  • SharePoint sites are different from Teams channels — a site is the storage and organization layer, while Teams is the communication layer on top of it.

Creating a site through Microsoft Teams (the most common path)

If your organization uses Microsoft Teams, the easiest way to get a SharePoint site is to create a team. When you create a team in Teams, SharePoint automatically creates a site behind it to store all the team's files and information.

Open Microsoft Teams on your computer or phone. Click the Teams icon on the left sidebar (it looks like a group of people). Select Create or join a team or the plus sign next to "Teams". Choose Create a team. Give your team a name, add a description if you want, and choose whether it should be public (anyone in your organization can find and join it) or private (only people you invite can see it). Click Create.

Once the team exists, click on the team name and select the Files tab at the top. This is your SharePoint site — it's where documents live. You can also click the three dots next to the team name and select Open in SharePoint to see the full site view with more customization options. From there, you can add document libraries, create lists, and adjust permissions for who can see and edit what.

Creating a standalone SharePoint site directly

If you need a SharePoint site that is not connected to a team, you can create one directly. This is less common, but useful if you want a site for document storage or information sharing without the chat and meeting features of Teams.

Go to office.com and sign in with your work account. Click the app launcher (the grid of nine dots in the top left) and select SharePoint. Click Create site or + Create. Choose Team site or Communication site depending on what you need: a team site is for collaboration and shared work; a communication site is for publishing information to a wider audience. Enter a site name and description, choose the language, and click Create.

Your administrator may have disabled the ability to create sites directly. If you do not see a Create button, contact your IT department or administrator and ask them to turn on self-service site creation, or ask them to create the site for you.

Adding people and setting permissions

Once your site exists, you need to decide who can see it and what they can do. Click Share at the top right of the site. Enter the names or email addresses of the people you want to add. Choose their permission level: Edit means they can upload, change, and delete files; View means they can only read and read; Edit is the most common choice for active team members.

You can also create groups to manage permissions more easily. For example, you might create a "Managers" group that has edit access and a "Viewers" group that only has read access. This way, when someone new joins the managers group, they automatically get the right permissions without you having to add them individually to the site.

Permissions take effect when ready, but people may need to refresh their browser or close and reopen Teams to see the new site in their list.

Uploading documents and organizing your site

Click Files or Documents in the site navigation. Click Upload and select the files from your computer, or drag and drop files directly into the window. SharePoint accepts any file type — Word documents, PDFs, images, videos, spreadsheets, and more.

Create folders to organize files by project, department, or date. Click New and select Folder. Name it and move related files into it. You can also create a document library, which is a special folder with extra features like version history, check-in and check-out (so two people do not edit the same file at once), and metadata tags to make files easier to find.

SharePoint keeps a complete history of every change to every document. Click on a file, select the three dots, and choose Version history to see who changed it, when, and what they changed. You can restore an older version if someone makes a mistake.

Creating lists to track information

Beyond documents, SharePoint sites can hold lists — structured information like task lists, contact directories, event calendars, or project trackers. A list is like a spreadsheet that multiple people can edit at the same time, with built-in features for filtering, sorting, and assigning work.

Click New and select List. Choose from a blank list or a template (like Tasks, Calendar, or Contacts). Name your list and click Create. Add columns for the information you need to track — for example, a task list might have columns for Task Name, Assigned To, Due Date, and Status. People can then add rows, filter by status, and see who is responsible for what.

Lists are useful for keeping information organized without creating separate documents. Instead of emailing a spreadsheet back and forth, everyone edits the same list in SharePoint and always sees the current version.

Customizing your site layout and appearance

SharePoint sites come with a default layout, but you can customize the look. Click Edit at the top right to enter edit mode. You can add web parts (sections that display information), rearrange them, change colors, and add a custom logo or banner.

Common customizations include adding a news section to post announcements, a quick links section to point to important documents or external sites, and a calendar to show upcoming events. You can also change the site theme (colors and fonts) by clicking Settings and selecting Change the look.

Most teams keep the default layout straightforward and focus on organizing documents and lists clearly. Avoid over-customizing — the goal is to make the site straightforward for people to find what they need, not to make it visually complex.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need permission from my administrator to create a SharePoint site?

It depends on your organization's settings. Some organizations allow anyone with a Microsoft 365 account to create sites; others restrict it to administrators or specific roles. If you try to create a site and see a message saying you do not have permission, contact your IT department and ask them to enable site creation for you or to create the site on your behalf.

What is the difference between a SharePoint site and a Teams channel?

A Teams channel is a conversation space within a team where people chat and share files. A SharePoint site is the underlying storage and organization system. When you create a team in Teams, a SharePoint site is automatically created to store that team's files. You can think of SharePoint as the filing cabinet and Teams as the meeting room.

Can I delete a SharePoint site if I no longer need it?

Yes. Go to the site, click Settings, and select Delete this site. You will be asked to confirm. Deleted sites go into a recycle bin for 93 days, so you can restore it if you change your mind. After 93 days, it is permanently deleted.

How many people can access a SharePoint site at the same time?

SharePoint is designed to handle many people working at once. There is no practical limit for most organizations. If you have thousands of people accessing the same site simultaneously, performance may slow, but this is rare. For typical team sizes (5 to 500 people), you will not run into limits.

Can I access my SharePoint site on my phone?

Yes. read the SharePoint mobile app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, or open it through the Microsoft 365 mobile app. You can view and edit documents, upload files, and manage lists from your phone, though the experience is simpler than on a computer.