---
key: set-up-ticket-queues
title: Set up ticket queues
audience: staff
section: settings/communications
routes: ["/settings/communications/ticketing/queues"]
permissions: ["communications.ticket.queue.manage"]
features: ["communications.ticketing"]
since: 0.0.1
updated: 0.0.1
status: published
summary: Create the queues support tickets wait in, link each to a support inbox, choose who can see it, and decide whether Nova assigns new tickets on its own and what happens when nobody fits.
keywords: [ticket queue, support queue, help desk team, round robin, auto assign tickets, default assignee, overflow, fallback queue]
related: [turn-on-ticket-creation-for-a-support-inbox, set-up-automatic-ticket-assignment, set-up-ticket-request-types, triage-a-ticket]
---

In the sidebar, open **Settings**, then choose **Ticketing** under **Communications**, then choose **Queues** in the ticketing menu. The page address is `/settings/communications/ticketing/queues`. The **Queue policy editor** is on the left and every queue is listed on the right.

## Before you start

- A queue is where a group of tickets waits for your team. A support inbox needs a default queue before it can go live; see [[turn-on-ticket-creation-for-a-support-inbox]].
- Your role needs permission to manage queues. Without it **Create queue**, **Update queue**, **Deactivate** and **Activate** stay greyed out.
- This page does not add people to a queue. Each queue shows how many members it has.

## Steps

1. Press **New queue**.
2. Type a **Queue key**, a short name with no spaces such as `service`, and a **Queue label**, the name your team sees.
3. Under **Default inbox**, pick the support mailbox whose new email should land here, or leave **No default inbox**.
4. Choose the **Visibility scope**: **Members only** or **Organization visible**.
5. Choose the **Assignment mode**: **Manual triage** (the team picks tickets up), **Default assignee** (one owner, picked under **Default assignee**), **Round robin**, **Skill based**, **Capacity balanced** or **Skill + capacity**.
6. Tick **Auto-assignment active** so Nova assigns new tickets with that mode. Left unticked, the team assigns by hand.
7. Choose the **Overflow behavior** for when nobody fits: **Manual review**, **Best effort**, or **Fallback queue** with the backup queue picked under **Fallback queue**.
8. Under **Queue skill fit**, tick **Required** or **Preferred** next to any skill. Required skills limit who can get the tickets; preferred skills only put some people first.
9. Press **Create queue**. Nova confirms with the new queue's name.

To change a queue, press **Edit policy** on it, change the fields and press **Update queue**. The button reads **Saved** for a moment.

## What you see

- Each queue shows its label with **Default** on the organization's main queue and **Active** or **Inactive**, then its key, who can see it, how many members it has, its assignment mode, its default inbox and how many tickets are open in it.
- **Deactivate** takes a queue out of use straight away, without asking. **Activate** brings it back. An inactive queue cannot be picked as a request type's queue.
- A queue in **Default assignee** mode also names its owner.

## If something looks different

- **Queue skill fit** is missing: your role cannot see assignment settings. It reads **Define at least one assignment skill before using skill-aware assignment.** until someone creates skills; see [[set-up-automatic-ticket-assignment]].
- The save is refused over the fallback queue: pick one under **Fallback queue**, and make sure it is active and is not the same queue.
- Tickets are not assigned on their own although a mode is chosen: tick **Auto-assignment active**, and check on the **Assignment** page that the queue's people are **Available** and under their limits.
- A new queue's inbox still says it has no default queue: open the inbox's **Setup** page again after saving the queue.
- You land on Email Accounts or a no-access page instead: ticketing is not part of your plan, or your role cannot see ticketing settings.

[[route:/settings/communications/ticketing/queues|Open Queues]]