How does t.me work?
Once you set a username, Telegram gives you a web address. Both t.me/username and username.t.me work, and opening either on a phone launches the Telegram app straight into a chat with you.
What the link is for
- Putting a contact point on a website, a business card, an email signature or a poster.
- Sending somebody to your account from another platform without explaining how to search.
- Being reachable without giving out your phone number, which is the main reason to have one.
How it behaves
On a phone with Telegram installed, the link hands off to the app and opens the conversation. On a desktop it offers to open the desktop client or continue in the browser. On a device without Telegram it leads to a page explaining what to install, so the link never simply fails.
The same pattern across the platform
| Link | Opens |
|---|---|
| t.me/username | A chat with that account |
| t.me/channelname | That channel |
| t.me/botname | That bot |
| t.me/addstickers/name | A sticker pack, ready to add |
If you would rather not have a public username
You can share a link based on your phone number instead, which works the same way but reveals the number to whoever you give it to. The username route exists precisely so you do not have to make that trade.
Publish the username itself alongside the link, not just the link. People verifying that an account is really yours compare the username, and a shortened or wrapped link hides exactly the part they need to check.