# User Groups

User groups in the administration panel are platform-wide groups used to organize users for management purposes. They are distinct from course-level groups (which are created by teachers within a course).

> User groups and [Classes](https://docs.chamilo.org/2.x/administration-guide/admin-guide/sessions/classes) share the same interface. The only difference is the **group type** setting: choose "Class" to create a class (used for bulk session enrollment), or "User group" for general organizational grouping. See [Classes](https://docs.chamilo.org/2.x/administration-guide/admin-guide/sessions/classes) for details on session enrollment.

## Creating a User Group

![The user groups list showing available groups with name, description, and member count](https://3870221420-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FSHilSeDtvDev0n1c7wbJ%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-6d73c37fc9777abff3641395a52eca6185472e31%2Fadmin-user-groups-list.png?alt=media)

1. From the administration panel, navigate to **User groups**
2. Click **Create a group**
3. Enter a **name** and optional **description**
4. Choose the group **visibility**:
   * **Open** — Any user can join
   * **Closed** — Users must be added by an administrator
5. Save

## Adding Members

1. Open a user group
2. Click **Add members**
3. Search for users by name or email
4. Select the users to add
5. Save

## Use Cases

* **Department organization** — Group users by department or team
* **Bulk enrollment** — Add all members of a group to a course or session at once
* **Targeted communication** — Send announcements to specific groups
* **Reporting** — View training progress filtered by group

## Managing Groups

* **Edit** — Change the group name, description, or visibility
* **Manage members** — Add or remove members
* **Delete** — Remove the group (does not delete the member accounts)