- Three layers, set up in order
- Layer one: install the workspace
- Layer two: point alert rules at Slack
- Layer three: link your own account
- When alerts don't turn up
- One channel or one per project?
- Keeping the error channel useful
- Other error trackers with Slack alerts
- My advice for a first Sentry alert
- Frequently asked questions
To connect Sentry to Slack, open Settings, Integrations, Slack in sentry.io, click Add Workspace and allow access. You'll need Sentry owner, manager or admin permissions. Then add Slack as an action on your alert rules, pick a channel, and link your own account with /sentry link to get personal notifications.
Three layers, set up in order
Sentry's Slack connection works in three layers, and each one unlocks something different. The workspace install lets Sentry talk to Slack at all. Alert rules decide which errors post where. And linking your own identity turns on personal notifications and the buttons in each alert. Most missing-alert problems come from skipping one layer.
Layer one: install the workspace
- In sentry.io, open Settings, Integrations, Slack, and click Add Workspace.
- In the authentication window, pick the Slack workspace from the dropdown and select Allow.
- For any private channel that should get alerts, invite the bot, for example with @sentry.
Installing needs Sentry owner, manager or admin permissions. Once it's installed, the integration is available to every project in your Sentry organization, so you only do this once.
Layer two: point alert rules at Slack
After installing, Slack becomes an action option for alerts. In an alert rule, add Slack as an action, choose the workspace, then a channel or user. You can add optional tags and text, such as mentions, so the right person gets pinged.
When you save the alert, Sentry validates its access to the channel, and you can send a test notification. Do it every time: it's the quickest way to confirm the bot can post where you think it can.
Error alerts in Slack include Resolve, Archive and Assignee actions, so someone can triage an issue without leaving the channel.
Layer three: link your own account
Personal notifications need your Slack identity linked to your Sentry account. Type /sentry link in Slack, then manage what you receive under User Settings, Notifications in Sentry. For a team, type /sentry link team [organization_slug] in the Slack channel to enable team alert notifications there.
When alerts don't turn up
| Symptom | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| No alerts in a private channel | The bot isn't in the channel | Invite it with @sentry |
| No personal notifications | Slack identity not linked | Type /sentry link |
| Saving fails with Requests to slack were rate limited | Slack rate limit during validation | Enter the channel or user ID as well as the name |
| Install option missing | Not enough Sentry permissions | Ask an owner, manager or admin |
Sentry Docs on Slack sum up the trap: personal notifications and Slack actions do nothing until you link your Slack identity with /sentry link, and private channels get no alerts until the bot is invited. The rate-limit message on save looks alarming, but Sentry says entering the channel or user ID gets around it. Adding the bot works much like adding a person to a Slack channel.
One channel or one per project?
Because the integration covers every project in your organization once it's installed, you've got a choice about where alerts land. A small team with one or two apps can usually live with a single errors channel. Once you've got several projects owned by different people, it's worth giving each team its own channel and pointing that team's alert rules at it. That way nobody has to scroll past someone else's errors to find their own, and the /sentry link team command lets each team switch on its own alerts in its own space. If you're not sure, start with one channel and split it when it gets noisy.
Keeping the error channel useful
An error channel that posts everything gets muted within a week, and then it's no use to anyone. Use alert rules to send only the issues someone will act on to a shared channel, use mentions for the owner, and leave the rest to personal notifications. The Resolve and Archive buttons help, because clearing an alert from Slack takes seconds.
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Other error trackers with Slack alerts
Rollbar's Slack notifications can include actions to assign, resolve, mute or reopen items, which need your Slack account tied to your Rollbar user. BugSnag lets you configure multiple Slack integrations on a project to send different notifications to separate channels. For a wider look at the tools engineering teams lean on, see my roundup of developer productivity tools.
My advice for a first Sentry alert
Install the workspace, build one alert rule for the errors that matter most, send it to a single channel and fire a test notification before you walk away. Then get everyone who'll triage issues to type /sentry link, so the Resolve and Assignee buttons work for them. Add more rules only when a real gap shows up.
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Frequently asked questions
Who can install Sentry's Slack integration?
A Sentry owner, manager or admin.
Why are my private channel alerts missing?
The Slack app has to be added to the channel, for instance with @sentry.
How do I get personal Sentry notifications in Slack?
Link your accounts with /sentry link, then manage them under User Settings, Notifications.
Can I resolve issues from Slack?
Yes. Error alerts include Resolve, Archive and Assignee actions.
What if saving the alert says Slack rate limited me?
Enter the channel or user ID as well as the name.
