How to Use Zoom Whiteboard in Meetings, Step by Step

Some ideas just don't work as a list of bullet points. Mapping a customer journey, sketching a website layout, planning a launch week: you want to draw boxes and arrows while everyone watches. Zoom Whiteboard gives you a shared canvas that sits right inside the call, so you don't need to swap to another tool halfway through.

I'll take you through starting a board mid-meeting, bringing an old one back, inviting people to edit, and sharing it afterwards, all as Zoom's own help articles describe it. I'll also flag the one thing that catches people out: the button not being there at all.

Opening a new Zoom Whiteboard during a meeting

Zoom's help says whiteboards in a meeting are started from the desktop client. Here's the order it gives:

1. Start a meeting from the Zoom desktop app.
2. Click Whiteboards in the in-meeting controls.
3. Click New Whiteboard.

The board opens in the meeting window, ready for drawing, shapes and notes. Zoom links to a separate page for the editing tools, so I'd spend two minutes clicking around before your first client session rather than discovering the toolbar live.

Bringing back an existing Zoom Whiteboard

You don't have to start from a blank canvas every time. If you drew up a workshop map in an earlier session, pull it back in:

1. Click Whiteboards in the meeting controls.
2. Choose Existing Whiteboards.
3. Pick how to open it. Collaborating gives people edit access, while Presenting opens the board in presentation mode with view access.
4. Click Open Board.
5. When you're finished, click Close Whiteboard at the top of the screen.

There's also an optional tick box that allows persistent access for verified meeting participants after the whiteboard is closed. Think about whether you really want clients to keep seeing a board after the call, especially if it holds half-formed ideas.

Who can draw on a Zoom Whiteboard in your meeting

This is the bit hosts forget to decide. According to Zoom's help, meeting hosts control who and when attendees can create new whiteboards during a meeting, and whiteboards created in a meeting are owned by the host. Opening an existing board in Presenting mode keeps it view-only, which is ideal when you want to walk people through a plan without anyone moving things about.

For a collaborative session, switch to Collaborating. Zoom says there's no fixed limit on how many people can edit a shared whiteboard, although during high network traffic it may limit simultaneous editors dynamically. In plain English: in a very large call, some people may find they can only watch for a moment.

Starting a Zoom Whiteboard from a template

A blank canvas can feel daunting. Zoom's help has an article on creating an in-meeting whiteboard from a template, and a search summary of the official page describes picking a category, searching for the template you want and clicking Use Template. Good starting points for a small business include a simple brainstorm, a flow chart, or a retrospective for your team.

If you hold the same kind of session often, such as a monthly review, ask yourself whether a saved template would stop you rebuilding it every time. Zoom also has an article on managing custom templates if you want to go further.

Sharing a Zoom Whiteboard with people outside the call

Sometimes the board matters more than the meeting. Zoom's help describes a Share button at the top right of the whiteboard window that sends the board to people outside the meeting:

1. Click Share at the top right.
2. Enter contact names, a Zoom Chat channel or email addresses.
3. Use the drop-down arrow beside each entry to set what that person can do.
4. Add a message if you'd like, since it's included in the notification email.
5. Click Share Whiteboard.

Choose permissions carefully. Giving a client edit rights when you only wanted them to look is an easy mistake, and a view-only link keeps your working notes tidy.

Finding your Zoom Whiteboard after the meeting

A summary of Zoom's whiteboard dashboard article says the Whiteboards button in the desktop app opens a dashboard where you can create, open, delete and share boards, and that created whiteboards are saved automatically. The meeting article itself doesn't cover saving or exporting, so I won't give you steps I can't verify. If you need a copy for a client file, check Zoom's current help for export options.

While we're on keeping things, my guide to finding a Zoom recording afterwards covers the recording side. A recording and a whiteboard are separate things, so it's worth checking you've kept both.

If the Zoom Whiteboard button is missing

Don't panic if you can't see Whiteboards in the controls. The usual reasons, based on Zoom's help:

• You're on a phone or browser rather than the desktop client. The meeting steps start in the desktop app.
• Your app is older than the minimum version Zoom lists, so update it.
• Whiteboard hasn't been enabled. Zoom says that if you don't see it in the desktop client, an account admin needs to turn the feature on.
• You're an attendee and the host hasn't given you permission to create new boards.

Zoom Whiteboard ideas for small business calls

Once you've got the buttons sorted, here's how I'd put the canvas to work:

• Sketch a customer journey with one sticky note per touchpoint, then vote on where it leaks.
• Map a few weeks of content on a simple grid and agree owners before the call ends.
• Draw a rough wireframe of a landing page while your designer watches and comments live.

And if you use an AI note-taker alongside it, my thoughts on turning an AI note-taker on are worth a read, because a board and a bot both capture what's said on your call.

Frequently asked questions

How do I start a Zoom Whiteboard in a meeting?

Start a meeting from the Zoom desktop app, click Whiteboards in the in-meeting controls, then click New Whiteboard. It opens in the meeting window.

Why can't I see Whiteboards in Zoom?

Zoom says that if you don't see it in the desktop client, an account admin needs to enable the feature. Check that your app is up to date too.

Who can create a whiteboard during a Zoom meeting?

Zoom's help says hosts control who and when attendees can create new whiteboards, and boards created in a meeting are owned by the host.

How do I share a Zoom Whiteboard with someone who wasn't on the call?

Click Share at the top right of the board, enter names, a Zoom Chat channel or email addresses, set permissions, then click Share Whiteboard.

Can lots of people edit a Zoom Whiteboard at once?

Zoom says there's no fixed limit on editors, but during high network traffic it may limit simultaneous editors dynamically.