# Notifications
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Notifications in Mattermost alert you to unread mentions and messages.

## Types of Notifications

#### Email Notifications
These are emails sent to your primary email address for any mentions you receive while offline or inactive.
- Users are offline when they do not have Mattermost open.
- Users are inactive when they have Mattermost open but haven’t performed an action for a set amount of time.
- You can change the email to which these notifications are sent in **Account Settings** > **General** > **Email**.
- You can turn email notifications on or off in **Account Settings** > **Notifications** > **Email Notifications**.

#### Desktop Notifications
These are browser notifications that are by default sent for all activity.
- You can adjust this setting in **Account Settings** > **Notifications** > **Send Desktop Notifications**.
- Channel specific notifications are automatically set to the global default but can be modified in **Channel Settings** > **Notification Preferences** > **Send Desktop Notifications**.
- Desktop notifications are available on Firefox, Safari, and Chrome.


#### Sound Notifications
These accompany each desktop notification by default.
- You can change this setting in **Account Settings** > **Notifications** > **Desktop Notification Sounds**. 


#### Browser Tab Notifications
These appear in the Mattermost tab and inform you of any unread messages and alert you to the number of mentions you have.
- Unread messages are denoted by an asterisk (*) next to the Mattermost icon.
- Mentions and replies are denoted by a red Mattermost icon.
- The total number of unread mentions and replies are shown in brackets next to the Mattermost icon. For example, if you have 3 unread mentions, you’ll see a (3) in the browser tab. 
