How to sync a PagerDuty schedule with a Slack user group

Your schedule already lives in PagerDuty. Your teammates still need a dependable way to find and mention the current responder in Slack.

OnCallManager can connect a PagerDuty schedule to a Slack user group such as @platform-oncall. Schedule edits and overrides stay in PagerDuty; OnCallManager periodically updates the group's current members. You do not need to recreate the rotation in OnCallManager.

Watch the 55-second demo. It uses our business demo accounts on an isolated test schedule, including an override and return to scheduled coverage. Waiting time is omitted and labeled.

Before you connect

• Use a paid Slack plan with user groups. Your workspace administrator may need to approve installation and user-group access.
• Have access to the PagerDuty schedule you want to connect and permission to authorize the integration.
• Ensure each responder's PagerDuty email address matches their Slack account email.
• Choose a dedicated user-group handle. If you choose an existing group, its membership will be managed by this schedule; review the current members before enabling sync.

OnCallManager costs $50/month for unlimited users and rotations after a 14-day trial with no credit card required. This is an additional subscription alongside PagerDuty and Slack. It does not replace your PagerDuty subscription.

1. Install OnCallManager in Slack

Open the integration page and select Add to Slack. Choose the intended workspace and review the requested permissions. Open OnCallManager's Home tab after installation.

If App Home asks for a reinstall, ask a workspace admin to complete it. PagerDuty matching needs Slack email-lookup access. You do not need to enable optional Slack conversation access to sync a schedule.

2. Connect an existing PagerDuty schedule

Select Connect PagerDuty and complete authorization in PagerDuty. Return to App Home and choose Add PagerDuty Sync. Select your PagerDuty schedule, enter the Slack usergroup handle and choose Enable. Notification channels are optional; leave them empty during your initial test.

Start with one schedule and a dedicated group so you can check the result before expanding. A PagerDuty schedule can have one active sync connection in your workspace; choose an unlinked schedule for a separate demo.

3. Verify the actual Slack group

Wait for a successful sync, then compare the current responders in PagerDuty with the Slack group's members. Do not treat a successful authorization or a newly created schedule link as proof that membership has updated.

At the next handoff, repeat the comparison. To test an override, use a dedicated test schedule and confirm that the replacement responder appears after synchronization. Keep production coverage intact while testing.

Sync is periodic and can be delayed by API errors. When a sync warning appears, verify the current responder in PagerDuty while resolving it.

Troubleshooting

No schedules appear: verify that the connected PagerDuty account can read the intended schedule. Close the dialog and retry after correcting access.

Responders cannot be matched: compare the affected users' email addresses in PagerDuty and Slack. An unmapped user prevents a membership update; existing members are retained, so a stale group is not evidence of current coverage.

Slack permissions are missing: ask your workspace admin to review the app's required permissions and reinstall if App Home requests it. Confirm that the Slack plan supports user groups.

The schedule is empty: an intentionally empty on-call schedule disables the linked group. A subsequent populated shift enables it again. A lookup/API failure is a different state and should be investigated.

The schedule needs a change: edit schedules and overrides in PagerDuty. Local rotation editing is not offered for a PagerDuty-backed schedule.

Optional: share upcoming shifts in Google Calendar

Open the schedule's Google Calendar action and review the notice before choosing Create public calendar. This is optional and requires explicit consent. Anyone with access to the public calendar can see the rotation name, assignee display names and shift times.

The calendar mirrors the next 60 days of computed PagerDuty shifts, including overrides, and updates periodically. Disconnecting PagerDuty suspends updates but preserves the calendar's events and public sharing. Disconnecting does not make it private.

What about PagerDuty's Slack app?

PagerDuty's Slack integration already provides on-call lookup and incident workflows. This guide focuses on keeping a stable, mentionable Slack group aligned with a schedule. Other tools also offer this workflow; compare setup, requirements and support for your team.

Connect your first PagerDuty schedule, or read the setup guide. If you want help with your first schedule, contact OnCallManager support.