Quick start guide for Confluence Cloud
A quick start guide to help teams get up and running fast on Confluence CloudLogging in
- Navigate to your new site and mobile app via the links below. Replace the [ placeholder text ] in red with your organization’s domain(s). Tip: Don’t forget to update your saved links!
- New URL: https://[ your domain].atlassian.net/wiki/home
- New mobile app: Confluence Mobile for iPhone and Android | Atlassian
- Use your email address to log in. If your company uses one account to log into all the systems you use, we’ll prompt you to log in that way. If not, select ‘Forgot password’ and enter a new password.
- Set up a new avatar in your cloud profile. Use an image of yourself or one that will represent you across products.
Interface and navigation
Navigation in cloud is redesigned to help you find what you need faster. The top navigation is decluttered to streamline essential actions like search and create. Everything else lives in a customizable sidebar, giving you more control over how you navigate Confluence. Read the blog to learn more.
- Collapsible sidebar: Hide the sidebar for a distraction-free, wider view of your content.
- Access the essentials: 'For you' allows you to discover trending content from across your site and updates from people you follow. 'Recent' & 'Starred' allows you to quickly jump back into content you've recently viewed, edited, or starred.
- Spaces: Browse all your spaces. Starred spaces are pinned to the top and recently visited ones just below.
- Apps & More: See and manage Atlassian and Marketplace apps installed on your Confluence site. Note: Calendars and Analytics (Premium and Enterprise only) are now located in this menu. Find apps like Teams (formerly People) under More—and pin them for easy access.
- Starred spaces: When you’re not inside a space, starred spaces appear here for quick access.
- Space content: When you’re inside a space, this section shows the space’s content tree in place of starred spaces.
- App switcher: Switch between Atlassian sites or apps.
- Confluence logo: Click the Confluence logo to return to ‘For you’ from anywhere.
- Search & Create: 'Search' allows you to find content, spaces, and people across Confluence. If enabled, paid editions get AI-powered, cross-app search via Rovo. 'Create' allows you to start any content type—live docs, pages, whiteboards, blogs, databases, smart links, or entire spaces—from one central spot.
- Rovo Chat: Ask questions and explore your company’s knowledge through an AI-powered chat interface. Rovo chat is available on paid editions and must be enabled by admins.
- Notifications, Help, Settings, and your profile: Stay updated, get support, and personalize your experience.
General interface
Some elements on the home page and in spaces are in different parts of the page or sidebar navigation. Use Ctrl+F or ⌘+F on the page to quickly find elements. One key change: Space settings is located under More actions (•••) next to your space’s name in the sidebar.
Editor
This is one of the biggest differences you’ll notice in cloud, as we’ve made significant updates to the cloud editor:
- Floating action toolbar: Frequently used actions—like comments and page details—live in a dedicated floating toolbar on the right, so they’re easier to find and no longer buried in the editing toolbar.
- Pinnable editing toolbar: Choose how you work – let the toolbar follow you inline for faster editing, or pin it to the top for a more fixed experience.
- Macros: We have optimized the macro experience by retiring legacy macros and introducing streamlined, built-in commands for greater efficiency. You can see a list of the removed macros and alternative methods here.
TIP: Before getting started, take a look through our template library for ideas to kick start your processes and save you time. There, you’ll find free resources and best practices created by Atlassian teams and other companies to help you work better including:
- Decision making: Considering all options and communicating the reason behind decisions to your team can be hard. Use this decision making template to help manage your decisions.
- Efficient meetings: Keep your meetings on track and organized with clear agendas with this recurring meeting template. You can then track all meetings in one place and quickly access outstanding action items.
Autocomplete keyboard shortcuts in editor
A valuable change that power users will pick up on are the autocomplete shortcuts used in the editor. Those accustomed to the data center editor may be very familiar with the wiki markup notation to insert macros. In cloud, you’ll switch to using the / slash command—a single, streamlined way to access macros, elements, and tools as you type.
Action | Cloud autocomplete character | Data Center autocomplete character |
|---|---|---|
Tables | / | | |
Links | / | [ |
Images | / | ! |
Macros | / | { |
Headings | # | h1. |
Lists (unordered) | * | * |
Lists (ordered) | 1. | # |
Other editor changes
- Inline comment: In cloud, adding inline comments works the same whether you're editing or viewing a page:
- Highlight the text you want to comment on.
- Click the 'Add comment' button that appears.
- Type your comment and hit 'Save' (Ctrl+S or ⌘+S).
- Anchor links: Anchor links are automatically created in cloud for headings. Non-heading links still need to be specified by the Anchor macro.
- Adding attachments: To add attachments in cloud, copy and paste the file’s link directly to the page. Note: Users familiar with embedding or linking attachments from shared file libraries may need to adjust their workflows.
- Editing tables: Table editing in cloud has been redesigned for a more intuitive experience. While this is designed to be easier in the long run, it may feel different at first—consider giving your team a heads-up.
Smart Links
Smart Links reveal important context about links within a Confluence page (or Jira work item) without leaving that page. When you paste a supported link into the editor, it automatically converts into a Smart Link, providing a quick preview of key details.You can choose how each Smart Link appears—there are a few different display options:
To learn more about your options for hyperlinking content, read about Smart Links.
Additional content types
Beyond pages and blogs, Confluence Cloud supports multimodal content creation to suit a variety of workflows. These new content types are created by clicking the “+” button in the space side nav.
- Live doc: Collaborate in real time—no need to publish.
- Whiteboard: A digital whiteboard for brainstorming, diagramming, and mapping ideas visually.
- Database: Organize structured information in a customizable, filterable view. Track deliverables, manage resources, and centralize knowledge from across tools.
AI capabilities
With Rovo built-in, Confluence Cloud makes it easier and faster to share knowledge and collaborate across teams.
- Find information faster: Use Rovo Search to find information across the platform knowledge base and ask Rovo Chat questions in plain language to answer questions and surface pages within seconds.
- Automate routine work: Use out-of-the-box Rovo Agents to draft content, manage tasks, and streamline workflows.
- AI-assisted editing: Highlight text in a Confluence page, then invoke the AI editor via ‘Improve writing’ to quickly change tone, correct grammar, and add polish to your written content.
30 day checklist
With these essentials covered, use the 30 day checklist below to help your team confidently navigate and master Confluence Cloud from day one:
Day 1
- Log in and set up your profile settings, time zone, and avatar.
- Explore sidebar, top navigation, and search.
- Create a page and live doc.
- Add attachments and edit tables in pages.
- Star important spaces for quick access.
Day 7
- Actively work in pages and live docs.
- Use templates to create pages and documents.
- Try the floating and pinnable editing toolbars.
- Add inline comments and collaborate on pages.
- Use the slash “/” command for macros and elements.
Day 30
- Create a whiteboard and database.
- Paste links as Smart Links and try all of the different views.
- Integrate Rovo Search and Chat into daily workflows.
- Finish Atlassian Learning’s Confluence Quickstart: New to cloudcourse.