How to Get a Telegram Group Chat ID Using a Bot 2026

Let me start with an important clarification:
Telegram API does not provide a direct method to fetch a group Chat ID. Instead, the Chat ID is obtained from updates that your bot receives when it interacts with a group.

In this guide, you’ll learn exactly how to get a Telegram group Chat ID and use it to send notifications or automated messages.

What Is a Telegram Group Chat ID?

A Chat ID is a unique identifier assigned by Telegram to every conversation.

• Private chats → positive numbers
• Groups & supergroups → negative numbers
• Supergroups usually start with -100

Example:

-1001234567890

This is the value you must use when calling sendMessage.

Step 1: Add Your Bot to the Group

To receive a group Chat ID:

1. Add your bot to the Telegram group
2. Send any message in the group (even a simple “hello”)

⚠️ If your bot does not receive messages, Privacy Mode is likely enabled.

Disable Privacy Mode

• Open @BotFather
• Bot Settings → Group Privacy → Turn Off

Step 2: Extract Chat ID from message.chat.id

When the bot receives a message from a group, the update payload contains:

"message": {
  "chat": {
    "id": -1001234567890,
    "type": "supergroup",
    "title": "My Telegram Group"
  }
}

✅ The value of message.chat.id is your group Chat ID.

Example Code (Node.js – telegram_bot)

If you are using node-telegram-bot-api or a similar library:

bot.on('message', (msg) => {
  console.log(msg.chat.id);
});

How it works:

1. Run the bot
2. Send a message in the group
3. Copy the Chat ID from the console log

Step 3: Send Messages to the Group Using Chat ID

Once you have the Chat ID, sending notifications is straightforward:

bot.sendMessage(-1001234567890, 'Notification sent successfully!');

This allows your bot to:

• Send system alerts
• Push notifications
• Deliver logs or reports
• Automate group communication

Alternative Method: Get Chat ID When Bot Is Added

If you want to capture the Chat ID immediately when the bot joins the group:

bot.on('new_chat_members', (msg) => {
  console.log(msg.chat.id);
});

This triggers as soon as the bot is added and returns the correct Chat ID.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Using from.id instead of chat.id
❌ Expecting a Chat ID without receiving updates
❌ Privacy Mode enabled
❌ Bot not added to the group
❌ Confusing channels with groups

Note: Channels behave differently and usually require the bot to be an admin.

Get a Telegram Group Chat ID without bot and code

If you don’t have any knowledge about coding and telegram bots, there is no worries. There is also and alternative way to Get a Telegram Group Chat ID without bot and code.

Just go to app store or google play and install Nicegram App and login through a telegram account.

Then go to the group or channel profile > and then you can see the ID. That’s all.

Final Summary

• Telegram does not offer a direct Chat ID API
• Chat IDs are extracted from bot updates
• Always use message.chat.id
• Group Chat IDs are negative numbers
• Supergroups usually start with -100

Once you have the Chat ID, sending messages is trivial.