SharePoint Online communication site (Create a communication site in SharePoint using PowerShell)

In this SharePoint tutorial, we will discuss all the SharePoint Online communication site. We will also see how to create a communication site in SharePoint from the SharePoint admin Centre as well as how to create a communication site SharePoint Online PowerShell.

Also, we will see how to create a communication site using PnP PowerShell. We will cover:

• Communication site in SharePoint Online
• How to create a communication site in SharePoint online
• Communication site template id SharePoint Online
• Create communication site SharePoint Online PowerShell
• Create a SharePoint Online communication site using PnP PowerShell
• SharePoint online communication site navigation or quick launch
• SharePoint online communication site vs team site
• SharePoint online communication site examples
• SharePoint online communication site version history
• SharePoint online communication site best practices
• SharePoint online communication site recycle bin

What is a communication site in SharePoint Online

What is a communication site in SharePoint Online? A SharePoint online communication site is a place to share information with others usually within your entire organization. The information can be like news, reports, status, events, results, policies, etc.

SharePoint Online communication sites are visually attractive and responsive sites. And these sites can be accessed anywhere, anytime, and from any device.

In classic SharePoint, we usually use publishing sites for the same purpose but in SharePoint Online modern experience, we use the communication site.

Usually, we create a communication site when we want to share information with the entire organization rather than within a team.

In the case of a communication site in SharePoint, there will be few contributors to your content but there will be a larger audience who can view the content or consume the content.

Note: There will not have any Office 365 group associated with a communication site.

By default the communication site permission is private.

SharePoint online communication site vs team site

Now, let us check out the difference between team site and communication site in SharePoint?

team site vs communication site? Which one should you create?

If you want to work within a team, want to store files for your team, then you can create a team site. For example, let us say you are working on a project XYZ and you want to store all the project related files in one place, then you can create a SharePoint team site. So the confidential documents will be available only to those persons who has access to the SharePoint team site.

At the same time, if your HR team is conducting an event and they want to share the information with the entire organization, then you can create a communication site.

When you will create a communication site, you will not see the left navigation or quick launch. But in the case of a team site, there will be a quick launch.

I have also written a complete article on SharePoint online communication site vs team site.

SharePoint online communication site examples

Now let us see various scenarios where we should create a communication site in SharePoint. Here are a few SharePoint online communication site examples:

• Company intranet portal home page
• Company or corporate events
• CEO talks
• Company yearly results/quarterly results
• Company policies
• Organizational facts or achievements
• Product catalogs
• New product information
• Offers or Discounts

Like this there are many examples are available where you can use SharePoint Online communication site.

How to create a communication site in SharePoint online

There are two ways we can create a communication site in SharePoint site apart from PowerShell or programmatically.

1. Create communication site from SharePoint home page
2. Create SharePoint communication site from the admin center

Create a communication site in SharePoint online (SharePoint Home Page)

Let us see now how to create a communication site in sharepoint online from the SharePoint home page.

From the App launcher, click on SharePoint like below:

This will open the SharePoint home page. Here, click on Create site button like below:

Then in the Create a site, select Communication site like below:

Then the Create communication site will appear. Here select a design like Topic, Showcase, or Blank. Then provide the communication site name, site address, site description, and also you can select a language like below:

Then click on Finish button and the site will be created.

Create a communication site in SharePoint online (From Admin Center)

Now we will see how to create a communication site from the SharePoint Online admin center.

Login to SharePoint Online Admin Center.

Then click on Sites -> Active Sites. Then click on + Create button like below:

Then in the Create a site page, select Communication Site like below:

Then first you can choose a design. By default SharePoint provides 3 designs to choose from:

• Topic:  select this design if you have a lot of information to share like news, announcements, and events, etc.
• Showcase: you want to showcase a product a team or event using images then you can use showcase design.
• Blank: I do not want any design then you can select a blank site. 

Then you can provide is site name for your communication site,  the site address will populate automatically based on your site name but you can edit the site address.

Then provide SharePoint communication site owner and language.

In the advanced settings you can set the timezone and you can provide a site description.

Then click on Finish, it will create the SharePoint Online communication site.

The site will look like below:

SharePoint online communication site quick launch

By default, there will be no left navigation or quick launch in the communication sites in SharePoint Online. But in a team site you will have a quick launch available in SharePoint Online.

SharePoint online communication site topic vs showcase

At the time of creating a communication site, it allows you to choose a design. By default you can select from the below 3 designs:

• Topic
• Showcase
• Blank

Then what is the difference between SharePoint online communication site topic vs showcase.

The difference is the availability of the default web parts in the communication site. For example, if you will select Topic, then by default a Hero, News, Events, and Documents web part will be available.

And if you will choose Showcase design, then by default a Hero web part and Image Gallery web part will be available on the communication site.

But you can choose any design and later you can add or modify any web parts into the SharePoint Online communication site.

SharePoint online communication site recycle bin

In a SharePoint Online team site, there will be a Recycle Bin link presented in the left navigation. Since there is no left navigation in the communication site, you will not see the link. Follow the below steps to access the sharepoint online communication site recycle bin.

Click on the Site contents from the top navigation.

Then in the Site content page, you can see the Recycle bin link.

On the other way, you can also access the recycle bin link from the Site settings page of the SharePoint Online communication site.

SharePoint online communication site version history

Let us check out SharePoint online communication site version history. Where we can see the communication site version history.

By default when you will create the SharePoint communication site, a Home.aspx page will be created and it will be available inside the Site Pages document library in the communication site.

To check the SharePoint online communication site version history, open the SharePoint site pages document library, then click on the … and then click on Version history like below:

This way, we can access the communication site recycle bin.

Communication site template id SharePoint Online

Before creating a communication site using PowerShell in SharePoint Online, you should know the communication site template ID in SharePoint Online.

Below is the template ID for communication site:

SITEPAGEPUBLISHING#0

• Get SharePoint Site Template ID and Name using PowerShell

Create communication site SharePoint Online PowerShell

Now we will see how to create a communication site in SharePoint Online using PowerShell.

Here we will use SharePoint online management shell and we will write the PowerShell script using Windows PowerShell ise.

Connect-SPOService -Url "https://tsinfo-admin.sharepoint.com" -Credential (Get-Credential)
New-SPOSite -Url "https://tsinfo.sharepoint.com/sites/CommunicationFromPowerShell" -Owner "bijay@tsinfo.onmicrosoft.com" -StorageQuota 2048 -Template "SITEPAGEPUBLISHING#0" -Title "Communication Site from PowerShell"

Once you execute the PowerShell script, it will create the communication site in SharePoint Online. You can check it from the SharePoint Online admin center.

Create communication site using pnp PowerShell

Now we will see how to create a communication site using PnP Powershell.

Below is the Powershell script to create a communication site in SharePoint Online using PnP PowerShell.

We can use New-PnPSite to create a communication site,  also you can provide the communication site title, URL, and SiteDesign.

For the site design you can provide topic/ showcase/ blank values.

Connect-PnPOnline -Url "https://tsinfo-admin.sharepoint.com/" -Credentials $cred
New-PnPSite -Type CommunicationSite -Title TSInfoPnPCommunication -Url https://tsinfo.sharepoint.com/sites/TSInfoPnPCommunication -SiteDesign Topic

You may like following PowerShell tutorials:

• Save list as template in SharePoint Online using PowerShell
• How to remove SharePoint Online Site Collection Administrator using PowerShell
• PnP PowerShell Commands for SharePoint Online List
• Apply master page programmatically using PnP in SharePoint
• Create Custom List and Fields in SharePoint Online using PnP Core CSOM Library
• Create and delete subsites under SharePoint site collection programmatically using PnP CSOM
• Powershell the term ‘get-spweb’ is not recognized as the name of a cmdlet
• Create SharePoint Online Modern Page

In this tutorial, we learned:

• What is a communication site in SharePoint Online
• How to create a communication site in SharePoint online
• Communication site template id SharePoint Online
• Create communication site SharePoint Online PowerShell
• Create communication site using pnp PowerShell