How to remove bots from a channel

Removing bots from a Telegram channel is straightforward: open the channel's member list, find the bot, and use the Remove or Delete option. Only channel admins and the channel owner can remove bots, and the process takes just a few seconds on any platform — mobile or desktop.

Understanding Bots in Telegram Channels

Bots in Telegram channels function as automated members with specific roles. They can post content, moderate comments, gather analytics, or perform other tasks assigned by administrators. Over time, channels accumulate bots that are no longer needed — perhaps you switched analytics providers, replaced a moderation bot, or simply no longer need a particular automation.

Unlike regular subscribers, bots added to a channel typically have admin privileges. This means removing them involves revoking those privileges first or removing them directly through the admin management interface.

Why You Might Need to Remove a Bot

  • The bot is no longer maintained by its developer and poses a security risk
  • You've switched to a better alternative (e.g., replacing an old stats bot with a newer one)
  • The bot is malfunctioning — posting spam, duplicating messages, or causing errors
  • You're cleaning up your channel's admin list for better organization
  • The bot token was compromised and you need to revoke access immediately

Step-by-Step Guide: Removing Bots on Mobile (iOS & Android)

Step 1: Open Channel Settings

Tap on your channel name at the top of the chat screen. This opens the channel info page where you can see the description, subscriber count, and other details.

Step 2: Navigate to Administrators

Scroll down and tap Administrators (or Admins depending on your Telegram version). You'll see a list of all users and bots that have admin rights in your channel.

Step 3: Select the Bot

Find the bot you want to remove. Bots are easily identifiable — they have a bot label next to their name and their usernames always end with bot (e.g., @GroupHelpBot, @ComBot, @ChannelAnalyticsBot).

Step 4: Remove Admin Rights

Tap on the bot's name to open its permission settings. Scroll to the bottom and tap Dismiss Admin or Remove Admin. This revokes all the bot's privileges in your channel.

Step 5: Remove the Bot Entirely

After dismissing the bot as admin, go back to the Subscribers or Members list. Find the bot, tap on it, and select Remove from Channel. Confirm the action when prompted.

Step-by-Step Guide: Removing Bots on Telegram Desktop

Step 1: Access Channel Info

Click the channel name in the top bar or the three-dot menu → Channel Info.

Step 2: Open the Administrators List

Click on Administrators. The list shows all admins including bots.

Step 3: Right-Click the Bot

Right-click (or click the three-dot menu next to the bot's name) and select Remove Admin Rights. Then navigate to the members list and remove the bot from the channel entirely.

Important: On desktop, you can also use the search bar within the members list to quickly find a specific bot by typing its username.

Removing Bots via @BotFather

If you are the owner of the bot (not just the channel admin), you have an additional option. You can disable or delete the bot entirely through @BotFather:

  1. Open a chat with @BotFather
  2. Send /mybots
  3. Select the bot you want to manage
  4. Choose Bot Settings → Turn Off to deactivate it, or use /deletebot to remove it permanently

This approach is useful when you've created a custom bot for your channel and no longer need it at all. Keep in mind that deleting a bot through @BotFather is irreversible — the bot and its token are gone permanently.

Handling Bots You Cannot Remove

In some situations, you might encounter difficulty removing a bot:

  • You're not the channel owner. Only the owner or admins with the Add New Admins permission can remove other admins (including bots). Ask the channel owner to remove it.
  • The bot was added by the owner. If the channel owner added the bot as admin, only the owner can remove it — other admins cannot.
  • The bot keeps re-adding itself. This can happen if another service or webhook is configured to add the bot. Check your integrations and revoke any API tokens associated with the bot.

What Happens When You Remove a Bot

When a bot is removed from a channel:

  • It immediately loses access to new messages and channel events
  • Any webhooks configured for the bot on that channel stop receiving updates
  • Past messages posted by the bot remain in the channel (they are not deleted automatically)
  • The bot's inline keyboards on existing messages may stop working
  • Any scheduled posts managed by the bot will not be published

If you want to clean up messages the bot posted, you'll need to delete them manually or use another admin tool.

Tips & Best Practices

  • Audit your bots regularly. Review your channel's admin list at least once a month. Remove any bots you no longer actively use. A channel like @TechNewsDaily with 50,000 subscribers should not have five abandoned analytics bots cluttering its admin panel.

  • Remove the bot before revoking the token. If you revoke a bot's API token via @BotFather before removing it from the channel, the bot will remain as a non-functional admin. Remove it from the channel first, then handle the token.

  • Document which bots are active and why. Keep a simple list of bots in your channel, their purpose, and who added them. This is especially important for channels managed by multiple admins.

  • Check for webhook dependencies. Before removing a bot, verify whether other systems depend on it. For example, if you use a bot to automatically export channel content to a web version on platforms like tgchannel.space, removing that bot would break the sync pipeline.

  • Use @BotFather to check bot status. Before removing an unfamiliar bot, send its username to @BotFather or check its profile to understand what it does. It might be serving a critical function you forgot about.

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Removing admin rights but not the bot itself
Why it's wrong: The bot remains as a regular member and might still read channel content (in groups) or clutter your member list.
How to avoid: Always complete both steps — dismiss as admin, then remove from channel.

Mistake 2: Deleting a bot via @BotFather when you only needed to remove it from one channel
Why it's wrong: Deleting through @BotFather destroys the bot entirely, affecting all channels and groups where it was active.
How to avoid: Only use /deletebot when you want to permanently shut down the bot. To remove it from a single channel, just remove it from that channel's admin/member list.

Mistake 3: Not checking integrations before removal
Why it's wrong: Other tools and services may depend on the bot to function. Removing it without checking can break automated posting, analytics tracking, or content syndication.
How to avoid: Ask your team and review any automation workflows connected to the channel before removing any bot.

Mistake 4: Ignoring unknown bots in your channel
Why it's wrong: An unrecognized bot could be a security risk — it might have been added by a compromised admin account or through a phishing attack.
How to avoid: If you see a bot you don't recognize, investigate immediately. Check who added it (via the channel's recent actions log if available) and remove it if it's unauthorized.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a removed bot rejoin the channel on its own?
No. Bots cannot add themselves to channels. A bot can only be added by a channel admin manually or through the Telegram API by an authorized user. If a bot reappears, someone with admin access is adding it back.

Will removing a bot delete the messages it posted?
No. All messages posted by the bot remain in the channel after removal. You need to delete those messages manually if you want them gone.

Can I temporarily disable a bot without removing it?
Not directly within channel settings. However, you can revoke all its admin permissions (uncheck every capability) so it remains in the channel but cannot do anything. Alternatively, the bot owner can pause it via @BotFather.

How many bots can a Telegram channel have?
Telegram allows up to 50 administrators per channel, and bots count toward this limit. If you're running a large channel and hitting this cap, removing unused bots frees up admin slots for real team members.

Is there a way to see a log of when bots were added or removed?
Telegram provides a Recent Actions log (available in channel settings under "Recent Actions" or "Event Log") that records admin changes for the past 48 hours. This log shows when bots were added, removed, or had their permissions modified.