It's really annoying to come on time to a big meeting and then have to wait 5-10 minutes while the host lets people in or says "let's give everyone a few more minutes."
Better for everyone to be a tiny bit early and on mute so that when the host starts, the meeting starts.

Anonymous wrote:This is a ridiculous question, but WHY do people start Teams/Zoom/etc. meetings 5-15 minutes early. And if you are one of those people, do you expect the other people in the meeting to hop in as soon as you start it?

I prefer wait until the exact time that the meeting is supposed to start, that is why there is a start time.

Why do you care? I run a lot of Zoom meetings. I always open up the room 5-15 minutes early. There are usually several people who log in during that time. Most of them mute themselves and turn off their video; they want to be on time and give themselves wiggle room in case there are technology problems. I actually prefer the early birds to the bozos who zoom in right on the dot, and want a lot of attention right then and there. Yes, we see you and no you don't need to start babbling in the chat box saying hi to everyone because, sugar, the meeting as started and now you're a distraction cuz you're doing your queen schtick, which is why I or my co-host muted you and turned off your video.

Anonymous wrote:In this way, Zoom is EXACTLY like meeting in real life: I like to check in a little early to chat with other folks before the meeting starts - sometimes about things that are not on the meeting agenda.

This! I like chatting/catching up with my coworkers…. About anything personal or work related. Additionally, some of my coworkers live alone and like to have a chat. Even though some of my coworkers are annoying, I guess on some level I care about them.

Anonymous wrote:I sign in 5 minutes early in case I have technical difficulties. I go on mute, though, if I'm early.

This.

We discovered that using MS Teams removed the Outlook 15 minute reminder we were used to and we collectively became tardy for meetings. In the past I've logged in early rather than risk missing the start time/getting distracted. Now the only reminder we have is when someone joins/starts the meeting.

Don't get me started on the widespread, yet inconsistent issue people had with their clocks. People were 6-8 minutes fast or slow, depending and it went on for months.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I sign in 5 minutes early in case I have technical difficulties. I go on mute, though, if I'm early.

Exactly this.

+1 (though not excel- other work). I can either be 5 min early or 10 min late because I try two cram in one final task that I think will only take 5 min but then inevitably takes much longer.

The poster with the hatred reaction is a little nuts but on the opposite end, I am annoyed that people just start logging in at and after the meeting start time. The host should start presenting/ talking at the meeting’s stated time and not waste the first ten minutes admitting the “busy” people who can’t manage to join right before it starts.

Anonymous wrote:I sign in 5 minutes early in case I have technical difficulties. I go on mute, though, if I'm early.

This is what I do. My calendar alerts me to meetings 5 minutes before the start time, so that's when I pause what I'm doing, and go into the meeting. I think this is especially important if I'm the host. I keep my video and microphone off until others seem ready to go.
My office culture is to start meetings promptly, so I try to be a few minutes early, just as I would enter a real meeting room a few minutes early rather than sliding in right on the dot. Common courtesy and more professional.