MC1447681: Microsoft Viva Engage Adds Tenant-Wide Custom Branding with Brand Center for Admins

📢 Official Microsoft Message Center Announcement

[What and why]

We’re introducing Custom Branding in Microsoft Viva Engage, a new admin-managed capability that enables organizations to apply a consistent visual identity across the Viva Engage web experience and iOS and Android mobile apps.

With Custom Branding, Viva Engage administrators can configure a tenant-wide brand name, logos, and theme color from a new Brand center in the Viva Engage admin center. Admins can preview branding changes before publishing them to users across the organization.

This feature helps organizations reinforce their brand identity and create a more consistent employee experience in Viva Engage.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 568364.

[Rollout schedule]

• General Availability (Worldwide): Beginning mid-August 2026 and expected to complete by mid-September 2026

[Impact on your organization]

Who is affected

• Viva Engage administrators
• Users in tenants where Viva Engage is deployed

Platforms and services

• Microsoft Viva Engage
  • Web and app in Teams
  • iOS
  • Android

What will happen

Administrators with access to the Viva Engage admin center will be able to configure tenant-wide branding through the new Brand Center.

Branding options include:

• Brand name: Displayed in the Viva Engage web app header.
• Small logo: Displayed in the Viva Engage web app header and mobile app navigation bar.
• Large logo: Displayed in the right-side panel of the Viva Engage home page on the web.
• Theme color: Applied to supported buttons, icons, and other user interface elements across Viva Engage.

Administrators can:

• Save branding changes for personal preview before publishing them tenant-wide.
• Review the experience in web and mobile apps before publishing.
• Publish branding changes to all users in the tenant.

Important behavior changes:

• Once Custom Branding is published in Viva Engage, it takes precedence over Microsoft 365 organizational themes within Viva Engage.
• Individual user-selected Viva Engage themes will no longer be available when this feature is available in your tenant. This is irrespective of whether Branding has been applied in the tenant. This change was previously communicated in MC1162958.
• Organizations currently using Microsoft 365 organizational themes will continue to see their existing experience until Viva Engage Custom Branding is configured and published. Once Engage branding is published for the tenant, users will no longer be able to see the M365 org theme in Engage, and the Engage branding will apply instead.
• Branding is optional and is not applied unless an administrator configures and publishes branding settings.

Screenshot 1 – Branded user web experience (light mode) view: 

Screenshot 2 – Branded user web experience (dark mode) view: 

Screenshot 3 – Branded user Mobile experience (light mode) view:

Screenshot 4 – Branded user Mobile experience (dark mode) view: 

[Action required and recommendations]

No action is required to receive this feature.

We recommend that administrators:

• Review internal documentation that references branding or theming in Viva Engage.
• Evaluate whether your organization wants to implement tenant-wide branding.
• Communicate the removal of individual user theme selection to users.
• Review existing Microsoft 365 organizational theme configurations because Viva Engage Custom Branding will override those themes within Viva Engage after publication.

Custom Branding is optional and is not applied unless an administrator configures and publishes branding settings.

[Compliance considerations]

Source: Microsoft Message Center • Analysed by MWPro