---
title: "Configure notification settings | Grafana Labs"
description: "Set up basic notification delivery for your alert."
---

# Configure notification settings

Notification settings control where your alert notifications go. For your first alert, you’ll use the default notification policy—the quickest way to get alerts working. You’ll learn to customize routing (by severity, team, etc.) in a separate journey.

To configure notification settings, complete the following steps:

1. In the **Configure notifications** section, leave **Use default policy** selected.
   
   The default policy sends all alerts to the default contact point. This is perfect for getting started.
2. Verify or create a contact point:
   
   - If a default contact point exists (like a default email), you’re ready to proceed.
   - If no contact point exists, you’ll see a prompt to create one.
3. If you need to create a contact point, click **View or create contact points** to set one up.
4. **If creating a contact point:**
   
   Expand table
   
   | Option    | Best for your first alert            |
   |-----------|--------------------------------------|
   | **Email** | Quick setup—enter your email address |
   | **Slack** | If you have a webhook URL ready      |
   
   For email:
   
   - Enter a **Name** (e.g., `My alerts`)
   - Select **Email** as the integration
   - Enter your email address
   - Click **Save contact point**
   - Return to your alert rule and select this contact point
5. Skip the advanced options for now:
   
   - **Override grouping** — Keep defaults
   - **Override timings** — Keep defaults
   
   > **Note:** You’ll learn to configure advanced routing (by severity, team, channel) in the **Configure alert routing** learning journey.

In the next milestone, you’ll save and activate your alert rule.

* * *

### More to explore (optional)

- [Configure notifications](/docs/grafana/latest/alerting/configure-notifications/)
- [Manage contact points](/docs/grafana/latest/alerting/configure-notifications/manage-contact-points/)