diff --git a/app/assets/javascripts/admin/templates/group.hbs b/app/assets/javascripts/admin/templates/group.hbs
index 736fab05de6..1bd414e3309 100644
--- a/app/assets/javascripts/admin/templates/group.hbs
+++ b/app/assets/javascripts/admin/templates/group.hbs
@@ -111,8 +111,13 @@
   {{/unless}}
 
   <div>
-    <label for="alias">{{i18n 'groups.alias_levels.title'}}</label>
-    {{combo-box name="alias" valueAttribute="value" value=model.alias_level content=aliasLevelOptions}}
+    <label for="alias">{{i18n 'groups.alias_levels.mentionable'}}</label>
+    {{combo-box name="alias" valueAttribute="value" value=model.mentionable_level content=aliasLevelOptions}}
+  </div>
+
+  <div>
+    <label for="alias">{{i18n 'groups.alias_levels.messageable'}}</label>
+    {{combo-box name="alias" valueAttribute="value" value=model.messageable_level content=aliasLevelOptions}}
   </div>
 
   <div>
diff --git a/app/assets/javascripts/discourse/models/group.js.es6 b/app/assets/javascripts/discourse/models/group.js.es6
index 21206d3932e..c06d5966300 100644
--- a/app/assets/javascripts/discourse/models/group.js.es6
+++ b/app/assets/javascripts/discourse/models/group.js.es6
@@ -108,9 +108,9 @@ const Group = RestModel.extend({
     return this.get('flair_color') ? this.get('flair_color').replace(new RegExp("[^0-9a-fA-F]", "g"), "") : null;
   },
 
-  @computed('alias_level')
-  canEveryoneMention(aliasLevel) {
-    return aliasLevel === '99';
+  @computed('mentionable_level')
+  canEveryoneMention(mentionableLevel) {
+    return mentionableLevel === '99';
   },
 
   @observes("visibility_level", "canEveryoneMention")
@@ -131,7 +131,8 @@ const Group = RestModel.extend({
   asJSON() {
     const attrs = {
       name: this.get('name'),
-      alias_level: this.get('alias_level'),
+      mentionable_level: this.get('mentionable_level'),
+      messageable_level: this.get('messageable_level'),
       visibility_level: this.get('visibility_level'),
       automatic_membership_email_domains: this.get('emailDomains'),
       automatic_membership_retroactive: !!this.get('automatic_membership_retroactive'),
diff --git a/app/assets/javascripts/discourse/routes/new-message.js.es6 b/app/assets/javascripts/discourse/routes/new-message.js.es6
index 85731a8e827..5010077a751 100644
--- a/app/assets/javascripts/discourse/routes/new-message.js.es6
+++ b/app/assets/javascripts/discourse/routes/new-message.js.es6
@@ -21,8 +21,8 @@ export default Discourse.Route.extend({
           });
         } else if (params.groupname) {
           // send a message to a group
-          Group.mentionable(params.groupname).then(result => {
-            if (result.mentionable) {
+          Group.messageable(params.groupname).then(result => {
+            if (result.messageable) {
               Ember.run.next(() => e.send("createNewMessageViaParams", params.groupname, params.title, params.body));
             } else {
               bootbox.alert(I18n.t("composer.cant_send_pm", { username: params.groupname }));
diff --git a/app/controllers/admin/groups_controller.rb b/app/controllers/admin/groups_controller.rb
index 99e2dc8dc2a..5f481d3a2fa 100644
--- a/app/controllers/admin/groups_controller.rb
+++ b/app/controllers/admin/groups_controller.rb
@@ -60,7 +60,8 @@ class Admin::GroupsController < Admin::AdminController
 
   def save_group(group)
     group.name = group_params[:name] if group_params[:name].present? && !group.automatic
-    group.alias_level = group_params[:alias_level].to_i if group_params[:alias_level].present?
+    group.mentionable_level = group_params[:mentionable_level].to_i if group_params[:mentionable_level].present?
+    group.messageable_level = group_params[:messageable_level].to_i if group_params[:messageable_level].present?
 
     if group_params[:visibility_level]
       group.visibility_level = group_params[:visibility_level]
@@ -192,7 +193,8 @@ class Admin::GroupsController < Admin::AdminController
   def group_params
     params.require(:group).permit(
       :name,
-      :alias_level,
+      :mentionable_level,
+      :messageable_level,
       :visibility_level,
       :automatic_membership_email_domains,
       :automatic_membership_retroactive,
diff --git a/app/controllers/groups_controller.rb b/app/controllers/groups_controller.rb
index ba212bfe591..136c037d9d9 100644
--- a/app/controllers/groups_controller.rb
+++ b/app/controllers/groups_controller.rb
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ class GroupsController < ApplicationController
   before_filter :ensure_logged_in, only: [
     :set_notifications,
     :mentionable,
+    :messageable,
     :update,
     :messages,
     :histories,
@@ -203,6 +204,16 @@ class GroupsController < ApplicationController
     end
   end
 
+  def messageable
+    group = find_group(:name)
+
+    if group
+      render json: { messageable: Group.messageable(current_user).where(id: group.id).present? }
+    else
+      raise Discourse::InvalidAccess.new
+    end
+  end
+
   def remove_member
     group = Group.find(params[:id])
     group.public_exit ? ensure_logged_in : guardian.ensure_can_edit!(group)
diff --git a/app/controllers/posts_controller.rb b/app/controllers/posts_controller.rb
index 42c0202d767..0549a1cc233 100644
--- a/app/controllers/posts_controller.rb
+++ b/app/controllers/posts_controller.rb
@@ -615,7 +615,7 @@ class PostsController < ApplicationController
 
     if usernames = result[:target_usernames]
       usernames = usernames.split(",")
-      groups = Group.mentionable(current_user).where('name in (?)', usernames).pluck('name')
+      groups = Group.messageable(current_user).where('name in (?)', usernames).pluck('name')
       usernames -= groups
       emails = usernames.select { |user| user.match(/@/) }
       usernames -= emails
diff --git a/app/models/group.rb b/app/models/group.rb
index c302ca50928..91b361f5b27 100644
--- a/app/models/group.rb
+++ b/app/models/group.rb
@@ -78,7 +78,8 @@ class Group < ActiveRecord::Base
     )
   end
 
-  validates :alias_level, inclusion: { in: ALIAS_LEVELS.values }
+  validates :mentionable_level, inclusion: { in: ALIAS_LEVELS.values }
+  validates :messageable_level, inclusion: { in: ALIAS_LEVELS.values }
 
   scope :visible_groups, ->(user) {
     groups = Group.order(name: :asc).where("groups.id > 0")
@@ -126,6 +127,23 @@ class Group < ActiveRecord::Base
 
   scope :mentionable, lambda { |user|
 
+    where("mentionable_level in (:levels) OR
+          (
+            mentionable_level = #{ALIAS_LEVELS[:members_mods_and_admins]} AND id in (
+            SELECT group_id FROM group_users WHERE user_id = :user_id)
+          )", levels: alias_levels(user), user_id: user && user.id)
+  }
+
+  scope :messageable, lambda { |user|
+
+    where("messageable_level in (:levels) OR
+          (
+            messageable_level = #{ALIAS_LEVELS[:members_mods_and_admins]} AND id in (
+            SELECT group_id FROM group_users WHERE user_id = :user_id)
+          )", levels: alias_levels(user), user_id: user && user.id)
+  }
+
+  def self.alias_levels(user)
     levels = [ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone]]
 
     if user && user.admin?
@@ -139,12 +157,8 @@ class Group < ActiveRecord::Base
                 ALIAS_LEVELS[:members_mods_and_admins]]
     end
 
-    where("alias_level in (:levels) OR
-          (
-            alias_level = #{ALIAS_LEVELS[:members_mods_and_admins]} AND id in (
-            SELECT group_id FROM group_users WHERE user_id = :user_id)
-          )", levels: levels, user_id: user && user.id)
-  }
+    levels
+  end
 
   def downcase_incoming_email
     self.incoming_email = (incoming_email || "").strip.downcase.presence
@@ -615,7 +629,8 @@ end
 #  updated_at                         :datetime         not null
 #  automatic                          :boolean          default(FALSE), not null
 #  user_count                         :integer          default(0), not null
-#  alias_level                        :integer          default(0)
+#  mentionable_level                  :integer          default(0)
+#  messageable_level                  :integer          default(0)
 #  automatic_membership_email_domains :text
 #  automatic_membership_retroactive   :boolean          default(FALSE)
 #  primary_group                      :boolean          default(FALSE), not null
diff --git a/app/serializers/basic_group_serializer.rb b/app/serializers/basic_group_serializer.rb
index ca74ab7c596..4bdafc6b0eb 100644
--- a/app/serializers/basic_group_serializer.rb
+++ b/app/serializers/basic_group_serializer.rb
@@ -4,7 +4,8 @@ class BasicGroupSerializer < ApplicationSerializer
              :name,
              :display_name,
              :user_count,
-             :alias_level,
+             :mentionable_level,
+             :messageable_level,
              :visibility_level,
              :automatic_membership_email_domains,
              :automatic_membership_retroactive,
diff --git a/app/serializers/group_show_serializer.rb b/app/serializers/group_show_serializer.rb
index 3bd6bf31d15..933111b71c1 100644
--- a/app/serializers/group_show_serializer.rb
+++ b/app/serializers/group_show_serializer.rb
@@ -25,6 +25,10 @@ class GroupShowSerializer < BasicGroupSerializer
     Group.mentionable(scope.user).exists?(id: object.id)
   end
 
+  def messageable
+    Group.messageable(scope.user).exists?(id: object.id)
+  end
+
   private
 
   def authenticated?
diff --git a/config/locales/client.en.yml b/config/locales/client.en.yml
index d0fad92748e..06359131913 100644
--- a/config/locales/client.en.yml
+++ b/config/locales/client.en.yml
@@ -459,7 +459,8 @@ en:
         staff: "Group owners and staff"
         owners: "Group owners and admins"
       alias_levels:
-        title: "Who can message and @mention this group?"
+        mentionable: "Who can @mention this group?"
+        messageable: "Who can message this group?"
         nobody: "Nobody"
         only_admins: "Only admins"
         mods_and_admins: "Only moderators and Admins"
diff --git a/config/routes.rb b/config/routes.rb
index 64fe59a0cbd..847f8ee083e 100644
--- a/config/routes.rb
+++ b/config/routes.rb
@@ -443,6 +443,7 @@ Discourse::Application.routes.draw do
     get 'messages'
     get 'counts'
     get 'mentionable'
+    get 'messageable'
     get 'logs' => 'groups#histories'
 
     collection do
diff --git a/db/migrate/20170818191909_split_alias_levels.rb b/db/migrate/20170818191909_split_alias_levels.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..b7bb54ba90d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/db/migrate/20170818191909_split_alias_levels.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+class SplitAliasLevels < ActiveRecord::Migration
+  def change
+    rename_column :groups, :alias_level, :mentionable_level
+    add_column :groups, :messageable_level, :integer, default: 0
+
+    Group.update_all('messageable_level=mentionable_level')
+  end
+end
diff --git a/lib/import_export/category_exporter.rb b/lib/import_export/category_exporter.rb
index 4e2a57e8208..d40bd327c49 100644
--- a/lib/import_export/category_exporter.rb
+++ b/lib/import_export/category_exporter.rb
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ module ImportExport
       self
     end
 
-    GROUP_ATTRS = [ :id, :name, :created_at, :alias_level, :visible,
+    GROUP_ATTRS = [ :id, :name, :created_at, :mentionable_level, :messageable_level, :visible,
                     :automatic_membership_email_domains, :automatic_membership_retroactive,
                     :primary_group, :title, :grant_trust_level, :incoming_email]
 
diff --git a/spec/components/guardian_spec.rb b/spec/components/guardian_spec.rb
index 049fcf4eac4..dcc5f22937d 100644
--- a/spec/components/guardian_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/components/guardian_spec.rb
@@ -207,7 +207,7 @@ describe Guardian do
       it "returns true if target is a staff group" do
         Group::STAFF_GROUPS.each do |name|
           g = Group[name]
-          g.alias_level = Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone]
+          g.messageable_level = Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone]
           expect(Guardian.new(user).can_send_private_message?(g)).to be_truthy
         end
       end
diff --git a/spec/controllers/posts_controller_spec.rb b/spec/controllers/posts_controller_spec.rb
index c27a7c9e0e8..e2c4300146a 100644
--- a/spec/controllers/posts_controller_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/controllers/posts_controller_spec.rb
@@ -755,7 +755,7 @@ describe PostsController do
 
       it "can send a message to a group" do
 
-        group = Group.create(name: 'test_group', alias_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:nobody])
+        group = Group.create(name: 'test_group', messageable_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:nobody])
         user1 = Fabricate(:user)
         group.add(user1)
 
@@ -767,7 +767,7 @@ describe PostsController do
         expect(response).not_to be_success
 
         # allow pm to this group
-        group.update_columns(alias_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone])
+        group.update_columns(messageable_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone])
 
         xhr :post, :create,           raw: 'I can haz a test',
                                       title: 'I loves my test',
diff --git a/spec/controllers/topics_controller_spec.rb b/spec/controllers/topics_controller_spec.rb
index 0dc914785b1..300ea2024c2 100644
--- a/spec/controllers/topics_controller_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/controllers/topics_controller_spec.rb
@@ -1026,7 +1026,7 @@ describe TopicsController do
     end
 
     before do
-      admins.alias_level = Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone]
+      admins.messageable_level = Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone]
       admins.save!
     end
 
diff --git a/spec/models/topic_spec.rb b/spec/models/topic_spec.rb
index 0b6bc4949d5..c152875acc0 100644
--- a/spec/models/topic_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/models/topic_spec.rb
@@ -455,7 +455,7 @@ describe Topic do
 
           it 'can add admin to allowed groups' do
             admins = Group[:admins]
-            admins.update!(alias_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone])
+            admins.update!(messageable_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone])
 
             expect(topic.invite_group(topic.user, admins)).to eq(true)
             expect(topic.allowed_groups.include?(admins)).to eq(true)
diff --git a/spec/requests/groups_controller_spec.rb b/spec/requests/groups_controller_spec.rb
index 35e31d27516..6975052beac 100644
--- a/spec/requests/groups_controller_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/requests/groups_controller_spec.rb
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ describe GroupsController do
       response_body = JSON.parse(response.body)
       expect(response_body["mentionable"]).to eq(false)
 
-      group.update_attributes!(alias_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone])
+      group.update_attributes!(mentionable_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone])
 
       get "/groups/test/mentionable.json", name: group.name
       expect(response).to be_success
diff --git a/spec/serializers/group_show_serializer_spec.rb b/spec/serializers/group_show_serializer_spec.rb
index b90db108e5c..925cf8efb1b 100644
--- a/spec/serializers/group_show_serializer_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/serializers/group_show_serializer_spec.rb
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ describe GroupShowSerializer do
   end
 
   describe '#mentionable' do
-    let(:group) { Fabricate(:group, alias_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone]) }
+    let(:group) { Fabricate(:group, mentionable_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone]) }
 
     it 'should return the right value' do
       json = GroupShowSerializer.new(group, scope: Guardian.new).as_json
diff --git a/spec/services/post_alerter_spec.rb b/spec/services/post_alerter_spec.rb
index 9bbd4b23a6a..ea47e4cf700 100644
--- a/spec/services/post_alerter_spec.rb
+++ b/spec/services/post_alerter_spec.rb
@@ -270,7 +270,7 @@ describe PostAlerter do
 
   context '@group mentions' do
 
-    let(:group) { Fabricate(:group, name: 'group', alias_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone]) }
+    let(:group) { Fabricate(:group, name: 'group', mentionable_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone]) }
     let(:post) { create_post_with_alerts(raw: "Hello @group how are you?") }
     before { group.add(evil_trout) }
 
@@ -281,7 +281,7 @@ describe PostAlerter do
 
       expect(GroupMention.count).to eq(1)
 
-      Fabricate(:group, name: 'group-alt', alias_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone])
+      Fabricate(:group, name: 'group-alt', mentionable_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:everyone])
 
       expect {
         create_post_with_alerts(raw: "Hello, @group-alt should not trigger a notification?")
@@ -289,7 +289,7 @@ describe PostAlerter do
 
       expect(GroupMention.count).to eq(2)
 
-      group.update_columns(alias_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:members_mods_and_admins])
+      group.update_columns(mentionable_level: Group::ALIAS_LEVELS[:members_mods_and_admins])
       expect {
         create_post_with_alerts(raw: "Hello @group you are not mentionable")
       }.to change(evil_trout.notifications, :count).by(0)