Discord is a group chat and voice application for friends, gaming groups and larger online communities. It combines text chat, drop-in voice rooms, video calls and screen sharing. Discord runs on Windows, macOS and Linux, in a web browser, and on Android and iOS. It also offers voice integration on PlayStation and Xbox and an app for Meta Quest. Discord is free to use; the optional Nitro and Nitro Basic subscriptions add larger uploads, higher streaming quality and personalization options.
Servers and their channels
The main unit in Discord is the server: a private, invite-only space created for a group or a topic. Anyone can create a server or join existing ones through invites. Each server is divided into channels, so different conversations stay apart instead of running through one long chat.
Text channels hold written conversations, and a server can have one per subject. Voice channels work differently from a phone call. Clicking a voice channel connects you immediately, with no ringing or invitation. Other members can see who is already inside. From there you can talk, turn on video or share your screen. Outside servers, direct messages and group DMs cover private conversations, and you can also start calls from them.
Threads, forums and Stage channels
When a side topic appears in a text channel, members with the right permission can open a thread from any message. A thread is a temporary sub-conversation that closes itself after a period of inactivity without being deleted. It reopens when someone types in it.
Forum channels take this further for communities that discuss many topics at once. Every post becomes its own discussion, and tags label posts so members can filter by them.
Community servers can add Stage channels for events where a few people talk and the rest listen, such as Q&A sessions or town halls. Audience members join muted and use a raise-hand button to ask to speak, and moderators approve requests.
Roles, permissions and moderation
Roles control access in a Discord server. Each role carries a set of permissions. Roles have ranks: a member can only act on people whose highest role sits below their own. The @everyone role is the base for all members, while Administrator grants every permission.
Permissions can also be overridden per channel. Marking a channel as private removes viewing rights from @everyone, after which the owner grants access to selected roles or members.
AutoMod handles automated filtering. It can catch commonly flagged words from built-in lists, custom keywords, spam content and messages with too many mentions. AutoMod can block matching messages before posting, report them to a moderator-only channel, or impose a timeout.
Voice, video and Go Live
Inside a voice channel or a DM call, Discord’s Go Live feature streams a single application window, a whole screen or a detected game to the other participants. Up to 50 people can share video or screens in one voice chat at the same time, and each stream can have up to 50 viewers. Discord does not share stream audio on Linux or in browsers other than Chrome.
Stream quality depends on the account and the server. Free users stream at up to 720p and 30 fps, while Nitro subscribers can reach 4K at 60 fps. Boosted servers raise the limit for everyone in them. For microphone audio, Discord includes Krisp noise suppression at no cost. It filters non-voice sounds such as barking dogs or vacuum cleaners out of your own audio.
Activities and connected apps
Activities are small apps and games launched from the rocket icon during a voice call in a server or DM. Watch Together, for example, builds a shared YouTube playlist with synchronized playback. Others include chess, drawing games, word games and mini golf.
Beyond the built-in options, developers can build their own bots, commands and Activities on Discord’s platform. Server owners add these apps to bring automated tools and commands into their servers. Supported games can also show friends what someone is playing and let them join.
Nitro and Server Boosts
Nitro is a personal subscription: it raises the upload limit, allows longer messages and unlocks HD streaming. It also lets members use custom and animated emoji, stickers and soundboard sounds in any server. Nitro adds profile customization such as animated avatars, banners and per-server profiles. Nitro Basic covers a smaller set, including custom emoji everywhere, larger uploads and custom app icons.
Server Boosts, by contrast, improve a whole server for all its members. A full Nitro subscription includes two boosts that members can give to any server they belong to. As a server collects more boosts it moves through three levels:
| Level | Boosts | Main additions |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 100 emoji slots, 128 Kbps voice audio, 720p 60 fps streams, animated server icon |
| 2 | 7 | 150 emoji slots, 256 Kbps audio, 1080p 60 fps streams, larger uploads for all members, server banner, role icons |
| 3 | 14 | 250 emoji slots, 384 Kbps audio, larger uploads, animated banner, custom invite link |
