Discord is a cross-platform voice and text chat app originally designed for gamers, but since finding mainstream popularity, all kind of communities have migrated to it. Even TechSpot staff have moved away from Slack to use Discord full-time for team collaboration and communication.

Is Discord better than Zoom?

Zoom and Discord serve two different purposes. Discord is great for small and big team communication and collaboration via text or voice. Zoom is better suited for real-time online meetings and presentations.

Is Discord only for gamers?

Discord is great for gaming and voice chat. That's how Discord got started but today all kinds of communities have migrated to it. Just like Microsoft Teams or Slack, Discord offers public and private servers that anyone can create and join for free, and today it's widely used for team communication and collaboration.

Is Discord encrypted?

Discord uses basic encryption methods like TLS to protect text and images in transit but does not offer end-to-end encryption like WhatsApp or Telegram. Other community oriented platforms offer similar safety features for written messages, but some like Microsoft Teams do offer end-to-end encryption for VoIP calls.

Is Discord free?

Discord is free for voice, text, and video chat options with no restrictions. There is an optional "Nitro" paid membership that offers extra benefits, but even setting up a private server for your business can be done with no additional cost.

Is Discord safe?

Although Discord is a great messaging app, the platform does not offer end-to-end encryption for text or audio/video communication. While your data is encrypted in transit to Discord servers, it is stored on said servers. Even when you use the app's privacy settings to disable their ability to "Use data to improve Discord," they still collect this data and store it in their database.

Discord Nitro Basic and Nitro: What's the Difference?

Our most-popular Nitro plan unlocks access to all the available Nitro perks, including custom emoji and stickers anywhere, HD video streaming, and an expanded selection of our newly-released Activities, just to name a few.

Nitro Basic includes a selection of some of the most-loved Nitro features that help you better express yourself on Discord, including custom emoji anywhere, bigger file uploads, and more.

We're excited to continue growing Nitro and give users more ways to have fun and create lasting memories on Discord. In the United States, Nitro Basic will be available for $2.99 per month. For those living outside the United States, pricing is viewable within your User Settings > Nitro page once it's rolled out.

Features

Discord was created to bring people together around games. You've taught us that it can be used for so much more. People use Discord for all kinds of hanging out: from live karaoke nights, to screenshare group painting, to virtual wedding parties. People create Discord servers for gaming, yoga classes, comedy fan clubs, and even run entire podcasting businesses. Discord is for anyone who could use a place to talk with their friends and communities.

Download Discord and experience modern chat:

  • Voice chat: Join voice channels and chat with your group
  • Real-time messaging: Share video, images, and text in rich chat
  • Push notifications: Never miss a thing with @mentions and direct messages
  • Instant Invite: Easily add friends to your voice server by sharing the Instant Invite link
  • Direct messages: Send one-to-one private messages
  • Multiple server support: Manage all your game chat groups in one client
  • Organizable channels: Keep discussions on topic through structured communication

What's New

Internet safety is an industry-wide issue that requires a collaborative approach. Discord is deeply committed to helping to tackle this issue, both through our own interventions and with our partners. For Discord, safety is a common good. We want to make the entire internet - not just Discord - a better and safer place, especially for young people.

Leading up to Safer Internet Day 2025, we're excited to share how Discord is continuing to invest in bettering the internet ecosystem as a whole and providing additional tools for our teen users to make informed choices about their online experiences.

We have two exciting announcements today - Discord's founding role in a new cross-industry non-profit foundation called ROOST (Robust Open Online Safety Tools) and the global launch of our new safety tool, Ignore.

Since this year's Safer Internet Day theme is about protecting yourself from scams and frauds, we've also provided some helpful tips and tricks to keep in mind as you use the internet.

Introducing ROOST

As technologies continue to evolve, so does the dynamic safety landscape. This presents new challenges that no entity can tackle alone, and so continued industry investment in safety features is imperative to make the Internet a safer place for all.

Today, Discord and other founding partners – including OpenAI, Google, Roblox, Eric Schmidt, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, AI Collaborative, Patrick J. McGovern Foundation, and Project Liberty Institute - unveiled a new cross-industry non-profit foundation called ROOST.

ROOST - or Robust Open Online Safety Tools - addresses a critical gap in child safety and digital safety by providing free, open-source safety tools to organizations of all sizes. This will alleviate the need for organizations to reinvent the wheel in building tools that already exist, empowering them - especially smaller companies and public interest organizations - to focus on growing their platforms or services while promoting safety for online users.

ROOST will offer free, open source and easy-to-use tools to detect, review, and report child sexual abuse material (CSAM), leverage large language models to power safety infrastructure, and make core safety technologies more accessible and more user friendly.

With dedicated technical teams providing hands-on support, ROOST meets organizations where they are, helping them integrate robust safety measures while continuing to innovate.

In addition to being a founding partner, Discord's Chief Legal Officer Clint Smith will serve as Board Chair of ROOST and Discord is contributing funding, technology, and employee expertise to the foundation.

This builds on the progress and momentum we've seen over the past year in industry collaboration - signal sharing on bad actors via the Tech Coalitions' Lantern initiative, codifying safety best practices via the Digital Trust & Safety Partnership, training thousands of career professionals from around the world through Trust & Safety Professional Association and TrustCon. Discord is proud to be a part of this effort, helping to foster innovation, and urgently bring new safety tools to market. We're hopeful that together we'll protect even more users, children, and families to make the internet an even better place.

Helping users take space covertly: NEW Ignore feature launches!

Core to our work is providing a variety of controls and settings to give our users choice in their experience on Discord. Rolling out globally today, we're excited to introduce a new feature in our safety toolbox designed to help manage your social boundaries in a gentler way: Ignore.

With Ignore, you can take space from specific people without them knowing, so you can stay focused on the fun. Whether you just need some time away or want to take a more discreet route, Ignore lets you personalize your approach.

Currently, you can block a user to prevent interactions with them, but we've heard from our users that this can sometimes feel confrontational and scary. This is particularly the case for teen users who often want to take space without the person knowing - we built this tool for you!

Here's how it works:

  • Customize who gets your attention: When you choose to ignore a person, any new messages, DM and server message notifications, profiles, and activities from them are hidden.
  • Space without confrontation: When blocking doesn't feel right but you need some space from a person, Ignore helps you find that space without letting that person know.
  • Effortlessly protect your peace: You can easily ignore a person in all the places that you can usually block them and you can manage your ignore list at any time.

While tools like Ignore help you manage your interactions, it's equally important to stay aware of potential threats online. Keep reading for some tips on how to stay safe and protect yourself from scams.

Power-up your defenses: reminders on how to protect your account from scams

This year's Safer Internet Day theme is about protecting yourself and others from scams online.

Online scams can be serious, but with the right strategies, you can power-up your defenses and stay safe across the internet. Below are some tips to keep in mind while you're using Discord or chilling anywhere online. Stay alert and keep your guard up to outsmart those sneaky scammers!

Reminders and tips to stay in control:

  • Master Your Command Center: Take charge of your account settings, including privacy setups, friend requests, and authorized apps. Make sure everything is set just the way you want.
  • Avoid Temptations: If something seems way too perfect, take a pause. It might not be the real deal.
  • Guard Your Secret Codes: Your password is your secret weapon – don't share it with anyone.
  • Trust the True Players Only: Share personal info only with people you actually know and trust. This means people you have met in person or online and whose identity you can verify. Consider restricting who can DM with you. You can learn how to do this here.
  • Lock Down Your Loot: Never share or show your authorization tokens. They're the keys to your kingdom.
  • QR Code Quest: Don't scan mysterious QR codes from faces you can't truly recognize.
  • Double-Up Your Defense: Activate 2-Factor Authentication, just like equipping extra armor. Check out our 2FA blog for more details to set this up.

This Safer Internet Day and beyond, Discord is committed to making the internet as a whole a better, safer place and we are proud to continue to offer additional tools for our users to make informed choices that work best for them. We look forward to sharing more ways we're continuing this important work! Additionally, we're proud to collaborate with industry leading organizations. Check out these resources from a few of our partners below:

  • Sextortion: What to do if someone is blackmailing you with nudes - Thorn (USA)
  • Cybersecurity A Quick Guide for Parents & Teens - National PTA and ConnectSafely (USA)
  • How to Watch Out for Bots, Hackers, and Scams - Digital Wellness Lab (USA)

Finally, for users outside the US, Discord partners with ThroughLine Care, a global network for vetted helplines. The directory includes crisis support lines in over 100+ countries and is available in 11 languages. Users in the United States can text DISCORD to 741741 to connect with a live volunteer Crisis Counselor at Crisis Text Line: a free, 24/7, confidential text-based mental health service available in both English and Spanish.