10 Best Discord Alternatives:
When it comes to streaming, Discord is the first name that comes to mind to users who want seamless uninterrupted streaming with large userbase. However, there still some shortcomings especially with the UI that can make a user who just want to manage a group of people very confusing to understand the functionality of Discord. And that just makes us want to look at the alternatives that are available to discord.
Why looking for Discord Alternatives?
Although Discord is known for its beautiful UI, ease of use, private servers, and gaming-related features, it has some shortcomings that are not commonly mentioned. For example, Discord does not support end-to-end encryption (even for private messages), which is unsatisfactory as many competitors have been implemented long time ago
Additionally, the file upload limit is only 8MB for local users and 50MB for paid users, which is very low compared to other competitors. Finally, there are reports that intruders are spamming private servers, which are major security issues. That is why you should look for an alternative to Discord.
Here are the Alternatives for Discord:
- Telegram
Telegram may seem like a WhatsApp rival, but at its heart, the popular messaging service is more than that. You can say, telegram competes more with Discord than WhatsApp. It has many features, such as instant chatting, supporting hosting communities (private and public), public channels, infinite customization and more.
The good part is that Telegram now supports video calling and applies to single and group calls. Just like Discord, you can create bots to manage large groups, integrate scripts and automate queries. Having said that, the least that telegram can differentiate by providing end-to-end encryption for private messaging.
At the same time, there are no major differences in terms of functionality So even if you are looking for an app like Discord but with enhanced security, Telegram will be the right choice. After all, the service is completely free, so you will have no problems navigating from Discord to Telegram.
In short, Telegram brings a ton of features like Discord with end-to-end encryption, you can give it a try. You can find the best telegram features in our linked article.
Key features
- Optional E2E support
- Boatload of features
- Create public and private channels
- Can manage channels with bots
- Free to use
- Upload limit up to 2GB
Supported platforms: Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web
Price: Free
- Element
While Discord is a great app for gamers, it does not provide end-to-end encryption, which means your conversations are not as secure as you would like. If you are serious about privacy and are looking for the best discord alternative that offers better privacy, you should check out Element – the text and voice chat app that provides end-to-end encryption.
Element is primarily for team collaboration, it has a set of tools to help streamline your team’s workflow. The element built into the Matrix Open Communication Protocol allows you to talk to anyone in the Matrix.org ecosystem.
This can really help if someone you want to talk to uses different matrix-based software. Although it is not designed for gaming, it can be used by Gamers to allow users share any messages, pictures, videos and files in any size group. Also, group video calls and voice calls are supported.
Key Features
- E2E Supported
- Clean UI
- Matrix protocol
- Calls with low latency
- Supports file transfer of all types
Supported platforms: Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web
Price: Free, Pro Plan starts from $ 2 per month
- Team Speak
Long before Discord became a thing, many gamers relied on TeamSpeak for their game-communication needs, and some dedicated fans were still around.
Like Discord, TeamSpeak uses the Opus codec for low latency voice coms and one can say that it has great voice and chat capabilities that meet on lines of Discord. Also, now TeamSpeak’s UI has gone through a major overhaul while looks pretty similar to Discord
TeamSpeak allows users to create dedicated servers as per their needs, and other users can join these servers to communicate with each other on a common topic – be it games or productivity. To keep your conversations safe and private, TeamSpeak uses AES encryption, which ensures that all your conversations are safe from the spies.
Unlike Discord which does have browser support, you need to download the TeamSpeak client to use on your device. Although TeamSpeak is compatible with many platforms, you will have to shell out some money to set up a new server.
Key features
- Great for gamers
- AES encryption
- Create dedicated servers
- New UI in beta
- Chat and calls
- Cross-platform
Supported platforms: Windows, Android, MacOS, Linux, iOS
Price: Free for Windows, MacOS and Linux; $0.99 for Android and iOS
- Slack
If you are looking for the best Discord replacement for professional use, check out Slack – a team messaging platform that looks like Discord. The service has a clean and simple user interface like Discord, but it leads to a more professional setting so you won’t find any gamer-y stuff.
Instead, you will find many useful features that are intended to improve your productivity in the workplace, however, if you are looking for voice coms that are lag free, you should definitely check out some other options. It differs from Slack Discord by providing links to over 800 third party software used by businesses.
Slack also allows you to receive notifications through the software you use without having to open the app. File sharing in Slack is easy and convenient as uploads are limited to 1GB, while Discord allows sharing files up to 8MB in size on the platform.
If you are looking for a chat app for your business slack is definitely worth a shot for businesses and not for ones looking to game games with friends.
Key features
- Great for professional users
- Clean UI
- Integration with third party applications
- 1GB upload limit
- Chat, voice, video call
Supported platforms: Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS
Price: With limited functionality, the payment plan starts at $2.67 per month
- Overtone
Overtone is another Discord alternative that is easy to use and looks like its rival. Overtone aims to bring unique technology based on Vivox, one of the best integrated voice chat services used by popular games such as Fortnight, PUBG and League of Legends, directly to gamers around the world.
The simple and lightweight application does not use tons of resources on your system and is very easy to set up. Like Discord, overtone is free to use and include essential voice and text chat features, supported text messages, voice chats and group chats.
Along with that, Overton introduces couple of social features that help you connect with people with similar interests and find teams that play the same game. Like Discord, you can also run overtone in a web browser, so you do not need to download a specific client for your communication needs.
Key features
- Great app for gamers
- Chat, voice, video call
- No client required, just run in the browser
- Integrates well with publishers
- Free to use
Supported platforms: Windows, Web
Price: Free
- Skype
If you are not looking for all the bells and whistles, that all the above-mentioned applications offer and need to get the job done with simple and familiar service, you should consider using Skype for your in game-communication needs.
The popular text and voice chat service is very easy to use and provides all the basic functions needed to communicate with your friends in a group. Skype allows users to share files in chat with video chat capabilities, which may not be easy when gaming, but can be useful if you use it in a professional setting.
Note that Skype weighs in on system resources that affect your gaming experience depending on your system configuration.
Key features
- Simple and easy to use
- Chat, audio and video calls
- Free to use
- Share files up to 300MB
Supported platforms: Windows, MacOS, Android, iOS
Price: Free
- Steam chat
Another Discord alternative you can try is Steam Chat, Valve’s own messaging and voice chat service for gamers, which is a great alternative if you do not want to use Discord. Using Steam’s chat feature is free and you can create your own groups with friends and talk via text or voice chat.
To make it easier for anyone in your group to join, Steam allows users to share unique URLs (just like in Discord) that you can instantly join in a pre-created group. Steam allows group administrators to set roles for members with different permissions, including the ability to exclude other members, manage group information, and set chat controls.
Although the Discord server allows only one role per user, Steam group members can have multiple roles to moderate the group and its contents. Like Discord and OverTone, SteamChat also has a web client, which means you can use the service without first downloading Steam on your system.
Key features
- Great for gamers
- Create groups and chat
- Automatic control
- Voice call
- Free to use
Supported platforms: Windows, MacOS, Linux
Price: Free
- Tox
If you are using Discord other than gaming and need a little more privacy, you should try Tax. Tox uses military-grade encryption, which means all your conversations on the platform are fully secure.
Tax is also very easy to use, it has a clean but up-to-date interface that you can get used to in minutes. It supports text, voice, video chat and screen sharing feature if you want to show your team anything on your system.
It also has a file sharing feature, which is a great addition to Toc in professional settings. However, what makes Tox unique is that it has no central servers and the entire network is made up of its users. This means that you do not have to deal with server crashes that may interfere with your workflow.
Key features
- Strong encryption
- Decentralized servers
- Simple interface
- No interruptions
- Chat, audio and video calls
Supported platforms: Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS
Price: Free
- Microsoft teams
Microsoft teams may not be for gamers, but people can use it to their advantage. Like Discord, you can chat live with your peers and plan along. Voice and video calls are now supported by individuals and groups.
Also, you can transfer files with MS teams and the upload limit is 100GB. There’s no point of comparing with Discord as it hardly offers the upload limit of 8 MB under free plan and up to 50 MB under the paid nitro plan. In addition, MS teams now offer a plan-based plan with reasonable benefits.
The only drawback of Microsoft teams is that you cannot host communities – public or private – which is painful for gamers and many Discord users. However, if you are looking for an app like Discord Native App for direct collaboration with your team members, MS Teams is a valuable choice.
Key features
- Collaborate with team members
- File upload limit is 100GB
- Chat, voice and video calls
- Available for free
- Third party application integration
Supported platforms: Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS, Web
Price: Free, General, payment plan starts from $ 5 per month
- Mumble
Last on our list is Mumble, an open source VoIP platform designed for low latency audio calling. Like TeamSpeak 3, Mumble requires a standalone client to work and does not have browser support, something many Discord users prefer.
However, like Discord, Mumble is customizable and available on many platforms. Mumble chats also allow encryption, which is great for people who are concerned about their privacy, and its authentication feature prevents random people from entering your chat room, however, it does not offer DDoS protection like Discord.
Mumber also works very efficiently, as it usually works up to 20kbps in your bandwidth, which is an advantage that Discord cannot provide. Compared to Discord, Mumble’s voice quality is also excellent and has a positional sound feature that sets it apart from other VoIP software.
Key features
- Open source
- Less delayed audio calling
- Create your own server
- Chat encryption
Supported platforms: Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, Windows
Price: Free, Paid Plan 15 users starting from $7.50 per month
