Discord is a messaging and voice chat platform popular for creating and joining online communities called servers around interests, including gaming and other hobbies. Discord's story began with founders Jason Citron and Stan Vishnevskiy's attempt to build a better in-game communication platform for their multiplayer tablet game, Fates Forever. In the end, the underlying chat service became the actual product and was launched in 2015.
Initially, it was a tool for gamers to communicate. However, Discord gained a strong organic following through word-of-mouth and Reddit (RDDT -3.64%) posts. The COVID-19 pandemic further expanded its user base as people sought to maintain social connections online.
Discord quickly became a platform for millions to discuss anything from hobbies to online classes, evolving from a niche gaming app into a social communication hub that serves millions of users. Here’s what investors should know about Discord, what it does, how it makes money, and more.
Revenue
What it does
What does Discord do?
Discord is a platform for real-time text, voice, and video communication that allows users to create or join community servers organized around shared hobbies or pastimes. Users and server administrators can personalize their spaces with custom bots, emojis, notifications, and other automations to create unique and customized environments.
Discord has evolved from its gaming origins by consistently introducing new features and functionalities based on user feedback, so its platform has adapted to a wide range of communities and expanded its potential reach to new users. Discord caters to smaller, more private communities, which is a shift from the broad, often overwhelming nature of traditional social media.
Discord tends to appeal to users seeking deeper connections with other users who are aligned on similar topics of interest. Discord text channels are dedicated spaces for text-based conversations where users can share files, links, and media, while its voice channels allow users to join and talk with multiple people simultaneously, similar to a group phone call. Users can also host video calls, share their screens with others, or direct message one or more friends through Discord.
Revenue sources
How does Discord make money?
Discord relies on several other sources to generate revenue. Discord primarily makes money through its premium subscription service, Discord Nitro. This subscription is available in a standard Nitro subscription and a cheaper Nitro Basic tier. It provides perks such as custom emojis, larger file upload limits, animated avatars, profile customization, and high-resolution streaming for users.
Discord also makes money from advertisements. In 2024, Discord introduced a new advertising model called Quests, which offers users in-game rewards for streaming promoted video games. This system is similar to a task-and-reward model and aims to integrate advertising more organically into the platform's gaming-focused ecosystem.
Server boosts are another major revenue stream for Discord, where users can pay to boost their favorite servers to unlock perks like better audio quality, more custom emoji slots, and higher server upload limits for that server. Discord's largest server is the official Midjourney server, which is a community for an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered text-to-image tool with nearly 20 million members globally as of 2025.
Discord acts as a distribution platform for some game developers, so they take a small commission on game sales made through the platform, too. Other revenue sources for Discord include the sales of its own branded merchandise and other in-app items like animated stickers, collaborations with other businesses and brands on revenue-generating projects, and ticket sales to virtual events.
Financials
Discord's financials
As a private company, Discord does not release detailed financial reports, but market estimates and reports from 2024 and 2025 indicate it has been doing very well. Discord appears to be steadily increasing its revenue, diversifying its monetization strategies, and has made progress toward profitability.
Analysts estimate that Discord's annual revenue may be as high as $1 billion. While traditionally unprofitable, Discord has been moving toward breaking even. In March 2024, then-CEO and co-founder Jason Citron announced that the company was aiming to reach profitability that year by expanding its revenue streams.
However, the company has made organizational changes too, including laying off 17% of its workforce in early 2024. Discord has more than 200 million monthly active users, many of whom use the service for non-gaming purposes.
Like many tech businesses, the company's valuation has recently fluctuated. After reportedly reaching a valuation of around $15 billion in 2021, its valuation on secondary markets fell to approximately $10 billion in 2024, in line with broader tech market trends.
However, strong revenue growth and a consistent move to profitability could be helping to stabilize its value. The company has raised almost $1 billion in total funding from key investors, including major venture capital firms and large corporations like Tencent (OTC:TCEHY), Sony (SONY -5.29%), and Fidelity Investments.
Related investing topics
Recent developments
Recent developments
One of the biggest developments that many stock investors have been watching for is an initial public offering (IPO) announcement from Discord. There is no official or confirmed date for Discord's IPO, though speculation has suggested it could happen in late 2025 or early 2026.
The company is reportedly in the early stages of discussions with investment bankers such as JPMorgan (JPM -0.63%) and Goldman Sachs (GS -1.72%) in preparation for a potential public listing. The exact timing will depend on market conditions, Discord's financial readiness, and the completion of steps like filing registration paperwork with regulators.
Co-founder Jason Citron stepped down as CEO in spring 2025 to become a board member and advisor. He was replaced by Humam Sakhnini, a veteran of Activision Blizzard and King, in a move that could potentially pave the way for the company to go public.
Discord has also continued its push to be an all-purpose communication platform. That said, as of 2025, gaming remained the platform's primary use case and identity, with 74% of traffic coming from desktop users who likely use the app while playing PC games.
FAQ
How Does Discord Make Money: FAQ:
How does Discord make a profit?
Discord primarily makes money through its Nitro subscriptions and server boosts, which provide users with enhanced features for their profiles and servers. Other revenue sources include a commission on game sales within its platform and sales from virtual experiences. While Discord historically promoted an ad-free experience, the company has recently begun incorporating ads to diversify its revenue streams and move toward profitability.
Is Discord profitable?
No, Discord does not appear to be currently profitable, but management is focusing on achieving profitability by increasing its revenue from Nitro subscriptions, server boosts, and advertising to support its growth and user base.
Can I invest in Discord?
As a privately held company, Discord is not available for direct investment by the general public through a standard brokerage account.
Who owns Discord?
Discord is a privately held company. It remains an independent entity despite past acquisition rumors.
Venture capital firms and other investors have been instrumental in funding Discord's growth and product development.
