Alternatives to
9 Best Discord Alternatives in 2026
The best Discord alternatives depend on whether you prioritize cost, control, or a different workflow.
- Reviewed
- Sep 2026
- Open source
- 6
- Self-hosted
- 7
What you are leaving
Discord at a glance
- Pricing model
- Free with paid Nitro subscriptions for individuals; no paid team tier
- Deployment
- Desktop, mobile and browser; cloud only, no self-hosted option
- Licensing
- Proprietary; closed source
- Free tier
- Free with unlimited messages, voice and video, capped by file size and stream quality
- Community features
- Public server discovery, stage channels, events and forums
- Moderation
- Roles, permissions, AutoMod and a large third-party bot ecosystem
- Main gripe
- Closed platform with no self-hosting; data handling and moderation at scale are recurring complaints
- Best for
- Communities and gaming groups that want free voice, text and discovery in one place
Compare at a glance
Discord alternatives compared
Short facts side by side. Filter by what matters to your team, then open any row for the full decision brief.
| # | Product | Overlap | Substitutability | Free? | Starting price | Self-host | Open source | Migration | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Slack | Team chat | Partial replacement | Yes | — | No | No | Hard | |
| 02 | Mattermost | Team chat | Partial replacement | Yes | — | Yes | Yes | Hard | |
| 03 | Element | Group chat | Partial replacement | Yes | — | Yes | Yes | Hard | |
| 04 | Stoat | Community chat | Mostly replaces | Yes | — | Yes | Yes | Hard | |
| 05 | Zulip | Team chat | Partial replacement | Yes | $6.67/user/mo | Yes | Yes | Hard | |
| 06 | Mumble | Voice chat | Narrow overlap | Yes | — | Yes | Yes | Hard | |
| 07 | TeamSpeak | Voice chat | Narrow overlap | Yes | — | Yes | No | Hard | |
| 08 | Guilded | Community chat | Mostly replaces | Yes | — | No | No | Moderate | |
| 09 | Matrix | Chat protocol | Narrow overlap | Yes | — | Yes | Yes | Hard |
Community signal
What switchers report
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Frequently asked
Discord alternatives FAQ
- Is there a free Discord alternative?
- Yes. Stoat, Mumble, TeamSpeak, Matrix and Zulip all have free options, and Mattermost and Element both offer free self-hosted community editions. Discord itself is free, so the reason to switch is usually privacy, self-hosting or community moderation rather than cost.
- Which Discord alternative is best for a gaming community?
- TeamSpeak and Mumble are the closest fits for voice-first gaming communities. Both are built around low-latency voice with self-hosted servers and granular permissions, but neither has Discord's discovery features, bots or rich text channels.
- Which Discord alternative can I self-host?
- Mattermost, Element, Zulip, Mumble, TeamSpeak, Stoat and Matrix can all be self-hosted. Element and Matrix are the most direct replacements for Discord's server-and-channel model, while Mattermost and Zulip are aimed at workplace chat rather than communities.
- What is the closest open source alternative to Discord?
- Stoat (formerly Revolt) is the closest open source match, with servers, channels, voice chat, roles and bots in a familiar layout. Element, built on Matrix, is the stronger choice if you need federation or an established protocol rather than a single hosted service.
- Which alternative is best for a work team rather than a community?
- Slack and Mattermost are the strongest work-focused options. Slack is the mature hosted choice with the largest integration ecosystem, while Mattermost offers a self-hosted alternative with a similar channel model and a free community edition.
Switcher Reports
Tell us how your switch went.
Record the alternative you chose, why you switched, whether you still use it, and what new users should know.
Editorial method
Evidence before opinion.
We compare public product information and cite the sources used for each verified fact.