Discord is a chat app that’s available on a host of devices, from iPhone to Xbox.
Its services are targeted toward the gaming industry, but it is open to any niche with a group.
Discord is multifaceted, providing the user the ability to use text, video, and voice communication to organize themselves into communities called Servers.
The user may join up to 100 Servers, and the maximum number of channels per 100 Servers is 500.
There are currently 100 million active users.
How Does Discord Make Money?
Discord makes money through server boosts, game sales, and their Nitro™ package.
They’ve come through storms of monetization flops.
The merchandise store had to be shut down after two years of trial and error as a revenue builder along with other ups and downs.
There’s no doubt the platform has amazing potential, but as with most success stories, monetization is a temporary challenge.
Eventually, Discord instituted three successful income streams we’ve detailed here.
What Makes Discord Money?
There are three main products and services that make Discord their money.
First, let’s begin with their server boosting.
There are many groups that need more power to meet their dynamic needs, whatever they are.
The server boosting is a valuable subscription service across the board that gives each group type a broader reach.
This makes Discord formidable competition for Slack and Microsoft Teams.
Level 1 | Level 2 | Level 3 |
+50 Emoji Slots added to the already existing emoji slots for a grand total of 100. | Level Two brings you up to 150 emoji slots. | Level Three gives you 100 emoji slots for a grand total of 250 emoji slots. |
A boost in Audio Quality of 128 Kbps | A boost in Audio Quality of 256 Kbps | A Supercharged boost of 384 Kbps in Audio Quality |
720P 60FPS Boosts on Go Live™ streams | 1080P 60FPS Boosts on Go Live™ streams | 100MB for ONLY the server for all members |
Customized Server | Banner for Server | Personalized URL |
Invitation Background | 50MB for ONLY the server for all members | The complete package with Levels 1 and 2 Combined |
Your Server Icon is Animated | Server banner | Complete package with everything from levels 1 and 2. |
What Does A Server Boost Cost, And What’s The Process?
If you subscribe to Nitro™, then you will receive a 30% discount for boosting your server, which typically costs $4.99.
You may want to pay with another user as this will give you the perks of the Level 1 server boost.
If you need more, then invest in Level 2 which takes 15 server boosts, or the full Monty which takes 30 server boosts.
How Does Discord Make Money From Game Sales?
Discord makes money from Nitro™ subscribers through partnerships with large companies and game developers in an attempt to compete with gaming companies like Steam.
The game store is another trial and error endeavor closing only a year after launch in 2018, but now they do it this way.
When you subscribe, you’ll be privy to games that are exclusive to Discord.
In 2021, they created extensive partnerships with Sony PlayStation among others.
The developers must be verified first by Discord, and then they contract with them to allow their games to be sold on Discord to their subscribers.
Once a game is sold on Discord, they receive 10% of the game profit.
How Does The Discord Nitro™ Subscription Work?
We’ve mentioned Discord’s Nitro™ subscription throughout the article because it’s at the heart of how Discord makes money.
With this membership subscription, you receive all of what’s in income streams one and two, which are game sales and server boosters.
There are two tiers of this subscription detailed below.
Nitro Classic™: $4.99 per month or $49.99 per annum.
Nitro Premium™: $9.99 per month or $99.99 per annum.
You can refer to the chart in income stream one to see all the details, but here’s a detailed summary.
- You will be able to customize your banner and animate your Avatar along with a personal profile.
- Enjoy creative freedom to customize your emojis.
- Receive two server boosts with a 30% discount.
- Upload 100 MB of files (free limit is 6 MB).
- Ability to share screens. Go Live™ streaming and high resolution videos.
They also resemble the Netflix business model in their flexibility and frictionless experience.
You may try out the program for 30 days, which gives you enough time to use the bells and whistles.
You can cancel at any time.
Does Discord Have Other Revenue?
Discord is a large and fast-growing company. Its revenue streams are the aforementioned three.
However, according to Crunchbase, Discord is worth $2.05 Billion and receives funding to the tune of $280 million total to date from several funding rounds.
As far as revenue streams are concerned, they have it in control for now.
The premium Nitro™ packages are competitive with the main players in the field.
Discord has taken great strides and has been incredibly successful with its trials and errors in the early days of the company.
The spirit of forward movement has raised them to the $2-Billion mark in net worth.
Tech changes rapidly, and there are always more things to keep up with, which costs big money.
We have to keep in mind that your net worth today could be the funding you need for tomorrow.
In the future, they must continue to strive for better ways to earn high gains in the market.
Theirs is a fluctuating and growing market, both on the chat platform side and the gaming end, but Discord’s future looks good from here.
Bottom Line
Discord is fast becoming the number one gathering place for everything you want to do online.
They have a strong competitive edge because you can do on Discord what you can do on multiple apps and platforms.
You can chat, play games, hold meetings, and have a class all in one place.
Humans are convenience oriented, and we crave efficiency in our tech.
This is ultimately where Discord shines.
Most people who desire these types of platforms will continue to pay for the premium packages, so how Discord makes money will probably continue the same way with more surprises along the way in the future.
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