Discord
Discord takes broad legal protections for itself while giving users very limited recourse: if you're in the US or Canada, you can't sue Discord in court and any compensation you could receive is capped at just $100, with only one year to bring a claim at all. Everything you post grants Discord a wide license to use and share your content, your public posts can feed its AI systems, and your account can be deleted at any time without warning or explanation. Discord collects significant data about you — including what apps are running on your device — enriches it with outside data broker information, shares some of it with advertisers and law enforcement, and keeps it indefinitely without a clear deletion timeline. While Discord offers a few user-friendly features like data export, account deletion, and an appeals process, the overall terms strongly favor the company over its users.
Last analyzed
Heads up: this analysis is AI-generated, can be incomplete or wrong, and is not legal advice. Use it as a starting point and read the original document before you agree — see our Terms.
Clause-by-clause breakdown
Every clause we flagged in Discord's agreement, with what it means for you.
Discord keeps your data as long as it deems necessary.
“We retain personal information until we determine it is no longer needed for the processing purposes for which we collected or retain it or for legal compliance. You can learn more about data retention periods in our data retention policy.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord keeps your data for as long as it decides it needs it, with no specific maximum retention period stated in the policy itself. The actual retention periods are in a separate linked document, making it hard to understand upfront how long your data is kept.
What you can do: Visit Discord's data retention policy (linked in the privacy policy) to understand specific retention periods, and delete your account if you want data removed sooner.
Discord can change its privacy policy with limited notice.
“We will update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We always indicate the date the last changes were published, and if changes are significant, we'll provide a more prominent notice as required by law, such as by emailing you or highlighting the changes within the services.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord can update its privacy policy at any time. Only 'significant' changes trigger a more prominent notice like an email. Minor changes may go unnoticed, and continued use of the service after changes implies acceptance.
What you can do: Periodically check the Privacy Policy page for updates, and watch for notification emails from Discord about policy changes.
US/Canada users must use private arbitration, not courts, for disputes.
“IF YOU'RE A U.S. OR CANADIAN RESIDENT YOU ALSO AGREE TO THE FOLLOWING "AGREEMENT TO ARBITRATE" WHICH CONTAINS MANDATORY ARBITRATION PROVISIONS. PLEASE READ THIS SECTION CAREFULLY – IT MAY SIGNIFICANTLY AFFECT YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS, INCLUDING YOUR RIGHT TO FILE A LAWSUIT IN COURT: Only after engaging in the Informal Dispute Resolution process set forth in these Terms, and only after those efforts fail to resolve the Dispute, then either Party may initiate binding arbitration as the sole means to resolve Disputes, subject to the terms of this Agreement to Arbitrate and the applicable arbitration rules. ARBITRATION MEANS THAT YOU WAIVE YOUR RIGHT TO A JURY TRIAL. In some instances, the costs of arbitration could exceed the costs of litigation and the right to discovery may be more limited in arbitration than in court. YOU HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT YOU AND DISCORD ARE EACH WAIVING THE RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. Opt-out. You can decline this Agreement to Arbitrate–and no other provision of these terms–by emailing an opt-out notice to [email protected] within 30 days of September 29, 2025 or when you first register your Discord account, whichever is later; otherwise, you shall be bound to arbitrate Disputes in accordance with the terms of these paragraphs.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: If you live in the US or Canada, you must resolve almost all disputes with Discord through private arbitration rather than in court. This means you give up your right to a jury trial, and the process is handled by a private company (NAM or ADR Services) rather than a public court. Arbitration can cost more than litigation and gives you fewer tools to gather evidence. You have 30 days from account creation or September 29, 2025 (whichever is later) to opt out by emailing [email protected].
What you can do: Email [email protected] within 30 days of creating your account (or by October 29, 2025 if you're an existing user) to opt out of mandatory arbitration and preserve your right to sue in court.
You only have one year to file any legal claim against Discord.
“No action, regardless of form, arising out of or relating to a Dispute may be brought by either Party more than one (1) year after the cause of action has accrued.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: You have only one year from when a problem occurs to take any legal action against Discord. Standard statutes of limitations are typically 2–6 years depending on the claim type. This shortened window can cause you to lose your legal rights simply because you didn't act quickly enough, even if you were unaware of the harm.
What you can do: If you believe Discord has harmed you, consult a lawyer promptly — do not wait, as your window to act is much shorter than normal legal deadlines.
Discord's maximum payout to you is just $100.
“BESIDES THE TYPES OF LIABILITY WE CANNOT LIMIT BY LAW (AS DESCRIBED IN THIS SECTION), DISCORD LIMITS OUR LIABILITY TO YOU TO THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNTS YOU HAVE PAID US IN THE THREE MONTHS BEFORE YOU FIRST ASSERT A CLAIM OR (B) $100 USD (OR THE EQUIVALENT IN YOUR LOCAL CURRENCY).”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Even if Discord causes you significant harm — for example, a data breach exposing your private messages or financial information — the most you can recover is $100 or three months of subscription fees, whichever is higher. For most free users, this cap is $100 regardless of the actual damage suffered.
What you can do: Be aware that Discord's financial exposure to you is capped at $100 for most users; factor this into decisions about what sensitive information you share on the platform.
Some of your data is shared with third-party ad platforms.
“We may provide limited information to advertising platforms to help us reach people that we think will like our products and to measure the performance of our ads shown on those platforms. We do this to help bring more users to Discord and make our business successful, and provide only the information required to facilitate these services. This may include information like the fact that you installed our app or registered to use Discord.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord shares some user data (such as app installation or registration status) with advertising platforms like Facebook or Google to run and measure its own ad campaigns. While described as limited, this still involves sharing your data with third-party ad networks.
What you can do: Review and adjust your privacy settings in User Settings to limit personalization and data sharing for advertising purposes.
Discord shares your data with law enforcement when legally required.
“We may disclose information in response to a request for information if we believe disclosure is required by law, including meeting national security or law enforcement requirements. Where allowed and feasible, we may attempt to provide you with prior notice before disclosing your information in response to such a request.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord will hand over your data to law enforcement or government agencies when legally required. It says it will try to notify you beforehand where 'allowed and feasible,' but this is not guaranteed. National security requests may come with gag orders preventing any notice.
What you can do: Review Discord's Transparency Report (linked in the policy) to understand how often and under what circumstances data is shared with governments.
Your data can be transferred if Discord is sold or acquired.
“We may disclose information if Discord is evaluating and/or engaging in a merger, acquisition, reorganization, bankruptcy, or sale, transfer, or change in ownership of Discord or any of its assets.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: If Discord is sold, merges with another company, or goes through bankruptcy, your personal data can be transferred to the new owner. You have no opt-out right for this transfer, and the new owner may have different privacy practices.
What you can do: There is no direct action to prevent this. If Discord is acquired, review the new owner's privacy policy and consider deleting your account if you disagree with the new terms.
Discord receives data about you from outside advertisers and data brokers.
“We may also receive information about you from advertisers and third-party data providers, such as demographic information and how you engage with other products and services outside of Discord.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord buys or receives data about you from outside data brokers and advertisers, including demographic profiles and your behavior on other websites and apps. This data is combined with what Discord already knows about you to build a more complete profile.
What you can do: Limit personalization settings in User Settings to reduce how this combined data is used to target you within Discord.
Discord can read what apps or games are running on your device.
“We may also collect limited information from your device while Discord is running (such as the game you are playing).”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: While Discord is open, it can read information from your device beyond just your Discord activity — for example, detecting which game or application you have running. This is used for features like activity status, but it means Discord monitors your broader device activity.
What you can do: Disable activity status in User Settings > Activity Privacy to stop Discord from reading what applications you have running.
Discord gets a broad, transferable license to use everything you post.
“Your content is yours, but you give us a license (which is a form of permission) to it when you use Discord. Your content may be protected by certain intellectual property rights. We don't own those. But by using our services, you grant us a license to use, reproduce, distribute, create derivative works of, display, and perform your content. The rights you grant in this license are for the limited purpose of providing, developing, and improving our services as permitted by applicable laws. This license is worldwide, non-exclusive (which means you can still license your content to others), royalty-free (which means there are no fees for this license), sublicensable, and transferable.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: When you post anything on Discord — messages, images, videos — you grant Discord a broad, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, copy, distribute, and create derivative works from that content. The license is sublicensable and transferable, meaning Discord can pass these rights to third parties. While the stated purpose is limited to 'providing, developing, and improving' services, the breadth of rights granted is very wide.
What you can do: Avoid posting sensitive, proprietary, or commercially valuable content on Discord if you are concerned about how broadly it may be used.
You must pay Discord's legal costs if your actions cause them a lawsuit.
“You will indemnify and hold Discord and its officers, directors, employees and agents harmless from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, and costs (including reasonable legal and accounting fees) related to (a) your access to or use of our services or third-party services, (b) your content, (c) your violation of these terms, or (d) your negligence or willful misconduct.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: If someone sues Discord because of something you did or posted on the platform, you are required to pay Discord's legal fees and any damages. This is a broad indemnity clause — it covers not just intentional wrongdoing but also your general use of the service and third-party services accessed through Discord.
What you can do: Be careful about what you post and how you use Discord, as you could be personally liable for legal costs if your activity leads to a claim against Discord.
Discord can delete your account at any time for any reason.
“Subject to applicable law, we reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account and/or your access to some or all of our services with or without notice, at our discretion for any reason, or for the following reasons: ... Continuing to allow your account to be active, giving you access to some or all services, or hosting your content creates risk for Discord, other users, or third parties.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord can suspend or terminate your account at any time, for any reason, including the vague catch-all that your account 'creates risk' for Discord. While they say they'll give advance notice when reasonable, there is no guarantee. This means you could lose access to servers you've built, messages, and paid features without warning.
What you can do: Regularly back up important content and server information, and avoid storing anything critical solely on Discord.
Discord can share your content with third parties to protect its own interests.
“We reserve the right to block, remove, and/or permanently delete your content if we determine it is in breach of these terms, our Community Guidelines, our other policies, or any applicable law or regulation, or if it creates risk for Discord or negatively impacts the experience or interests of other Discord users to continue to make it available. You agree that we may disclose your content to third parties outside of the services when we believe we're required to do so by law or regulation or that doing so is necessary to prevent harm to a person or to protect Discord's rights and property.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord can share your content with third parties not just when legally required, but also when they decide it's 'necessary to prevent harm' or to 'protect Discord's rights and property.' The second category is broad and subjective, giving Discord wide discretion to disclose your private messages or posts.
What you can do: Do not share highly sensitive personal information in Discord messages, as they may be disclosed to third parties at Discord's discretion.
Discord tracks your activity to show you personalized ads and content.
“Discord's services may be personalized to each user based on a variety of factors, including their activity, preferences they identified in their Settings, and servers they belong to, so that you can see content and communities that may be of interest to you (such as features or activity on Discord, promotions from us, and sponsored content). You can control whether and to what extent Discord personalizes your experience in your Settings.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord tracks your activity, server memberships, and preferences to personalize your experience and show you sponsored content (ads). While you can adjust personalization settings, the default is for this tracking to be on. The term 'sponsored content' confirms advertising is part of the personalization system.
What you can do: Go to your Discord Settings and review personalization options to limit how your activity is used for targeted content and ads.
Discord owns your feedback forever with no compensation to you.
“By sending us feedback, you grant us a non-exclusive, perpetual, irrevocable, transferable license to use the feedback and ideas generated from the feedback without any restrictions, attribution, or compensation to you.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: If you send Discord a suggestion or feedback, they can use it forever, in any way, without paying you or crediting you. This is a permanent, irrevocable grant — you cannot take it back. While common in the industry, it means any product idea you share becomes Discord's to use freely.
What you can do: Be mindful that any feedback or feature suggestions you send to Discord become theirs to use permanently without compensation.
Discord does not sell your personal data to third parties.
“We don't sell your personal information. Our business is funded through subscriptions, paid products, and sponsored content, not based on selling your personal information to third parties.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord explicitly states it does not sell personal data to third parties. Revenue comes from subscriptions, paid products, and sponsored content (like Quests). This is a meaningful user protection compared to many ad-supported platforms.
Voice and video calls are end-to-end encrypted by default.
“Voice and video communications on Discord are designed to be end-to-end encrypted. You can verify that your calls are encrypted in the service. Learn more about Discord's end-to-end encryption.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord uses end-to-end encryption for voice and video calls, meaning even Discord cannot access the content of those calls. Text messages and other data are encrypted in transit and at rest, but are not end-to-end encrypted (Discord can access them).
What you can do: Use Discord's voice and video call features for sensitive conversations, and verify the encryption indicator within the app.
You can download all your Discord data within 30 days.
“If you want to see what information we have collected about you, you can request a copy of your data in the Data & Privacy section of your User Settings. You should receive your data packet within 30 days. Data is delivered in common digital formats, including JSON and any other file format you used when uploading attachments to the services.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: Discord provides a self-service data export tool directly in the app. You can download all your data in standard formats (JSON and others) within 30 days of requesting it. This is a meaningful user right that many services do not offer.
What you can do: Go to User Settings > Privacy & Safety > Request all of my Data to download a copy of everything Discord holds about you.
You can delete your account yourself directly in the app.
“Your right to terminate. You're free to stop using Discord's services at any time and for any reason. To terminate this agreement, you may delete your Discord account through the Settings page in the Discord app (the gear icon next to your username) and discontinue use of the services.”
Quoted verbatim from the agreement What this means: You can delete your own Discord account directly through the app's Settings page without needing to contact support or go through a manual process. This is a user-friendly feature that gives you direct control over your account.
What you can do: If you want to leave Discord, go to Settings (gear icon) > My Account > Delete Account to remove your account yourself.
Frequently asked questions
Is Discord's Terms & Conditions agreement fair?
- BeforeYouClick grades Discord D on an A–E scale, where A is the fairest. Its agreement contains 5 critical clauses, 11 warnings and 4 good practices.
What are the biggest problems with Discord's terms?
- The most serious clauses we flagged are: No Clear Data Retention Time Limit, Policy Changes With Minimal User Notice and Forced Arbitration for US and Canadian Users.
How long does it take to read Discord's terms?
- Discord's agreement takes about 42 minutes to read in full, across 20 clauses we reviewed. The summary on this page covers the same ground in under a minute.
When was Discord's agreement last analyzed?
- We last read Discord's Terms & Conditions on July 3, 2026. Companies change their terms without notice, so check the original document for the current version.
Is this analysis legal advice?
- No. This analysis is AI-generated, can be incomplete or wrong, and is not legal advice. Use it as a starting point and read the original agreement before you agree to it.
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