Discord vs Element
We give Discord and Element the same GPA: 3.4 out of 4.0. Discord grades higher on ease of use. Element grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Discord
Free text, voice and video chat built around servers
How we grade them
| 3.4GPADiscordVery good | 3.4GPAElementVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BNobody has to pay. Nitro Basic is $2.99 a month and Nitro is $9.99, but they buy personal perks like emoji, bigger uploads and HD streaming. There's nothing for a company to buy, which cuts both ways. | BNo prices are published, so we can't set it against what team chat usually costs. Enterprise is priced per seat a month through sales and starts from 100 users. Sovereign, the air-gapped one, is priced per deployment. |
| Free plan and trial | AText, voice and video chat, servers, direct messages and streaming are all free. Nitro only raises limits like upload size, stream quality and message length. You can run a whole community without paying. | AThe app is free for personal use on a public server, with unlimited history. Element Server Suite Community is free and open source too, for 1 to 100 users, with Element Call included. Element does say Community isn't meant for commercial production use. |
| Features | BDrop-in voice rooms, video, screen sharing, game streaming, bots and end-to-end encrypted calls. But it's made for friends and communities, so there's no admin tier for companies, and text isn't encrypted the way calls are. | ARooms with threads, polls, voice messages and reactions, plus voice and video calls for two people or a group. All of it is end-to-end encrypted by default. Servers can federate with other Matrix servers, and a room can embed a whiteboard or Jira. |
| Ease of use | B4.7 from about 3.6 million App Store ratings, so plenty of people cope. But one reviewer talks of a sharp learning curve and friends who gave up, and phone redesigns have annoyed regulars since 2019. | CFor one person it's simple: get the app and join a public server. For an organization it's another story, as the pricing page lists only servers you host yourself. No rating is on record to go by either. |
| Platforms and integrations | AWindows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, Android and the browser, plus PlayStation, Xbox and Meta Quest. There's an official API and an App Directory. It's on pretty much everything you own. | AWeb, Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and Android. Rooms take bots and widgets such as NeoBoard, OpenProject and Jira. And because it runs on Matrix, it can talk to other Matrix-based systems. |
| Best for | free hangouts for friends and communities | encrypted chat on servers you control |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Discord and Element. How we grade
Where they differ
- Element is open source, self-hostable and end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
At a glance
| Discord | Element | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $2.99 per month | Not published |
| Free plan | Text, voice and video chat, servers, direct messages and streaming are free. Nitro raises limits such as upload size, stream quality and message length. | The Element app is free for personal use on a public server, and Element Server Suite Community is a free AGPL self-hosted edition for 1 to 100 users. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Discord Inc. | Element Creations Ltd |
| Price read from | discord.com | element.io |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Discord
- Gaming groups and friends who want always-open voice chats
- Online communities that need a free place to gather
- Groups that stream games or screens to each other
- Developers building bots and apps on a chat API
Element
- Governments and regulated organizations that self-host encrypted chat
- Organizations that need air-gapped deployments
- Groups that want to federate with other Matrix servers
- Individuals and communities who want a free encrypted messenger
Worth knowing
Discord
- The paid plans are personal Nitro subscriptions; the site lists no per-seat business plan or admin tier for companies.
- Uploads are capped at 50 MB on Nitro Basic and 1 GB on Nitro, and HD streaming needs Nitro.
- Discord says Nitro prices vary by country and plan, so the US prices listed here may not match what the app shows elsewhere.
Element
- No prices are published: Enterprise is priced per seat per month and Sovereign per deployment, both through sales, and Enterprise starts from 100 users.
- The free Community server edition covers 1 to 100 users and, the vendor says, is not intended for production in commercial environments.
- For organizations, the pricing page lists only self-hosted and air-gapped deployments; it does not list a plan hosted by Element.
- Whitelabelled apps and the cross domain gateway are sold as add-ons.
Key features
Discord
- Servers with text and voice chats
- A server is a customizable space for a group or community. Members hop in and out of its voice or text chats without having to call or invite anyone.
- Video chat and streaming
- Video chat and screen share work in direct messages and group DMs, and Go Live streams a game to a server. HD streaming is a Nitro perk.
- Direct messages and group DMs
- A friends list lets people talk outside of servers, with voice calls, video chat and screen sharing available directly in DMs and group DMs.
- Activities and Soundboard
- Activities let a group watch videos or play built-in games together inside Discord, and the Soundboard plays sound clips during voice calls.
- Custom emoji and profiles
- Servers can upload their own emoji and stickers. Nitro lets a member use them anywhere and adds custom profiles, app icons and color themes.
- Apps and API
- Discord has an official API, a developer portal and an App Directory, and consoles can be linked so PlayStation and Xbox players join the same chats.
Element
- End-to-end encryption by default
- The platform is end-to-end encrypted by default, including voice and video, and devices are verified by QR code or an emoji string.
- Rooms and messaging
- Rooms organize team discussions, with threads, read receipts, attachments, voice messages, polls, reactions, invite-only private rooms and unlimited history.
- Element Call
- End-to-end encrypted voice and video for 1:1 and group conversations. Element Call is also included in the free Community server edition.
- Matrix federation
- Built on the Matrix open standard, so separate organizations can communicate across servers and frontends. Administrators can enable or block federation.
- Element Server Suite
- The self-hosted backend. Pro adds the Synapse Pro homeserver, auto-scaling, high availability, an admin interface, LDAP and SCIM integration, and auditing.
- Widgets and integrations
- Interactive apps can be embedded in rooms, including a whiteboard (NeoBoard) and project management tools such as OpenProject and Jira, alongside bots.
Plans
Discord
Free$0
Text, voice and video chat, servers, direct messages and group DMs, without the Nitro perks.
Nitro Basic$2.99
per month
A selection of Nitro perks: custom emoji anywhere, 50 MB uploads and custom app icons.
Nitro$9.99
per month ($99.99 yearly on the US App Store)
Everything in Basic plus 1 GB uploads, HD streaming, custom profiles, 2 server Boosts, messages up to 4,000 characters and up to 200 servers.
Element
Community$0
Self-hosted Element Server Suite Community: open source under AGPL, for 1 to 100 users, with Element Call. Not meant for commercial production use.
EnterpriseCustom
Self-hosted Element Server Suite Pro from 100 users, priced per seat per month through sales: Synapse Pro, SSO, LDAP, auditing and SLA-backed support.
SovereignCustom
Air-gapped Element Server Suite Pro, priced per deployment, with a dedicated mobile push gateway and no dependence on internet connectivity.
Ways to pay less
Discord
- Annual discount
About 17% off Nitro when paid yearly
Discord's US App Store listing shows Nitro Yearly at $99.99 against $9.99 a month, about 17% less than twelve monthly payments.
- By country
Localized Nitro pricing in some countries
Discord's Nitro page says the cost depends on your country and plan, and that localized pricing for Nitro and Nitro Basic is available in some places and being extended. It does not name the countries or prices there.
Element
No public discounts listed.
