Discord vs Microsoft Teams
We give Discord and Microsoft Teams the same GPA: 3.4 out of 4.0. Discord grades higher on the free plan and platforms. Microsoft Teams grades higher on value for money and features. They get the same grade on ease of use.
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
Microsoft Teams
Chat, video meetings and calling tied into Microsoft 365
How we grade them
| 3.4GPADiscordVery good | 3.4GPAMicrosoft TeamsVery 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. | ATeams Essentials is $4.00 a person a month, paid yearly, with meetings for 300 and recordings with transcripts. Slack Pro is $7.25. And if your company's on Microsoft 365, you probably have it already. |
| 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. | BThe free version covers one person: unlimited chat, group calls of 60 minutes with up to 100 people and 5 GB of storage. That's for family, not for a team. The one-month trial of the paid plans needs a card. |
| 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. | AChat, channels, meetings for 300, breakout rooms, recordings with transcripts, a whiteboard and shared Office files. Phone lines, webinars and Copilot are there too, if you pay more. |
| 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. | B4.8 from about 3.4 million App Store ratings, which is hard to argue with. But the written reviews grumble about clutter and phone bugs, and Hacker News regulars call the desktop app slow. |
| 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. | BWindows, Mac, iPhone, Android and four browsers, and Microsoft's pricing page counts over 250 business apps that plug in. But there's no Linux app. Microsoft says Teams is no longer supported there. |
| Best for | free hangouts for friends and communities | offices that already pay for Microsoft 365 |
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 Microsoft Teams. How we grade
Where they differ
- Discord starts at $2.99 per month. Microsoft Teams starts at $4.00 per user / month, paid yearly.
- Only Discord lists a Linux app.
- Microsoft Teams also covers transcription, noise cancellation and whiteboard.
At a glance
| Discord | Microsoft Teams | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $2.99 per month | $4.00 per user / month, paid yearly |
| 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. | Microsoft Teams (free) is for one person: unlimited chat, group calls of up to 60 minutes and 100 participants, and 5 GB of cloud storage. |
| Free trial | None listed | One-month free trial of the paid plans; a credit card is required and it converts to a paid subscription. |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Discord Inc. | Microsoft |
| Price read from | discord.com | microsoft.com |
| 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
Microsoft Teams
- Organizations that already pay for Microsoft 365
- Small businesses that want meetings and chat without the full suite
- Companies that want phone calling inside their chat app
- Teams that co-edit Word, Excel and PowerPoint files
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.
Microsoft Teams
- The free version is built for one person: group calls stop at 60 minutes and 100 participants, with 5 GB of cloud storage.
- Teams Essentials and the Microsoft 365 Business plans stop at 300 users; larger organizations need Teams Enterprise or Microsoft 365 E3 or E5.
- There is no Linux desktop app: Microsoft points Linux users to a progressive web app and says the Linux client is no longer supported.
- Webinar hosting is left out of Teams Essentials and Business Basic, and phone service, Teams Premium and Copilot are separately priced 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.
Microsoft Teams
- Chat and channels
- Chats and channels hold conversations, shared files, Loop and OneNote pages and third-party apps. Paid plans include unlimited chat messages, file attachments and search.
- Video meetings
- Business plans allow meetings of up to 300 participants and 30 hours, with screen sharing, breakout rooms, custom backgrounds, Together mode and noise suppression.
- Recordings, transcripts and captions
- Paid plans record meetings with transcripts. Live captions cover more than 30 languages on the Microsoft 365 business plans and English only on Teams Essentials.
- Webinars
- Webinar hosting with attendee registration and reporting comes with Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot and the enterprise suites, not with Business Basic or Essentials.
- Teams Phone
- A cloud phone system added to a Teams license. Teams Phone Standard is $10.00 per user / month paid yearly, and US bundles that add a calling plan start at $13.00.
- Copilot and Teams Premium
- Microsoft 365 Copilot and Teams Premium are add-ons. Teams Premium costs $10.00 per user / month paid yearly and needs a plan with a Teams Enterprise license.
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.
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams (free)$0
For one person: unlimited chat, group calls of up to 60 minutes and 100 participants, tasks and polling, and 5 GB of cloud storage.
Microsoft Teams Essentials$4.00
per user / month, paid yearly
Teams on its own for up to 300 users: meetings of up to 300 people and 30 hours, recordings with transcripts, and 10 GB of storage per user.
Microsoft 365 Business Basic$7.00
per user / month, paid yearly
Suite plan that includes Teams, plus web and mobile Office apps, custom business email and 1 TB of cloud storage per user. Up to 300 users.
Microsoft Teams Enterprise$8.55
per user / month, paid yearly
Teams on its own for organizations of more than 300 people, with recordings, transcripts and 10 GB of cloud storage per user.
M365 Business Standard with Copilot$23.50
per user / month, paid yearly
Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot: Teams with webinar hosting, desktop Office apps and Copilot in the apps. Up to 300 users.
Microsoft 365 E3$39.00
per user / month, paid yearly (annual commitment)
Enterprise suite for any size that includes Teams with webinars, desktop Office apps and added security. Microsoft 365 E5 is $60.00.
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.
Microsoft Teams
- Nonprofit
75% off Microsoft 365 Business Premium for nonprofits
Eligible nonprofits can get Microsoft 365 Business Premium, a suite that includes Microsoft Teams, at a 75% discount after registering and confirming eligibility.
