---
title: "Fluxer vs Discord: is Fluxer a good Discord alternative?"
description: "Fluxer is open source, free to self-host and shows no ads. How it compares with Discord on price, privacy, features, apps and stability, and where Discord is ahead today."
url: "https://fluxer.com/help/fluxer-vs-discord"
language: "en"
last_updated: "2026-11-01"
category: "About Fluxer"
---

> Index of Fluxer's official pages for AI agents: https://fluxer.com/llms.txt
> Links to Fluxer pages go to their Markdown versions when they have one. For other Fluxer help, policy or blog links, remove any #section part and add .md to the end.

# Fluxer vs Discord: is Fluxer a good Discord alternative?

Fluxer is open source, free to self-host and shows no ads. How it compares with Discord on price, privacy, features, apps and stability, and where Discord is ahead today.

Fluxer is an open source chat app for friends, groups and communities, with text chat, voice and video calls and screen sharing. The biggest differences from Discord are that its server and apps are open source, that anyone can run their own instance without paying Fluxer anything and that Fluxer shows no ads or sponsored content.

Nothing on Fluxer is end-to-end encrypted yet. We plan it with no setting to turn it off, for calls in 2026 and for DMs and group DMs with a stable release in 2027. Discord is much older and larger, its calls outside Stage channels are end-to-end encrypted today, and its apps are in the App Store and Google Play. Fluxer's Android app is in beta, TestFlight for iOS is on hold, and we expect Fluxer on the App Store in early November 2026.

## How do Fluxer and Discord compare at a glance?

This table compares fluxer.com with Discord as of November 2026.

| | Fluxer | Discord |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Open source | Yes, [AGPL](https://fluxer.com/help/open-source.md) | ✗ |
| Host it yourself | [Free](https://fluxer.com/help/is-self-hosting-free.md) | ✗ |
| Ads | [None](https://fluxer.com/help/tracking.md) | [Yes, including Quests and Video Quests](https://discord.com/press-releases/discord-opens-advertising-to-brands-of-all-sizes-with-ads-manager-and-video-quests) |
| Paid plans | [Plutonium](https://fluxer.com/plutonium), US$4.99 a month | [Nitro Basic](https://discord.com/nitro) US$2.99 a month, Nitro US$9.99 a month (US prices) |
| Free upload size | [25 MB](https://fluxer.com/help/file-upload-limit.md) | [20 MB](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/25444343291031-File-Attachments-FAQ) since August 2026 |
| People in a group DM | [50](https://fluxer.com/help/messaging.md) | [10](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/33694251638295-Discord-Account-Caps-Server-Caps-and-More) |
| End-to-end encrypted calls | Not yet, [planned for 2026](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md) with [no setting to turn it off](https://fluxer.com/help/is-fluxer-end-to-end-encrypted.md) | [Yes, except Stage channels](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/25968222946071-End-to-End-Encryption-for-Audio-and-Video) |
| End-to-end encrypted text in DMs | [Planned, with a stable release in 2027](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md) and no setting to turn it off | [No current plans](https://discord.com/blog/every-voice-and-video-call-on-discord-is-now-end-to-end-encrypted) |
| Custom emoji and stickers in each community | [500 emoji and 500 stickers](https://fluxer.com/help/equip-emoji-and-stickers.md) | [50 emoji and 5 stickers](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/33694251638295-Discord-Account-Caps-Server-Caps-and-More), up to 250 and 60 with [14 Server Boosts](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/360028038352-Server-Boosting-FAQ) |
| iOS and Android apps | Android in the [Google Play beta](https://fluxer.com/help/apps.md), iOS coming to the App Store in early November 2026 ([TestFlight on hold for now](https://fluxer.com/help/ios-testflight.md)) | App Store and Google Play |
| Open to everyone since | [January 2026](https://fluxer.com/help/when-was-fluxer-created.md) | [May 2015](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discord) |

## Is Fluxer just a Discord clone?

No. Fluxer starts from a layout that feels familiar, letting people and whole communities switch without learning a new app. Underneath, it's its own open source software with its own privacy rules and features you won't find in Discord. It's made by a [small independent Swedish company](https://fluxer.com/help/who-runs-fluxer.md), and its founder, Hampus Kraft, leads its development.

## Is Fluxer part of Discord, or made by Discord?

No. Fluxer [isn't owned by or affiliated with Discord](https://fluxer.com/help/is-fluxer-owned-by-discord.md). It's made by [Fluxer Platform AB](https://fluxer.com/help/who-runs-fluxer.md), a Swedish company with [no venture capital or outside investors](https://fluxer.com/help/who-runs-fluxer.md).

## Who owns and funds Discord?

Discord Inc. is based in San Francisco, and [venture capital firms have invested in it since 2011](https://fluxer.com/help/is-fluxer-funded-by-venture-capital.md). Its investors include Tencent and US venture capital firms such as Benchmark and Greylock, and [our page about venture capital](https://fluxer.com/help/is-fluxer-funded-by-venture-capital.md) lists the investors in each round. Humam Sakhnini, who was an executive at Activision Blizzard and the CEO of King, has been Discord's CEO since April 2025, and [the same page](https://fluxer.com/help/is-fluxer-funded-by-venture-capital.md) has more about the change.

## Is Fluxer free like Discord?

Yes. An account on fluxer.com is free, and so are communities, messages, voice and video calls and screen sharing. [Plutonium](https://fluxer.com/help/plutonium.md) is an optional subscription for US$4.99 a month or US$49.99 a year that raises your own account's limits, and it can't upgrade a community. Discord's [Nitro page](https://discord.com/nitro) lists Nitro at US$9.99 a month and Nitro Basic at US$2.99 a month, and Discord also sells [Server Boosts](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/360028038352-Server-Boosting-FAQ) that unlock extra features for a whole community.

Every Fluxer community can have [up to 500 custom emoji and 500 stickers](https://fluxer.com/help/equip-emoji-and-stickers.md) for free. A Discord server starts with [50 emoji slots and 5 sticker slots](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/33694251638295-Discord-Account-Caps-Server-Caps-and-More), and Discord's [Server Boosting FAQ](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/360028038352-Server-Boosting-FAQ) says a server needs 14 Boosts from its members for 250 emoji and 60 stickers.

On the free plans, Fluxer allows files up to 25 MB, and Discord has allowed 20 MB [since August 2026](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/25444343291031-File-Attachments-FAQ). Both apps allow messages of up to 2,000 characters and screen sharing in DMs at 720p and 30 fps on a free account. On Discord, free users can stream at higher quality in a server that has enough [Server Boosts](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/360028038352-Server-Boosting-FAQ) from its members.

With Plutonium you can share your screen at up to 4K and 60 fps. [Peer-to-peer calls](https://fluxer.com/help/peer-to-peer-calls.md) let everyone stream at that quality for free, but they're an early preview that fluxer.com is turning on country by country. The other people in the call can see your IP address, and on iOS you can't share your screen in a peer-to-peer call yet.

## How is privacy on Fluxer different from Discord?

Fluxer shows no ads, has no advertising partnerships and [doesn't sell, rent or license your messages or any other personal data](https://fluxer.com/help/tracking.md) or share it with anyone for their advertising. It uses no third-party analytics, cross-site tracking or browser fingerprinting and doesn't build behavioral profiles. Your content is [never used to train AI models](https://fluxer.com/help/tracking.md).

Discord's [privacy policy](https://discord.com/privacy) says it doesn't make money from selling your personal information. It also says Discord uses your information to show sponsored content such as Quests, may share information with measurement partners when you engage with it and may give limited information to advertising platforms to advertise Discord itself.

In 2023, Discord tested AI features built on OpenAI technology, including an AI version of its Clyde chatbot, which it stopped in December 2023. Starting November 16, 2026, Discord plans to show automated summaries of public channels on a public web page for each Discoverable Server, and the server's admins can pick other channels or turn the summaries off. [Our page about venture capital](https://fluxer.com/help/is-fluxer-funded-by-venture-capital.md) has the details with sources.

From mid-December 2026, Discord also plans to let messages from public channels in Discoverable Servers show up in web search. Its [help article](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/44302319454359-Discoverable-Content-on-the-Web) says server admins decide which channels take part, and each member's setting for it is on by default except in the EU and EEA, the UK, Canada, Brazil, Australia and South Korea.

On Fluxer, [search engines can't find your messages](https://fluxer.com/help/are-my-messages-on-google.md), and messages in DMs, group DMs and regular chat channels will never be published on the web.

Fluxer [never asks for ID, selfies or face scans](https://fluxer.com/help/age-verification.md), and it doesn't verify anyone's age. Where a law demands those checks, we [restrict access to Fluxer in that region](https://fluxer.com/help/regional-restrictions.md).

Since September 2026, Discord [sorts accounts into adult, teen and unconfirmed age groups](https://discord.com/blog/safer-for-teens-same-discord-for-adults) from signals such as account age and the servers and games an account is connected to. Discord says it doesn't look at your messages or calls to do this.

Discord also says that more than 90% of the people who use it won't be asked to confirm their age. Others may be asked to use a video selfie that's checked on their device, an ID, a card check or another method, as its [age assurance page](https://discord.com/safety/age-assurance-on-discord-vendors-methods-and-your-data) describes.

You never need a phone number to use Fluxer, and if our spam rules ask you to text a code, [a person on our team can verify you without one](https://fluxer.com/help/phone-verification.md). On Discord, a server set to the "Highest" [verification level](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/216679607-Verification-Levels) only lets members with a verified phone number send messages, and Discord's [verification article](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/6181726888215-How-to-Verify-Your-Discord-Account) says VoIP, burner and landline numbers can't be used.

Discord's calls are end-to-end encrypted today. Since March 2, 2026, audio and video in Discord DMs, group DMs, voice channels and Go Live streams [are end-to-end encrypted](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/25968222946071-End-to-End-Encryption-for-Audio-and-Video), and Stage channels and stream previews aren't. Discord's text messages aren't end-to-end encrypted, and Discord [says it has no current plans](https://discord.com/blog/every-voice-and-video-call-on-discord-is-now-end-to-end-encrypted) to change that.

Fluxer's new voice and video system, planned for 2026, will encrypt every call end to end with no setting to turn it off and no unencrypted fallback. End-to-end encryption for DMs and group DMs follows as an experimental draft in 2026 and a stable release in 2027, and until encrypted calls are out, [nothing on Fluxer is end-to-end encrypted](https://fluxer.com/help/is-fluxer-end-to-end-encrypted.md).

Fluxer is a Swedish company, and we're moving fluxer.com's stored data from [US hosting](https://fluxer.com/help/is-fluxer-hosted-in-europe.md) to [our own hardware in Sweden](https://fluxer.com/help/servers-in-sweden.md), with a provider that Mullvad VPN also uses. A government outside the EU [can't enforce an order for data](https://fluxer.com/help/foreign-government-requests.md) against Fluxer Platform AB without going through Swedish authorities. Until the move, which has no date set yet, US authorities can also send orders directly to our US hosting provider, as [our CLOUD Act article](https://fluxer.com/help/cloud-act.md) explains.

## Is Fluxer open source and self-hostable, unlike Discord?

Yes. Fluxer is [free and open source under the AGPL](https://fluxer.com/help/open-source.md), including the server, the web and desktop apps and the iOS and Android apps. You can [host your own instance](https://fluxer.com/help/self-hosting-fluxer.md) for free with no license key or paid tier, and Fluxer staff can't ban anyone from an instance they don't run. [Third-party clients, themes and custom CSS](https://fluxer.com/help/third-party-clients.md) are allowed too.

Fluxer also lets you [automate your own account](https://fluxer.com/help/automate-my-account.md), for example with a script that tidies your DMs, as long as it isn't malicious. Discord's [help center](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/115002192352-Automated-User-Accounts-Self-Bots) says automating a normal user account is forbidden and can lead to the account being terminated.

Discord is proprietary and doesn't offer a version you can host yourself. Its [terms](https://discord.com/terms) forbid modifying or reverse engineering its software unless Discord agrees in writing or the law permits it, and they also bar unauthorized software designed to modify the service.

## Why does Fluxer look like Discord?

Many people come to Fluxer from Discord, often with their friends and communities, and a layout they already know lets them find their channels, DMs and settings from day one. We keep expanding and [changing the interface](https://fluxer.com/help/did-fluxer-copy-discords-design.md) so it becomes more our own.

## Does Fluxer work with the Discord API and Discord bots?

Discord bots that use prefix commands and plain messages can often be [ported to Fluxer](https://fluxer.com/help/discord-bots-on-fluxer.md) with small changes. Bots built on slash commands, buttons or modals won't fully work until Fluxer supports them, which is planned for 2026 on [our roadmap](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md). The [developer docs](https://docs.fluxer.com) describe Fluxer's API and what [bots on Fluxer](https://fluxer.com/help/bots.md) can do today.

[Fluxer webhooks](https://fluxer.com/help/discord-bots-on-fluxer.md) take Discord-style messages and also accept Slack's incoming webhook format. You can [import a Discord server template](https://fluxer.com/help/import-discord-server-template.md) to bring over your channels, roles and permissions, and the [Markdown](https://fluxer.com/help/formatting-messages.md) and [timestamps](https://fluxer.com/help/message-timestamps.md) you're used to work the same way.

## What makes Fluxer different from Discord?

You can [host your own instance](https://fluxer.com/help/self-hosting-fluxer.md) for free and connect to it with the official desktop app or the Android beta, and on a self-hosted instance, [Fluxer has none of its messages, files or accounts](https://fluxer.com/help/self-hosted-instance-privacy.md). Optional [federation](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md) is planned with a stable release in 2027, and the protocol it builds on includes moving your account to another instance.

You can [export your data](https://fluxer.com/help/data-export.md) at any time and delete your own messages in bulk with ["Delete my messages"](https://fluxer.com/help/auto-delete-messages.md) under "Privacy" in "User settings". Fluxer has [no outside investors](https://fluxer.com/help/who-runs-fluxer.md), shows no ads and [never trains AI models on your content](https://fluxer.com/help/tracking.md). Forum channels will get an optional [public web mode](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md) with an experimental draft planned before the end of 2026.

You can also read and change the [open source code](https://fluxer.com/help/open-source.md) of Fluxer's server and apps. [Peer-to-peer calls](https://fluxer.com/help/voice-and-video.md) are an early preview where fluxer.com has turned them on, and the other people in the call can see your IP address. Custom CSS is built into the web and desktop apps, and a group DM on Fluxer can have up to 50 people, compared with 10 on Discord.

Custom themes and [role icons](https://fluxer.com/help/community-tools.md) are free for everyone on Fluxer, and Discord's [extra color themes need Nitro](https://discord.com/blog/bring-your-vibe-to-discord-with-new-themes-in-nitro). You'll find more in [features Discord doesn't have](https://fluxer.com/help/fluxer-features-discord-doesnt-have.md).

## Where is Discord ahead of Fluxer?

Discord has been around since 2015 and is much bigger. It reports [more than 90 million daily active users](https://discord.com/press-releases/discord-opens-advertising-to-brands-of-all-sizes-with-ads-manager-and-video-quests) as of the second quarter of 2026, and many of your friends and communities may already be there. Discord is ahead of Fluxer on these points today.

- Discord calls outside Stage channels are end-to-end encrypted today, and nothing on Fluxer is end-to-end encrypted yet. Fluxer's [encrypted calls are planned for 2026](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md).
- Discord's mobile apps are already in the App Store and Google Play today. Fluxer's Android app is in the Google Play beta, and we expect its iOS app to be on the App Store in early November 2026, with the [TestFlight beta on hold](https://fluxer.com/help/ios-testflight.md) until then.
- Discord bots can use slash commands, buttons and modals today. On Fluxer, [support for these features](https://fluxer.com/help/slash-commands.md) is planned for 2026 as item 6 on our roadmap.
- Discord has AutoMod, onboarding, polls, scheduled events, a soundboard, Stage channels and Activities built in. On Fluxer, communities use bots for [automated moderation](https://fluxer.com/help/automod.md) and [onboarding](https://fluxer.com/help/onboarding-and-auto-roles.md), and [scheduled events](https://fluxer.com/help/scheduled-events.md) and a [soundboard](https://fluxer.com/help/soundboard.md) are planned.
- Discord's threads and forums are fully released, and Fluxer's are in [early beta](https://fluxer.com/help/threads-and-forums.md).
- Message history and members can't [come over from Discord](https://fluxer.com/help/import-discord-message-history.md), but a [Discord server template](https://fluxer.com/help/import-discord-server-template.md) can bring over your channels, roles and permissions.
- Discord is a large company, and Fluxer is made by [a small team](https://fluxer.com/help/who-runs-fluxer.md). Hampus Kraft leads development and builds the backend, web app and desktop app, and another developer works on the iOS and Android apps, and contributors help too.

## Which apps does Fluxer have compared with Discord?

Fluxer works in the browser at [fluxer.com](https://fluxer.com/app) and has a [desktop app](https://fluxer.com/help/apps.md) for Windows, macOS and Linux. The iOS and Android apps are open source like the rest of Fluxer. The Android app is in the Google Play beta, and we expect Fluxer to be on the App Store in early November 2026, with the [iOS TestFlight beta on hold](https://fluxer.com/help/ios-testflight.md) for now following a technical issue at Apple.

Until then, you can use Fluxer on an iPhone at [fluxer.com](https://fluxer.com/app) in Safari. Discord's [system requirements](https://support.discord.com/hc/en-us/articles/213491697-What-are-the-OS-system-requirements-for-Discord) say running Discord in a mobile browser isn't supported.

Fluxer's [Android download page](https://fluxer.com/download/android) also has a build for phones without Google Play services, which gets notifications through [UnifiedPush](https://fluxer.com/help/apps.md). Discord's system requirements say it only supports Android devices that ship with Google Play Services.

The Fluxer desktop and mobile apps can be signed in to accounts on [several instances at the same time](https://fluxer.com/help/multiple-accounts.md). Discord has a web app and [apps](https://discord.com/download) for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android, and you can also [join Discord voice calls on PlayStation 5 and Xbox](https://discord.com/blog/how-to-talk-with-friends-in-crossplay-games-using-discord).

## Is Fluxer as stable as Discord?

fluxer.com opened to everyone in January 2026 and had [more than 500,000 accounts](https://fluxer.com/help/how-many-people-use-fluxer.md) on October 19, 2026, counting only accounts that still exist, and we don't publish how many people use it each day. In February 2026 more than 100,000 accounts were created in 16 days while it ran on a single server, and [the service struggled](https://fluxer.com/help/stability.md) until we fixed it.

fluxer.com has been stable for months, but short disruptions still happen sometimes during denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks on our network or problems with our hosting, and [fluxerstatus.com](https://fluxerstatus.com) lists them. We don't offer an [uptime guarantee](https://fluxer.com/help/stability.md). Discord runs at a much larger scale and also has outages, and it lists them on [discordstatus.com](https://discordstatus.com).

## What is Fluxer planning next?

These are some of the bigger items on our [Roadmap 2026](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md).

- A new voice and video system where every call is end-to-end encrypted and each stream can handle more viewers, planned for 2026 ([roadmap #2](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md)).
- Optional federation, which lets people on different instances talk to each other, with an experimental draft in 2026 and a stable release in 2027 ([roadmap #3](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md)).
- End-to-end encryption for personal notes, direct messages and group DMs, with an experimental draft in 2026 and a stable release in 2027 ([roadmap #4](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md)).
- An optional public web mode for forum channels, planned as an experimental draft in 2026, which lets anyone read a public forum without an account. Threads and forums themselves are already in early beta for everyone ([roadmap #5](https://fluxer.com/blog/roadmap-2026.md)).

Until encrypted calls are out, [nothing on Fluxer is end-to-end encrypted](https://fluxer.com/privacy.md).

## How does Fluxer compare with other chat apps?

We've also compared Fluxer with [Stoat](https://fluxer.com/help/fluxer-vs-stoat.md), [Matrix and Element](https://fluxer.com/help/fluxer-vs-matrix.md), [TeamSpeak](https://fluxer.com/help/fluxer-vs-teamspeak.md), [Mumble](https://fluxer.com/help/fluxer-vs-mumble.md), [Root](https://fluxer.com/help/fluxer-vs-root.md) and [GameVox](https://fluxer.com/help/fluxer-vs-gamevox.md) on price, privacy, self-hosting, features, apps and stability.

## How do I switch from Discord to Fluxer?

You can [download Fluxer](https://fluxer.com/download) or open [fluxer.com](https://fluxer.com/app) and sign up for a free account. If you're bringing a whole community over, [its channels and roles can come with it from Discord](https://fluxer.com/help/move-from-discord.md). You'll find short answers to other things people often wonder about in [common misconceptions about Fluxer](https://fluxer.com/help/common-misconceptions.md), with a link to the full answer for each of them.

---

Canonical page: https://fluxer.com/help/fluxer-vs-discord

Last updated on November 1, 2026