Discord launches redesigned app on Android and iOS

Ben Schoon | Dec 5 2023 - 9:35 am PT

Discord is a super popular messaging app, thanks to its bevy of features, but those same features have also made the mobile app feel very cluttered. Starting today, though, Discord is rolling out a redesigned mobile app to all users on Android and iOS.

Announced in a blog post, the all-new Discord app for Android and iOS officially launches today, following testing over the past several months. Discord’s Francesco Polizzi explains that the goal of the new design was to build an app that simplifies the experience of Discord for mobile rather than stuffing in everything found in the desktop app.

Discord says:

Starting today we’re excited to share that “Discord but smol” is evolving so that you can take advantage of what makes your phone so great. Rather than retrofitting designs meant for mice and keyboards, it’s a fresh look intended for the touchscreen that fits in your pocket. It’s a faster, more reliable app than before, with new features that help you and your friends chat and hang out on the go, like voice messages, and a 25 MB free file upload limit. And most importantly, this time we designed mobile as its own independent experience — as something you can use as your main Discord app when you’re on the go, not as something you use alongside the desktop app.

What does that actually mean?

In the new Discord app for Android and iOS, users will find their servers along the sidebar as exists today, but that’s no longer the only interface. Servers exist on a dedicated tab in the app, with a bottom bar further offering access to three other sections. The first is “Messages,” which houses any direct messages or smaller groups you’ve created with other Discord users outside of servers. This tab also includes a search function that works across direct messages and servers too.

Conversations and servers both also get some mobile optimizations, such as the ability to swipe on a message to reply in thread to it. It’s also much easier to make group DMs in the new app.

Then, there’s a “Notifications” tab, which gathers mentions, friend requests, and more under a single umbrella. And, finally, the “You” tab houses your profile with settings for username, profile picture, as well as your friends list.

The new Discord app for Android and iOS is also considerably smaller in size and faster. On Android, the app opens 55% faster, while opening 43% faster on iOS. Android users will also see fewer crashes, and the app uses four times less data.

Discord is also, with this update, finally introducing the long-awaited “Midnight” theme that is fully black on OLED displays.