Since this pandemic began, messaging and video conferencing applications have taken the front stage in connecting people during these unusual times. These applications are ideal for professional and personal purposes, such as work meetings, gaming collaboration, and catch-up with loved ones. It has become a necessity to have these applications to maintain communications with people all over the world.
Because of this demand, video conferencing and messaging applications like Zoom have started popping out all and around the internet. One particular application that quickly rose to fame is Discord. This instant messaging application is for gamers but is slowly growing to become more.
What is Discord?
In 2015, Discord became a hub for the gaming community, wherein you can organize topics into different channels. This application can send text messages, voice messages, video messages, and Discord emojis. Discord screen share is also another feature that’s famous among gamers and small business owners. In recent years, Discord caught the interest of diverse communities such as artists, writers, enterprises, and regular people who want to communicate online. Because of this, the Discord community has grown drastically! But did you know that there are other apps like Discord?
Disadvantages of Using Discord
Discord is a next-level instant messaging application for establishing communities in different industries and preferences. But, amidst its numerous pros, this application has two notable cons. Firstly, Discord is unsecured. This application utilizes standard encryption, especially on larger servers, posing a potential breach or interception of information. There is a possibility that a hacker can gain access to your messages because of the lack of end-to-end encryption. Secondly, Discord has a limited 8MB file upload capacity with poor video playback. For users to play high-resolution videos and send high-quality files, they will have to avail themselves of the Discord Nitro at a sizable subscription price.
Top 5 Free and Paid Alternative Applications to Discord
If you are looking for an alternative messaging application to Discord, we identified alternatives for you. Below are our top 5 free and paid applications that you can use.
Top 5 Free Alternative Applications to Discord
Telegram
Telegram is a popular messaging app that works well as an alternative to Discord. It has all the messaging app features, such as file sharing, voice chat, group video conference, and text messaging. It can also host groups and communities of up to 200,000 members in private and public channels. Telegram packs RSA, AES, and Diffie-Helman encryptions with an end-to-end encrypted Secret Chat Messaging feature that will disappear after a certain period. The best part about Telegram is that it is free of charge.
Mumble
Mumble is a free, open-source application for gamers. Mumble operates on low bandwidth and latency for light messaging and audio communications, a perfect alternative from Discord. This application also has a chat-encrypted feature with above-average audio quality. Moreover, it has a voice-activated messaging feature that allows you to send messages without touching your phone.
Google Hangouts
Google Hangouts is a free messaging application for Gmail account users. This application features a hassle-free experience when conducting video calls, group chats, and audio calls. Google Hangouts is ideal for meetings, training, and other professional activities. As a Google application, you can guarantee that your information is safe.
Skype
Skype has been in the online communications game for years. It has all the basic features of a communications application, such as video conferencing, text messaging, file sharing, and the like. This easy-to-navigate application can handle up to 100 participants at a time with next-level server security. This application is ideal for work-related meetings and discussions.
Steam Chat
Steam Chat is a free in-game communication application that is the closest to the features of Discord. This application allows event organization, chat group creation, and content sharing. Unlike Discord, Steam Chat has encrypted servers.
Top 5 Paid Alternative Applications to Discord
Wire
The Wire is a good community collaborator application as an alternative to Discord. It boasts end-to-end encryption for secure and private discussions. Users can send files, messages, and videos without the need for a Wire account. Up to 12 users can conduct a video conference call, and up to 25 users can interact through voice calls. A paid plan is available to experience added features of the application.
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is a messaging app for Microsoft users with top-level security. This Discord alternative allows you to create channels, group chats, and direct messages for easy organization. Group collaboration is also available with file sharing up to 100GB. Users can track team progress through task management access. This application offers more features through their paid plans.
TeamSpeak 3
TeamSpeak came into the game back in 2002 as an in-game comm hub that allows you to create your private server or join public channels. This application boasts AES encryption for guaranteed privacy and information safety. Users will enjoy the features of TeamSpeak for $0.99.
Slack
For business purposes, Slack is an ideal alternative to Discord. Slack is a communications application that can integrate with different apps such as Office 365 or Google Drive. It packs a sizable storage space of up to 5GB and servers that are secured. However, to get the whole Slack experience, you have to avail yourself of their subscription plans.
Flock
Flock is an application that you can use for unlimited group and direct messaging with one-on-one video conferences. Its limited feature allows you up to 5GB of document sharing and single-admin community groups. A pro version is available to gain access to advanced features and tools.
Conclusion
Discord is a rising instant messaging application ideal for creating communities of different purposes. It is a tool to communicate with people all over the world, especially during this pandemic. But just as communication is essential, security is too. Discord cannot secure its servers, so it is ideal to utilize alternative applications in the meantime. There are free and paid applications out there to choose from that offer better security, privacy, and overall user experience than Discord. Depending on your preference and purpose, choosing among these alternatives is essential.
