Last updated: October 6, 2026 · Category: Guide · Editorial review · About the authors
Key Takeaways
- Server Discovery lists a Community Server on Discord's discovery surfaces, where people without an invite can find it. Discord lists six requirements, including at least 1,000 members and a server age of 8 weeks.
- You enable it from the Discovery tab in Server Settings, after Community is turned on.
- If your server is below 1,000 members, growth comes from invites, so it pays to know which invites work.
Discord Server Discovery makes an eligible Community Server visible on Discord's discovery surfaces to people who do not have an invite. According to Discord's Enabling Server Discovery article (retrieved 2026-09-28), a server must meet six requirements, including at least 1,000 members, before it can be listed. This guide covers those requirements, the setup steps, where discoverable servers appear today, and what to do if your server is not eligible yet.
Discord Server Discovery Requirements
Discord lists these requirements before you can enable Server Discovery:
- Community safety requirements. The server must be a Community Server, which requires a verified-email Verification Level, a media content filter, a rules channel, and a moderator updates channel.
- At least 1,000 members.
- At least 8 weeks old.
- Activity requirements. Discord says servers "must meet certain activity requirements" and does not publish the exact thresholds in that article.
- A clean name, description, and channel names.
- 2FA Requirement for Moderation enabled.
Only members with the Manage Server or Administrator permission can enable or disable Server Discovery.
Discord words the member threshold two ways. The Enabling Server Discovery article says "at least 1,000 members." The Enabling Your Community Server article (retrieved 2026-09-28) says Discovery is "currently limited to servers with more than 1000 members and Partnered & Verified servers," which suggests Partnered and Verified servers also qualify.
| Community Server | Discoverable server | |
|---|---|---|
| Who can find it | People with an invite | People browsing Discord's discovery surfaces |
| Invite needed to join | Yes | No |
| Main requirements | Safety settings, rules channel, moderator channel | Community, plus the six requirements above |
Discord's Clarifying Server Types article (retrieved 2026-09-28) confirms that "becoming a Community Server does not mean that anyone can find or join your server."
How to Enable Server Discovery
- Open Server Settings from the server name in the upper-left corner.
- If the server is not a Community Server yet, select Enable Community and complete the setup. Discord Community Server walks through those requirements.
- Open the Discovery tab and select Set Up Discovery.
- Once every requirement is met, enable Discovery from the same screen.
Follow the Discovery Guidelines
Being discoverable comes with extra rules. Discord's Discovery Guidelines (retrieved 2026-09-28) say servers opting into publicly viewable features "should be appropriate for audiences of all ages 13+." They also require:
- A server name and description "that accurately describes the server" and is "free of profanity"
- A healthy environment: no harassment of users or other communities, no discussion of controlled substances or drugs, and no servers dedicated to regulated goods such as alcohol
- A moderator team, and moderators who handle reports and know when to escalate to Trust & Safety
- No graphic or sexual content in public spaces
- Respect for intellectual property and other people's rights
Discord adds that it "may consider off-platform behavior" when assessing a server. Clear, posted rules help here. Discord server rules has a template.
Where Discoverable Servers Appear
Discord's documentation is in transition on this point. Its Server Discovery article (retrieved 2026-09-28) now says "the Server Discovery experiment has ended" and points to the Discover tab. The Discover Tab article (retrieved 2026-09-28) describes these points:
- It is "currently experimental and available to only a percentage of users on desktop and mobile."
- Its Servers section shows "discoverable Community Servers along with their categories."
- Servers there are "sorted into relevant categories and order of popularity based on the server's member count."
Because Discord orders servers by member count, smaller discoverable servers appear below larger ones when someone browses a category.
If Your Server Is Removed
The Discover Tab FAQ says a server "recently removed from the Discover tab" may have violated the Discovery Guidelines. The Discovery Guidelines add that Discord "may remove an affiliated server or account from one or more means of discovery" after a recent enforcement action. Review the guidelines, fix the issue, then return to the Discovery tab in Server Settings.
Growing Toward 1,000 Members
Until a server reaches 1,000 members, new members arrive through invites: links you post, partner servers, and members inviting friends. That makes two things worth doing early:
- Use one invite per source. A separate link for your website, each partner, and each campaign shows which source brings members in. Discord invite links explained covers the settings.
- Track who brings members in. An invite tracker attributes each join to an invite and a member, and can mark joins from brand-new accounts as fake. How to grow a Discord server with invite tracking covers how to turn that into a repeatable loop.
Real members who stay also help once you reach Discovery, since Discord sorts discoverable servers by member count.
A Worked Example
This is an illustration, not data. Picture a 600-member gaming server with three partner servers and a YouTube channel:
- The owner creates five invites: one per partner, one for the video descriptions, and one for the website.
- After a few weeks, the owner compares the invite used for each join with which of those members are still in the server.
- The owner spends more effort on the sources that keep members, and less on the others.
- Once the server has at least 1,000 members and is at least 8 weeks old, the owner checks the remaining requirements, then selects Set Up Discovery.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the requirements for Discord Server Discovery?
Discord's Enabling Server Discovery article lists six: the Community safety requirements; at least 1,000 members; a server at least 8 weeks old; certain activity requirements; a clean name, description, and channel names; and the 2FA requirement for moderation.
How do I get my Discord server on Discovery?
Enable Community first. Then open the Discovery tab in Server Settings and select Set Up Discovery. Once the server meets every requirement, you can enable it from there. Only members with Manage Server or Administrator can do this.
Why is my server not showing in Discover?
Possible reasons include an unmet requirement, such as the 1,000-member minimum, or a guideline issue. Discord says a server recently removed from the Discover tab may have violated the Discovery Guidelines. Discord also describes the Discover tab as experimental and available to a percentage of users.
Is Server Discovery the same as a Community Server?
No. Community is a server type that unlocks moderation and onboarding tools and stays invite-only. Discovery is an additional listing that lets people who do not have an invite find and preview the server.