Discord is rolling out ‘Nitro Basic’ – a cheaper plan with four useful features

Discord, the platform for chatting with users across different servers about games and other topics, is rolling out a cheaper plan of its ‘Nitro‘ subscription service for UK users on the desktop later today (August 18), called ‘Nitro Basic’.

Priced at $2.49 / £2.99 a month to start with, Discord told TechRadar it had received feedback that users wanted to access the most popular features without having to pay $9.99 / £9.99 a month or $99.99 / £99.99 a year for the regular Nitro plan.

Julie Park, Senior Director of Product Marketing at Discord, told us that the cheaper plan will be rolling out to UK users later today for desktop users, and for iOS users in the coming weeks.

While there are only four features available to start with, what these are may just tempt some users who didn’t want to pay for Nitro at its regular price every month or year.

(Image credit: Discord)

What’s included in Nitro Basic?

We asked Park why the test is beginning in the UK to start with, and we were told that it was due to the wide variety of age ranges and how Servers are used across the platform, alongside the UK being one of the most popular markets for Nitro lately, which is why the location of the test made sense for the team.

Arguably using Discord while you play a game has become second nature to some, especially due to it being available on Xbox and PlayStation 5. However, Nitro Basic looks to be the best of both worlds for users – a cheaper monthly plan with four popular features:

Custom and Animated EmojiIncreased file upload to 20MBSpecial StickersSpecial badge to show that you’re a subscriber to Nitro Basic

You could argue that without these four features to start with, a cheaper Nitro subscription would almost be pointless. Thankfully, each of these will be tempting to many who use Discord almost daily.

Emoji is part of the platform, and being able to use custom and animated emojis will tempt many on its own. Yet an increased file upload size limit, special stickers, and even the ‘Nitro Basic’ badge make this a compelling price for what you get. You don’t, however, get one of the adorable fake-Funko-Pop-esque figurines Discord used in their marketing material, which is a shame.

(Image credit: Discord)

As an aside, we also asked Park whether Discord is coming to the Nintendo Switch. Anyone who tries to set up an audio call using the Switch Online service is a challenge in itself, due to its complicated setup. However, Park confirmed there were no plans for Discord to arrive on Nintendo’s console just yet.

Regardless, Nitro Basic is going to be a tempting plan for many, especially for casual gamers who may play a multiplayer game once a week. However, for others, the ability to use custom and animated emoji may solely convince many other users of what you will be able to pay for the service.