How to Screen Share on Discord

Discord is a voice and text app for gamers that makes it extremely easy to share your screen and stream games to your friends and other small audiences. While this method of streaming won't make your stream available to the general public like Twitch or YouTube streaming, it's a lot easier and doesn't require any additional software.

When you share your screen, you can allow a single person to view your game stream, a small group of friends, or anyone who has access to a specific Discord server and voice channel. Here's how to screen share on Discord.

How Does Screen Sharing Work in Discord?

There are two ways to share your screen in Discord:

While you are connected to a voice channel in a Discord server.
During a call placed through a direct message (DM).

The first method allows for more flexibility as anyone who has access to the voice channel can check out your stream, while the second method is useful if you only want to screen share with a specific group of people.

You can only share your screen in a voice channel if you have permission to do so. If you find that you aren't able to, ask the server admin how to get that permission. If the admin won't give you permission, you won't be able to share your screen on that server.

How to Screen Share on Discord From a Voice Channel

Sharing your screen to a voice channel is extremely easy. Just remember that anyone who joins the voice channel will be able to view your stream if they want to. If you only want to share your screen with specific people, don't use this method.

Here's how to share your screen on Discord using a voice channel:

Launch the game that you want to share via Discord.

You can share any app via Discord, including web browsers, but games are easiest.
Click a Discord server in your server list, and then click a voice channel in the list of voice channels on the left.
Look for the banner underneath the voice channel list that shows the name of the game you are playing, then click the screen share icon that looks like a computer display with a smaller recording icon set into it.

When you move your mouse cursor over the screensharing icon, you will see text pop up that reads Stream (the game you are playing).
Verify the settings, and click Go Live.

Click Change if Discord has selected the wrong game or app, and click the name of the voice channel you are in if you want to change to a different one.
Other users in the same voice channel will now be able to view your screen share. For the duration, you will see a small box in the bottom right corner of Discord that shows what you are streaming, and you will see a LIVE icon next to your name in the voice channel.
To stop, click the Stop Streaming icon, which looks like a monitor with an X in it.

How to Screen Share From a Discord Voice Channel if Discord Doesn't Recognize Your Game

If you want to screen share something other than a game, like a web browser, or if Discord simply doesn't recognize that you are currently playing a game, there's a pretty easy workaround. The same general process is the same, but you need to use the basic Discord screen sharing tool instead of the game streaming shortcut.

Launch the game or app you want to share.
Launch Discord, open the server you want to use, and join a voice channel.
Click the screen share icon that looks like a monitor with an arrow on it next to the text Screen.
Click Applications if you want to share an app, select the app you want to share, and click Go Live.
Alternately, you can click Screens if you want to share an entire display, select the correct display, and click Go Live.
Verify the settings, and click Go Live.
Your stream will become available to anyone who joins the voice channel, and you will see a small box in the bottom right corner of Discord that shows what you are streaming.

How to Screen Share in Discord Through a Direct Message

In addition to Discord servers and voice channels, you can also communicate with friends via direct message. The default method involves conversing with a single person via text chat, but you can add additional people to a DM and even initiate a voice or video call. If you start such a call, you can then share your screen to everyone who has been invited to the DM.

Unlike the method that uses a Discord voice channel, this method allows you tight control over who can view your stream, and it also doesn't require you to use any specific Discord server.

To use this method, you first need to add your friends on Discord. Once you're friends, they will show up in your DM list and you will be able to call them.

Here's how to screen share through a Discord direct message:

Launch Discord, and click the Discord logo in the upper left corner.
Click any DM, including individual and group DMs, or create a new DM.
Click the Call icon near the top right that looks like a phone handset.
Click the Turn on Screen Share icon that looks like a monitor with an arrow in it.
Choose your resolution and frames per second (FPS), then click Application Window.

Full HD resolution and 60 FPS are unavailable if you don't have a Discord Nitro subscription.
Select the game or application window to stream, and click Share.
Your stream will appear in a large window above the text portion of the DM.
To stop streaming, move your mouse over your stream and click the screen icon with the X in it.