Telegram vs. Discord

Introduction

The Millennials and Gen Z grew up with newer and more updated technologies when compared to older generations. From the invention of skype which allowed only texts and calls, to watching movies together with people miles across the globe, we all grew up! Two of such modern-day applications that have seen tremendous growth recently are Discord and Telegram.

The main differences between discord and telegram lies in their definitions and utilities. Telegram is an Instant-Messaging(IM) application that works and has features similar to other popular IM apps whereas Discord is described as Voice over Internet Protocol(VoIP)-based platform that mainly provides voice channels along with IM features. Telegram is popularly preferred for most business communications whereas Discord is utilized the most by the gaming community.

Difference Between Telegram and Discord in Tabular Form

Parameters of Comparison	Telegram	Discord
Definition	An application that provides an Instant-Messaging(IM) platform	An application that provides a Voice over Internet Protocol(VoIP)-based platform along with the standard IM features.
Prominent feature	Telegram allows two or more individuals to exchange information, media, and other forms of entertainment, either through private groups or public groups i.e., broadcasting.	Besides the standard IM features, Discord allows screen sharing, voice channels, and video calling.
Release	Telegram was first launched for iOS on 14th August 2013.	Discord was first launched on 13th May 2015.
Security standards	Telegram includes a feature called ‘secret chats’ that employs end-to-end encryption. Thus telegram is considered comparatively safer.	Discord does not provide any feature that employs end-to-end encryption and thus isn’t preferred for conversations involving sensitive information.
Channel limitations	Telegram allows you to join a total of 500 channels and supergroups together.	Discord allows a person to join a maximum of 500 channels or 100 servers, whatever reaches the limit first.
Member capacity	A channel can have an unlimited number of members whereas groups can have up to 200,000 members.	A single server can have up to 250,000 members.
Media capacity	Telegram allows you to exchange an unlimited number of media, each file up to 2GB.	Discord allows sharing and uploading of media that has a maximum size of 8MB.
Deletion	Telegram allows the users to delete messages within 48 hours of publishing them.	Discord allows the users to delete messages within 2 weeks of publishing them.
Major customers	Telegram is mostly used by entertainment pages that need to frequently broadcast news or by individuals who require to discuss personal or business-related information.	Discord is majorly used by the gaming audience that requires a platform to communicate. Other groups and organizations have recently started taking an interest.

What is Telegram?

Launched in 2013 by a Russian company, Telegram is an Instant Messaging(IM) application that mainly focuses on providing security along with speed and reliability while offering IM services. Although the application did not attract much crowd or customers in the initial stages, a recent infamous change in the privacy policies of WhatsApp had pushed a considerable portion of customers to shift to telegram. Thus, there has been an enormous increase in the number of telegram users, owing to Whatsapp’s privacy policy.

While the application is mostly used for chatting, media exchange, and broadcasting purposes, here are some of the features, along with the standard elements, that most of you might not know already-

Features of Telegram:-

Editing sent messages: While popular IM applications allow deletion of messages in case of any errors, Telegram allows you to edit a message that has already been sent. By long-pressing a message, you are provided with various options, edit being one of them. This feature is allowed up to 48 hours after publishing the message. Although a delete feature with the same time restrictions is included, the ‘edit’ option proves to be more efficient.
Editing sent pictures: Similar to text messages, telegram also allows editing pictures that have already been sent, in case of any cropping errors, absence or correction of filters, and other such edits. This option can be accessed by long-pressing the image and selecting the ‘edit’ option.
Provision of silent messages: Another feature that’s slowly gaining popularity is silent messages. While many of us could be working late nights or at other odd times of the day, it is possible that pinging someone to send media or information will disturb them, in case the receiver is sleeping/ studying or in other serious involvements. In such cases, one can long-press the send button and choose the ‘send without sound’ option. This does not allow the message to make a notification sound and does not make a disturbance.
Customizable themes: Yes! Not just Whatsapp, but telegram also allows custom themes. This means that a user can select the picture that he wants to use as a theme. They can also select from a set of themes and colors that are already available readily on the application. All of these options can be accessed by opening settings>>selecting chat settings>> selecting ‘theme’. You can create a new theme by further selecting the ‘create new theme’ option.
Live location: Another popular feature that was inspired, live location is also included in the application, upon the selection of which, the required user in your contacts will be able to view your live location for the selected amount of time: 15 minutes/1 hour/8 hours. This option is enabled in a fashion similar to that of WhatsApp. You need to select attachments>>’ location’>>’ live location’. You need to select a time limit for the feature and press send.
Users in the neighborhood: Telegram has a feature that allows you to locate nearby users who use telegram. These users are discovered when they choose to be discovered. This feature is useful when one is looking to build a network in the community or needs to add someone to their contacts list without any hassle. This can be done by using the ‘find’ and ‘add’ options that are accessed from the Hamburger menu>>’contacts’.
Scheduling messages: Just like scheduled emails, telegram allows you to schedule the time and date at which a message needs to be sent. This can be accessed by long-pressing the send button once the message is typed and selecting ‘scheduled messages’. You can then select the appropriate time and date.
Secret chat: Last but not the least, we have the feature that telegram owes its popularity to, secret chats. This feature employs end-to-end encryption, unlike other applications that mostly employ user-to-server encryption. This kind of encryption allows the user to have private conversations that might contain sensitive information. Thus, this feature allows the application to stand out for its confidentiality, reliability, and security.

What is Discord?

Launched in 2015, Discord is an application that provides a Voice over Internet Protocol(VoIP)-based platform with uncountable other valuable features. The origin story of the application is a simple one. The gaming community seldom included teammates that knew each other in real life i.e., most of these networks were virtual. There was a requirement for a common platform where people could communicate with each other and game simultaneously yet effortlessly.

Discord introduced itself with its ‘voice channel’ feature and the world did the rest of the work. While the application included standard IM features too, it was the voice chat option that handed discord its immense growth. While the application was not initiated with any target audience in mind, it gathered a tremendous increase in its audience, owing to the integration of several modern features.

Features of Discord:-

Custom member lists: While a server can have numerous channels, each channel can be made private to allow only a selected few of the lot to enter a channel. Now, this rule applies to both voice channels and text channels.
No missed calls: While WhatsApp only recently introduced the feature of allowing a user to join or leave a call at any time, in case the user misses the ring, until it ends, Discord’s voice channels allow you to join the channel at any time, removing the hassle that can be created by calls. While no ‘call’ is initiated on the channel, it can be described as an individual platform where the users can join at any time and listen to music, if desired. Since it is not similar to the ‘call’ function that is also provided, a single user can join the channel at any time too.
Screen sharing: A very powerful feature, screen sharing allows you to share your screen, in real-time, to everyone in the channel that chooses to view your screen. This feature works outside of discord too, for most of the other popular applications that do not allow screen recording or screenshots. This feature can be accessed from the options that appear when you join a channel.
Play music on-call: Groovy is an original discord feature that requires certain simple commands to be operated. Some of these commands include: ‘-stop’, ‘-play *song name*’, ‘-pause’. You can also view the lyrics of these songs that will appear in the respective text channel where the commands are being given. However, the commands are not limited to only the creator and can be accessed by anyone in the channel. The most important element of this feature is that it can be accessed while having an interaction with someone in the voice channel.
Individual volumes: Another cool feature of voice channels is the provision of changing the volume of each speaker according to your convenience. Each user can have different sound settings for everyone, allowing maximum comfort and clarity during calls. This also includes changing the volume of groovy.
Custom emojis: With the right permissions or if you’re the head of the server, you can include custom emojis by selecting the server settings>>’emojis’ and upload the custom emojis.
Game invites: This feature allows scheduled invites according to the desired status of repetition and the time of schedule. This feature can be implemented for both game invites and professional purpose invites that are mostly directed toward a meeting.

Main Differences Between Telegram and Discord in Points

Telegram works similarly to other IM-based applications, providing text, voice call, and video calling features whereas Discord is a Voice over Internet Protocol(VoIP)-based platform that also provides standard IM features.
Telegram allows you to create or join groups, both public and private, that not only allow the exchange of media, information, and other entertainment, but also the provision of broadcasting. Discord, on the other hand, takes it a step further by allowing the user to screen share besides all the features listed above.
The term ‘channel’ has different descriptions in both these applications. Telegram allows private chars, groups, supergroups, and channels i.e., where broadcasting is done. Besides individual chats, Discord allows the users to create or join a server, each of which allows different text and voice channels. All these channels do not need to be consistent and can be private or public, with different member lists.
Telegram was first released in August 2013 whereas discord was released two years later, in May 2015.
Telegram is said to protect users’ data better than Discord. Telegram provides users with the feature of ‘secret chats’, besides normal messaging. These chats are end-to-end encrypted and thus are technically regarded as a safer option. However, discord does not employ end-to-end encryption in any features included in the platform. Thus, discord isn’t preferred for business communications that usually contain sensitive data regarding trade secrets.
Besides acting as a platform to provide entertainment, Telegram is mainly used for personal and business-related discussions due to its encryption feature. Discord is mainly used by audiences who game frequently and need voice channels to communicate with peers. However, recent times have shown an increase in the number of discord users as many individuals who require screen sharing and many other prominent features have approached the application.
Telegram allows you to join a maximum of 500 groups and channels considered together. For example, If you join 100 groups, you can join 400 channels. Discord holds a limit for you to join 100 servers or 500 channels, whatever approaches first.
A telegram channel can have unlimited members whereas a telegram group can have up to 200,000 members. This allows mass broadcasting. A discord server can hold up to 250,500 members.
Telegram allows the exchange of media for files that are below or exactly 2GB. This means telegram allows sharing other applications and huge files such as films. Discord on the hand allows the exchange of files that weigh up to 8MB and nothing higher. This means discord doesn't allow freedom when it comes to sending media to one another.
Telegram allows a user to delete a message within 48 hours of sending it. Discord, however, grants a higher allowance and lets the user delete a message within 2 weeks of sending it.

Conclusion

Telegram is preferred for conversations that require higher privacy or need regular exchange of media with higher size whereas discord can serve informal conversations better with all the fun elements and high range of personalization it includes. Although both the applications serve to make virtual communications easier for netizens, they have stark differences, right from the features to the audience they serve. Proper research as to how these applications can serve you and the features they include can help improve one’s efficiency in their tasks.

References

Introduction
Telegram vs. Discord
Difference Between Telegram and Discord in Tabular Form
What is Telegram?
What is Discord?
Main Differences Between Telegram and Discord in Points
Conclusion
References

Difference Between Telegram and Discord

Introduction