Add a nickname to any friend in three clicks

Open Discord on your PC and right-click on any friend's name in your Friends list or in a server member list. Select Edit User Note from the menu that appears. Type the nickname you want to use for that person—Discord calls this a "user note"—and press Enter. That nickname is now saved and only you can see it.

This feature is different from a server nickname, which changes how someone's name appears to everyone in a specific server. A user note is private to you alone and works across all servers and direct messages where you interact with that person.

Key Takeaways

  • Right-click any friend's name and select Edit User Note to add a private nickname that only you see.
  • User notes work everywhere—in your Friends list, in direct messages, and in every server where that person is a member.
  • You can edit or delete a user note at any time by right-clicking the name again and selecting Edit User Note.
  • User notes are completely private; the other person will never know you have added one.

Where to find the Edit User Note option

The Edit User Note option appears when you right-click on a person's name in any of these places: your Friends list (the Friends icon in the left sidebar), a direct message conversation, a server member list, or anywhere else a username appears in Discord. The location does not matter—the option is always in the same spot in the right-click menu.

If you do not see the option, make sure you are right-clicking directly on the person's name or avatar, not on empty space. On some screens, you may need to hover over a name first to make it clickable.

What you can use a user note for

User notes let you remember details about people you interact with regularly. You might add a note like "plays Valorant on weekends" or "works in marketing" or "met at the gaming convention in July." These notes help you keep track of context about people, especially in large servers where you meet many new members.

You can also use notes to flag people or remember inside jokes. For example, "always late to voice calls" or "the one who always brings up anime" are common ways people use this feature. The note is purely for your own reference.

How to edit or remove a user note

To change a user note you have already created, right-click the person's name again and select Edit User Note. The text box will open with your existing note. Delete the old text, type the new note, and press Enter.

To remove a note completely, open the Edit User Note box and delete all the text, leaving it blank. Press Enter, and the note is gone. The person's name will appear normal again with no note attached.

User notes versus server nicknames

Discord has two separate nickname systems, and they work differently. A user note is private to you and appears the same way everywhere. A server nickname is set by you or a server moderator and changes how someone's name appears only in that specific server—everyone in the server sees the same server nickname.

To set a server nickname instead, right-click a person's name in a server and select Edit Server Profile. That option only appears when you right-click someone in a server channel or member list, not in your Friends list or direct messages. Server nicknames are useful when you want to give someone a title or clarify their role, like "Sarah (Moderator)" or "Alex (Bot Dev)".

Character limits and formatting

Discord allows up to 32 characters in a user note. You cannot use special formatting like bold or italics in a user note—it will appear as plain text. If you try to paste text with formatting, Discord will strip the formatting and keep only the plain text.

Emojis work in user notes, so you can add a small emoji at the end if you want—for example, "Gaming buddy 🎮" or "Met at work 💼". This can be a quick visual way to categorize people at a glance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can the other person see my user note about them?

No. User notes are completely private and visible only to you. The other person has no way to see what note you have written about them, and Discord does not notify them that you have added a note.

Do user notes sync across my devices?

Yes. If you add a user note on your PC, it will appear on your phone, tablet, or web browser when you log into the same Discord account. The notes are stored on Discord's servers, not just on one device.

What happens to a user note if I delete a friend?

When you remove someone from your Friends list, the user note is deleted along with the friendship. If you add them back later, you will need to create a new note.

Can I search for people by their user notes?

No. Discord's search function does not search through user notes. You can only search by a person's actual username or display name.

Is there a limit to how many user notes I can create?

No. You can add a user note to any person in Discord—friends, server members, or anyone whose name you can right-click. There is no maximum number of notes you can create.