Turn off Discord notification sounds in three places

Discord sends notification sounds from three separate locations, and you may need to silence them in more than one place to stop all the noise. The quickest route is the User Settings menu inside Discord itself, where you can mute sounds for direct messages, server mentions, and other events. If that does not work, check your operating system sound settings, which can override Discord's own controls. A third option is to mute individual servers or channels so they never trigger notifications at all.

The steps below cover the Discord settings method first, then the system-level controls. Start with Discord's built-in options—most readers will find what they need there.

Key Takeaways

  • Open Discord, click your username in the bottom left, select User Settings, then go to Notifications to turn off individual notification sounds.
  • You can mute sounds for direct messages, mentions, and other events separately, so you can silence some notifications while keeping others audible.
  • If Discord's settings do not stop the sound, check your Windows or Mac system volume settings and make sure Discord is not muted there.
  • Right-clicking a server or channel name and selecting Mute lets you block notifications from that specific place without changing your global settings.

Mute notification sounds in Discord User Settings

Open Discord and look at the bottom left of the window. Click the small gear icon next to your username—this opens User Settings. On the left side, you will see a menu with options like "Account," "Privacy & Safety," and others. Scroll down until you find Notifications and click it.

The Notifications page shows a list of events that can trigger sounds: "Direct Messages," "Mentions," "Replies," "Server Boost," and others. Each one has a dropdown menu next to it. Click the dropdown for any notification type you want to silence. You will see options like "All Messages," "Only @mentions," "Muted," and "Off." Select Muted to keep the notification badge but remove the sound, or select Off to remove both the sound and the notification badge entirely.

Repeat this for each notification type you want to silence. Most readers who want quiet will set "Direct Messages" and "Mentions" to "Muted" or "Off," but you can customize each one. After you change a setting, Discord saves it when ready—no save button is needed.

Check your computer's volume and Discord app settings

If you have muted notifications in Discord but still hear sounds, your operating system may be overriding those settings. On Windows, right-click the speaker icon in your system tray (bottom right corner) and select "Open Volume mixer." Look for Discord in the list of apps. If Discord's volume slider is not all the way down, drag it to the left to lower or mute it. You can also click the speaker icon next to Discord's name to mute the entire app.

On Mac, open System Preferences, then click Sound. Go to the Output tab and check that your speaker volume is not too high. Then open System Preferences again, click Notifications, and look for Discord in the list on the left. Click Discord and make sure "Play sound for notifications" is unchecked.

Another place to check: Discord itself may have a separate app-level mute. Look at the top of the Discord window on Windows or the menu bar on Mac. Some versions of Discord show a speaker icon you can click to mute the entire process. If you see one, click it to toggle the app mute on.

Mute individual servers or channels

If you want to keep notifications on for most of Discord but silence one specific server or channel, you can mute just that place. Right-click the server name in the left sidebar and select Mute Server. A menu will appear with options like "Mute for 1 hour," "Mute for 8 hours," "Mute until I turn it back on," or "Mute @mentions." Choose the duration you want.

To mute a single channel instead, right-click the channel name and select Mute Channel. The same duration options appear. When a server or channel is muted, you will still see a notification badge if someone mentions you, but you will not hear a sound. This is useful if you want to stay in a busy server but do not want constant alerts.

To unmute a server or channel, right-click it again and select "Unmute Server" or "Unmute Channel." The sound notifications will return when ready.

Understand the difference between muted and off

Discord's notification settings use two different terms, and they mean different things. Muted means you will still see a notification badge (a small number or dot) on the server or channel name, but you will not hear a sound. Off means you will not see a badge or hear a sound—the notification will be completely silent and invisible.

For most people, "Muted" is the better choice because you can still glance at Discord and see that someone sent you a message, but you will not be startled by a sound. Choose "Off" only if you want to ignore a notification type completely and do not care if you miss it.

Troubleshoot if sounds still play after muting

If you have set notifications to "Muted" in Discord and lowered the volume in your system mixer, but sounds still play, try these steps. First, close Discord completely—do not just minimize it. On Windows, press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Task Manager, find Discord in the list, click it, and click "End Task." On Mac, press Command+Q while Discord is in focus, or open Activity Monitor, find Discord, and click the X button.

After Discord is fully closed, reopen it and check your notification settings again. Sometimes the app does not explore changes until it restarts. If sounds still play, try logging out of Discord entirely. Click your username in the bottom left, select "Log Out," and then log back in. This forces Discord to reload all your settings from the server.

If the problem persists, your operating system may be playing a system notification sound instead of Discord's own sound. On Windows, open Settings, go to System, then Sound, and scroll down to "Advanced." Look for "App volume and device preferences" and check Discord's volume there. On Mac, the Notifications settings in System Preferences control whether apps can play sounds at all—make sure Discord is not blocked.

Use Do Not Disturb mode for temporary silence

If you want to silence all Discord notifications temporarily without changing your settings, use Discord's Do Not Disturb mode. Click your username in the bottom left and look for a status indicator—it usually shows a green dot, yellow dot, or red dot. Click that dot to open a menu with status options. Select Do Not Disturb. While this mode is on, Discord will not play any notification sounds, but you will still receive messages normally.

Do Not Disturb is useful when you are in a meeting, on a call, or just need a break from notifications. You can turn it off the same way—click the status dot and select "Online" or another status. Do Not Disturb does not change your notification settings; it just temporarily silences them. When you switch back to Online, your notifications will work as they did before.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do I still hear Discord sounds even though I muted notifications?

Discord has multiple layers of sound control. You may have muted notifications in Discord's settings, but your operating system's volume mixer could still be playing sounds. Check Windows Volume Mixer or Mac System Preferences Sound settings and make sure Discord's volume is lowered there. Also verify that Discord itself is not set to mute at the app level.

Can I mute only direct messages but keep server notifications?

Yes. In Discord User Settings under Notifications, find "Direct Messages" and set it to "Muted" or "Off." Leave other notification types like "Mentions" set to their normal level. This way, you will hear sounds for server activity but not for private messages.

What is the difference between muting a server and turning off notifications for it?

Muting a server silences sounds and badges for that server only, but your global notification settings stay the same. Turning off a notification type in User Settings affects all servers and channels. Use server mute for temporary silence; use User Settings to change your default behavior.

Does muting Discord in the volume mixer stop all sounds?

Yes, muting Discord in your system's volume mixer will silence the entire app, including all notification sounds. However, this also mutes Discord voice calls and game audio. For more control, use Discord's own notification settings instead, which let you silence notifications while keeping other sounds on.

How do I unmute notifications after I have turned them off?

Go back to Discord User Settings, click Notifications, and change any notification type from "Off" or "Muted" back to "All Messages" or your preferred setting. The change takes effect when ready. If you used Do Not Disturb mode, click your status dot and select "Online" to turn it off.