Discord file size limit: how to send bigger files without Nitro

The limit is per file, and it depends on the uploader's plan. Your friends don't need Nitro to download a big file you send. Server Boost limits only apply inside that server, so in DMs your own plan's limit applies.

Discord is also testing other limits. Some users can upload more than 20 MB, and some servers can unlock 250 MB uploads by spending Boosts on a Larger File Uploads perk. If your limit doesn't match the table, you're probably part of a test.

Discord has changed its limit several times, and many guides haven't caught up. Even Discord's help center doesn't agree with itself: its account caps page still lists 10 MB for free accounts and 500 MB for Nitro, while its newer File Attachments FAQ and Nitro pages say 20 MB and 1 GB.

There's another change that catches people out. Discord now checks a file's size before it compresses it, not after. According to Discord, desktop and iPhone users should find uploads easier than before. On Android, where phone videos tend to be bigger, you may hit the limit more often than you did with the old 10 MB limit.

1. Share a link instead (any size)

The simplest fix is not to upload the file to Discord at all. Upload it somewhere else and paste the link into the chat. It works for any file type and keeps full quality. With VeilShare:

1. Drop your file onto the upload box on our homepage. It works on your phone too.
2. Pick how long the link should last, 6, 24, 48 or 72 hours, and add a password if wanted.
3. Click on the upload button, copy the link and paste it into Discord.

Files up to 3 GB are free without an account. Your file is encrypted in your browser before it's uploaded, so we can't see it, while files uploaded to Discord are stored where Discord can access them. One trade-off: Discord won't play a linked video inside the chat the way it plays an upload, so your friends click the link to watch or download it.

2. Compress the video

For short clips, shrinking the video below 20 MB lets Discord play it right in the chat. Free apps like HandBrake can do it on your computer. Plenty of websites will too, but they upload your video to their servers to do it. Check the table below to see how much quality to expect.

3. Upload it in a boosted server

If the server you're posting in is boosted to Level 2 or 3, everyone there can upload files up to 50 MB or 100 MB, Nitro or not. It only works in that server, not in DMs.

4. Split it into parts

For files that aren't videos, apps like 7-Zip can split an archive into parts under 20 MB that you upload one by one. Your friends need every part and a compatible app to put the file back together, so treat this as a last resort.

5. Use Google Drive or Dropbox

Cloud storage works like option 1, but you need an account and have to set the file to "Anyone with the link". Popular files on Google Drive can also get locked for up to 24 hours when too many people download them, which we cover in our guide to Google Drive's download quota.

A video's file size is its bitrate multiplied by its length. So the longer the clip, the lower the quality has to be to stay under Discord's 20 MB limit. These are the total bitrates, video and audio together, that fit under 20 MB with a little room to spare:

Audio takes about 0.1 to 0.2 Mbps of that. Fast-moving game footage needs more bitrate than a talking head to look sharp, so for anything longer than a minute, sharing a link usually looks far better than squeezing the video down.

• A short clip under a minute: compress it so it plays in the chat.
• Longer videos or full-quality footage: share a link.
• Mods, game saves, ZIPs and other files: share a link.
• Anything private: an encrypted link with a password and an expiry time.
• You post big files in the same server all the time: Boosting that server might be worth it.