Key Takeaways
- Discord introduced Sponsored Quests in early 2024 as a way for developers to promote games.
- Sponsored Quests offer in-game rewards for completing mission objectives, such as streaming a game for 15 minutes.
- Users can easily opt out of Discord ads by disabling Sponsored Quests in Settings.
In 2024, Discord made the controversial decision to add ads in the form of “Sponsored Quests”. Here’s what you need to know about Discord ads — and how you can disable them.
In 2024 Discord introduced Sponsored Quests to allow developers to promote their games through Discord. These quests allow you to win in-game rewards by accepting quests and completing the mission objective (usually streaming for a certain amount of time).
Some of the games that Discord has promoted through sponsored quests include The Finals and Honkai Star Rail. If you don’t see sponsored quests pop up but want to try them, you can access them through Settings > Gift Inventory.
These Discord ads aren’t very obtrusive, since you’ll only see them pop up as a small banner above your call buttons or profile in the left navigation panel. They do indicate a shift of priorities for Discord, however, with this being the first time that the platform has placed ads.
Discord first indicated their plans to advertise following a round of layoffs that impacted approximately 170 employees and the subsequent hiring of new employees for ads-sales positions. It’s unclear how Discord ads will change in the future, but it seems that they might be gearing up for more.
How to Opt Out of Ads on Discord
If you aren’t interested in Sponsored Quests, you’re in luck: Discord has made the process of disabling ads simple. To get rid of Sponsored Quests, you’ll need to navigate to Settings > Privacy & Safety and scroll to the bottom of the page.
Under How We Use Your Data, you will see an option titled In-game rewards (aka Quests). Click on the slider to the right of this option to disable Sponsored Quests. After doing this, you won’t see quest pop-ups anymore.
While Discord is not only for gamers, these promotions are focused on those who play games while using the platform.
It’s unclear how ads will evolve on Discord and whether you’ll always be able to opt-out. But for now, you can disable Sponsored Quests if you’re not interested in receiving them.
