What happens to Discord accounts when the owner dies
Discord Inc. accounts are forfeited under the program's terms when the account is closed
Discord Support
Discord Privacy / Deceased User Requests
Account deletion is permanent. Nitro billing continues until cancelled. Accounts inactive for 2+ years may be automatically deleted, with an email or text warning as the account nears the 2-year mark.
Discord Inc.'s terms state that accounts are not the property of the account holder and are forfeited at death. The program does not provide a mechanism for transferring accounts to heirs.
Some families have reported receiving accommodations from Discord Inc. customer service, though this is not part of the official policy.
What to do
When a Discord account holder dies, these are the steps to take:
- •With the account login: sign in, open User Settings > Account Removal, and click Delete Account.
- •With access to the account's email: email Discord support from that address with the statement "I confirm that I would like to delete the account associated with [email]."
- •From a different account or email: submit a request including "I request to have the account associated with [email and/or username] deleted," plus the deceased's account details (email and Discord username), proof of death (death certificate or coroner's report), proof of relationship to the deceased (marriage license, birth certificate, last will and testament, estate letter, or power of attorney), and a valid photo ID or passport.
- •The owner account must have been inactive for 30+ days
- •Discord contacts the inactive owner, who has 7 days to respond. If they approve or do not respond, the transfer proceeds
- •The requester must have been active in the last 30 days
- •The requester must have administrator or moderator permissions on the server
- •The server cannot be monetized
- •If the owner's account has been disabled or deleted, the transfer may be denied
- •Submit a transfer request to Discord support
Required Documents
- If requesting from the account's own email: a confirmation statement requesting deletion (no separate documents required)
- If requesting from a different account or email: the deceased's account details (email address associated with the account and Discord username)
- If requesting from a different account or email: proof of the account holder's death (death certificate or coroner's report)
- If requesting from a different account or email: proof of relationship to the deceased (marriage license, birth certificate, last will and testament, estate letter, or power of attorney)
- If requesting from a different account or email: a valid photo ID or passport to verify the requester's identity
Timeline
Account deletion is permanent. Nitro billing continues until cancelled. Accounts inactive for 2+ years may be automatically deleted, with an email or text warning as the account nears the 2-year mark.
Frequently asked questions
Family members can request account deletion. If they have the account login or access to its email, they can delete it directly or by emailing a confirmation statement. From a different account or email, Discord requires the account details (email and Discord username), proof of death (death certificate or coroner's report), proof of relationship (such as a marriage license, birth certificate, will, estate letter, or power of attorney), and a photo ID. Discord does not offer memorialization, account transfer, or data access. Account deletion is the only option.
If the server has 100+ members (active user count) and the owner has been inactive for 30+ days, an active administrator or moderator can request ownership transfer through Discord support. Discord contacts the inactive owner, who has 7 days to approve or decline. For servers under 100 members, there is no ownership transfer mechanism. The server persists but with no owner.
Nitro billing continues until the subscription is manually cancelled or the account is deleted. Family should contact Discord Billing Support with the email address tied to the account to stop recurring charges.
Individual bots cannot be transferred between accounts. If the bot is owned by a Developer Team, team ownership can be transferred (requires consent within 30 days, and verified apps lose verification). Otherwise, the bot becomes inaccessible when the owner's account is deleted.
No. Discord states that due to privacy and security reasons, it cannot provide access, disclose personal information, or share data tied to an account. Data package requests can only be initiated from within an active, logged-in account. If the account is deleted before the data package download link is received, the request is cancelled. Family members can contact privacy@discord.com for special cases, but Discord has not documented any exceptions.
When a Discord account is deleted, the username is replaced with a random string, but the messages themselves remain visible in servers and DM conversations. Recipients can still see the message content. The deleted user's DM thread may disappear from the other person's sidebar list, but if opened, the messages are still accessible. There is no way for an estate to delete individual messages after account deletion.
Since Discord accounts are forfeited at death under the official terms, accounts can only be used during the account holder's lifetime. Redeeming, transferring, or sharing accounts while the account is active preserves their value.
Sources
Data sourced from Discord Inc. primary sources (8 pages reviewed). How we research.
Discord Support
Discord Privacy / Deceased User Requests
Account deletion is permanent. Nitro billing continues until cancelled. Accounts inactive for 2+ years may be automatically deleted, with an email or text warning as the account nears the 2-year mark.
