Fix: Discord Red Dot Icon

What is that strange Discord red dot icon that appears from time to time and what does it mean? How can you hide the red dot? Here's the ultimate guide.

Have you ever observed that a tiny red dot appears on the Discord symbol occasionally? Sometimes it is present, while other times it is not.

This speck can be removed if you find it irritating. In this article, we will clarify what the symbol actually is and how you can eliminate it if you want to.

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What Is The Red Dot Icon?

Despite its appearance, the red dot isn’t caused by any kind of error, bug, or glitch.

On the contrary, it is an intentional feature that indicates when you have received a new message on Discord. This is similar to the notification icons on many other messaging apps such as Messenger, Snapchat, Instagram, Viber, and others.

Reading Messages

The easiest way to get rid of the red dot on Discord’s icon is by reading through the new messages you have received. This is what the dot was designed for, and these messages could be in your DMs or server text channels.

However, if you are part of a server where new messages are constantly being posted, reading through them all will be near impossible. Even if you can, someone will soon post a new message, reactivating the red dot.

Our recommendation is to mute those servers entirely, so you can still make use of Discord’s notification system.

To do that, right-click the server icon, select Notification Settings, and then enable Mute [server name].

enabling Mute in Notification Settings for Discord server

Turning Off Notifications

Even if you still see the annoying red dot symbol after the previous explanation, you can happily get rid of it permanently by changing Discord’s settings. Here’s how:

  1. Open Discord.
  2. Click on User Settings (next to deafen/mute buttons).
    Discord User Settings
  3. Find the Notifications tab (under App Settings) and click it.
  4. Here, you need to disable the Unread Message Badge.
    Unread Message Badge in Discord Notifications tab

Disabling this option will get rid of the red dot badge. If you use Discord on multiple platforms (browser, mobile, and desktop app), you might need to repeat this process on each one.

If you ever want to reactivate Discord’s crimson dot notification, you simply need to Enable Unread Message Badge.

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Branko Gapo

Keeping up with the incredibly fast evolution of computer technology is impossible. Branko aims to use his knowledge on this matter to share news and information on all the latest essential technological innovations and advancements.