How to Restart Discord on Windows, Mac, and Mobile?

Lindsay Hayes

On Windows, you need to close the Discord window and then quit it from the system tray. On Mac, go to the menu bar, select "Discord", and then "Quit Discord". For iOS, open your app switcher and swipe the Discord app off. Finally, on Android, you "Force Stop" it from the Settings app. Once done, open it again.

My younger cousin who loves gaming was having issues with the Discord application on Windows. He tried restarting Discord, but it didn't work and he was tired of restarting the whole computer each time a bug popped up. Thankfully, I've been using Discord for many years now, so I know exactly how to restart Discord, regardless of the platform.

If you're also looking for how to restart Discord, then there's no better place to be. This guide will show you how to restart Discord on all major operating systems. Let's get right into it.

Contents

How to Restart Discord App?

When you're using Discord and you run into certain issues with the app, restarting Discord becomes necessary. This is because a restart serves as a way to refresh Discord and clear any software glitches that might have been causing problems.

Refreshing Discord is actually quite easy, but the steps to follow depend on the operating system that you are using the Discord app on.

For instance, how you restart the Discord app on an Android device is different from how you would do it on a Windows PC.

The sections below will show you how to restart Discord if you're using any major OS.

Girl Chatting with Friend on Mobile

How to Restart Discord on Windows?

If you want to restart Discord on Windows, you need to go through a few more steps than on most other operating systems.

This is because when you press the X icon on the Discord app, it doesn't actually close Discord.

The Discord client will still be running in the background even after closing an open window. You have to close it from the system tray.

Follow the steps below to restart Discord on Windows:

  1. Press the X icon in the upper-right corner of the Discord window to close it.
  2. Now, go to the System Tray at the bottom-right corner of your screen.
  3. Right-click the Discord icon. Note that you might need to click the arrow to expand the options.
  4. Select "Quit Discord" to properly close it on Windows.
  5. Now, open Discord again, and you've successfully restarted it.

Alternatively, you can close Discord straight from the Task Manager.

To open Task Manager in Windows, do the following:

  1. Right-click on the Taskbar. That's the bar that runs along the bottom of your Windows screen.
  2. Select "Task Manager" from the options.
  3. This should open Task Manager directly into the Processes tab.
  4. Look for Discord among the options and right-click it.
  5. Select "End Task". This will close Discord even without going to the system tray.
  6. Now, open Discord again to restart it.

How to Restart Discord on Mac?

If you want to restart Discord on an Apple computer, it is a lot more straightforward than on Windows.

To reset Discord if you're on macOS, just do the following:

  1. Make sure you have the Discord app open on your screen.
  2. Go to the menu bar at the top of the app and click "Discord".
  3. Select "Quit Discord". This will close the app entirely. It won't minimize to a system tray option like on Windows.
  4. Now, just open the app again and you would have refreshed it correctly.

How to Restart Discord on Android?

Trying to restart Discord on Android devices can be quite annoying because even after removing it from your Recents menu, it might still be running in the background.

For this reason, you will have to force Discord to close, which you can do by selecting "Force Quit" from the settings on your device.

To restart Discord on your Android mobile device:

  1. If you've recently opened Discord on your mobile phone, open your Recents menu (Otherwise, skip to step 3). How you do this depends on the Android phone you use, but popular methods are pressing the square icon at the bottom of your screen or swiping up from the left-bottom edge.
  2. Find Discord among the cards in the Recents menu. Swipe it up and off the screen to close it.
  3. To close Discord running in the background, open the "Settings" app.
  4. Select the "Apps" or "Applications" entry.
  5. Scroll through the list and look for the Discord icon and name. Tap it once you find it.
  6. From the bottom of the screen, select "Force Quit". Note that on some devices, this will be called "Force Stop".
  7. Confirm the action on the prompt that appears. This will completely close Discord, even if it was running in the background.
  8. Now, open Discord again to restart it.
Woman typing on mobile

How to Restart Discord on iOS?

If you're using an Apple mobile device for Discord, restarting the app is much easier than it is on Android.

Since there's no Force Quit option on iPhones or iPads, all you need to do is get rid of it from the open apps menu.

To close Discord on any of these Apple mobile devices, follow the steps below:

  1. On devices with Face ID, swipe up from the bottom edge of the screen and hold your finger in the center. For other devices, press the Home button twice.
  2. Now, scroll through the open apps until you find the Discord tab.
  3. Swipe it up and off the screen to close it.

Why Might I Need to Refresh Discord?

You might be wondering, what's the point of restarting Discord anyway?

If you face certain software issues when using the app, you'll find that they can be quite reliably solved with a quick restart.

Some of the issues you might experience include:

Read more resources

Final Words

If you're dealing with problems in the Discord mobile or desktop app, you can easily fix things by restarting Discord.

On Mac, simply use the "Quit Discord" option. On an iPhone, close the app from the App Switcher menu. On Microsoft Windows, you will need to close it from the System Tray. On Android, you must find Discord in the apps menu and Force Quit it.

Note that Discord server issues, freezes, audio problems, and other glitches might require you to close the app completely before opening it again. This can usually get it working properly again.

Did this article show you what you need to do to restart Discord on different operating systems? If so, look at our related articles to learn much more.

Lindsay Hayes

Author
Hi, I’m Lindsay, a techie from Kansas City. That’s right; I’m a born and bred Midwesterner. I learned to take electronics apart at my dad’s GameStop way back when, and I haven’t stopped since. I spend most of my time checking out new gadgets.
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