Developing
Pricing moves from fixed CPMs to an auction. Full self-serve is not available until early 2027.
In 60 seconds
- On September 29, 2026 Discord announced Discord Ads Manager, a self-serve tool for planning, buying and reporting, and Video Quests, a rewarded video format.
- Ads compete in an auction with prices that fluctuate, instead of a fixed CPM.
- Access is managed for now; Discord plans full self-serve in early 2027.
- Discord reports more than 90 million daily active users as of Q2 2026 and a 97% median completion rate for its original Quests (its own data).
Impact Layer
- What changed
- Discord moved from direct sales to a buying tool for brands of all sizes, with auction pricing and a rewarded video format.
- Why it matters
- It opens another gaming-audience channel to performance advertisers, although the audience is concentrated and self-serve is still months away.
- Who is affected
- Game studios and consumer brands targeting gamers, and agencies planning social and gaming budgets.
- Martech stack area
- Analytics, Advertising
- Stack impact
- Add Discord as a channel in measurement plans only once self-serve and reporting details are known; the announcement describes objectives and reporting but we did not see integration details.
- Business impact
- Low Managed access only for now. The completion figure is Discord's internal data for its original Quests format, not for Video Quests.
- Related technologies
- What to watch
- The self-serve date, minimum spend, measurement integrations, and independent results for Video Quests.
On September 29, 2026, Discord announced two advertising products: Discord Ads Manager and Video Quests.
What Discord announced
- Ads Manager. A self-serve tool covering the workflow from forecasting to performance reporting. Delivery is auction-based, so pricing fluctuates rather than following a fixed CPM. It is available with managed access now; Discord plans full self-serve access in early 2027.
- Video Quests. A mobile-first rewarded video format in which players watch about 15 seconds of video and earn Orbs on completion. Discord describes it as a scalable, always-on way to drive outcomes such as impressions and clicks. A premium, reservation-based option, Video Quests Reserve, ties delivery to full video completion. Both are bought through Ads Manager.
The numbers
Discord says its original Quests format reached a 97% median ad completion rate, citing internal data dated June 30, 2026, and that game studios used it to lift game discovery. It reports more than 90 million daily active users as of the second quarter of 2026. The completion figure is for the original format, not for Video Quests, and both numbers are Discord’s own.
Our read
The change is who can buy. Direct sales relationships kept smaller studios and marketers out; an auction tool lowers that bar. But “managed access now, self-serve early 2027” means most advertisers cannot test it this quarter. A rewarded format also makes completion rates easy to inflate, so ask what outcome follows the view, such as installs or purchases, before comparing it with other video buys.
Sources
- Discord: Discord opens advertising to brands of all sizes with Ads Manager and Video Quests (opens in a new tab)
Source of the products, auction pricing, availability, the completion-rate statement and the user figure.
- MarTech Edition: Amazon, Meta, Discord and Google hand more ad buying to software (opens in a new tab)
Context: the same week's announcements from other platforms.