How to Bold Text in Discord: A Complete Guide

Whether you are trying to make an important announcement in your gaming guild’s server, emphasize a crucial rule in a community channel, or just add some flair to your chat messages, knowing how to format your text is an essential Discord skill.

While Discord doesn’t have a traditional word-processor toolbar with a giant “B” button, it uses a lightweight markup system called Markdown. This makes formatting your messages fast, easy, and accessible across desktop, mobile, and web versions.

The Short Answer: How to Bold

To make your text bold in Discord, all you need to do is wrap your words in two asterisks (**) on both sides, with no spaces between the asterisks and your text.

• Typing: **Hello World**
• Result: Hello World

Step-by-Step Examples

Let’s look at a few practical ways you can use bold text in your day-to-day chatting:

1. Bolding a Single Word

If you want to draw attention to a specific word in a sentence:

• Input: Please remember to check the **rules** before posting.
• Output: Please remember to check the rules before posting.

2. Bolding an Entire Sentence

You can bold as much text as you need, from a short phrase to a full paragraph:

• Input: **ATTENTION: Server maintenance will begin in 10 minutes.**
• Output: ATTENTION: Server maintenance will begin in 10 minutes.

3. Using Underscores (__)

Alternatively, you can use two underscores (__) on either side of your text to achieve the exact same bold effect.

• Input: __This is also bold text!__
• Output: This is also bold text!

Pro-Tip: Combining Bold with Other Styles

Discord allows you to layer Markdown styles to make your messages even more expressive. Here is how you can mix bold with italics or underlines:

• Bold + Italics (Three asterisks or underscores):
  • Input: ***This text is bold and italicized!***
  • Output: This text is bold and italicized!
• Bold + Underline:
  • Input: __**This text is bold and underlined!**__
  • Output: This text is bold and underlined!

Troubleshooting Common Mistakes

If your bold text isn’t working, check for these common culprits:

1. Accidental Spaces: Make sure there are no spaces between the asterisks and the first/last letters of your text.
   • Incorrect: ** Hello ** (This will just show the asterisks).
   • Correct: **Hello**
2. Confusing Asterisks with Backticks or Tildes: Backticks (`) create code blocks, and tildes (~~) create strikethroughs. Stick strictly to two asterisks (**) or two underscores (__) for bolding.

Now that you know the secret, go ahead and make your important messages pop in your favorite Discord servers!