Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Discord vs Kik Messaging & Chat App

Discord 4.7★ · Free + IAP 75
Winner Discord
Kik Messaging & Chat App 4.3★ · Free + IAP 30

Discord is the superior choice for robust communication features and community building, despite its recent technical glitches, while Kik struggles with fundamental reliability, an abundance of bots, and concerns about inappropriate content.

Full reviews: Discord · Kik Messaging & Chat App

Discord offers a comprehensive platform for voice, video, and text communication, excelling in community features, though recent updates have introduced frustrating bugs. Kik, while providing a simple messaging service without phone numbers, is plagued by reliability issues, excessive ads, and a significant problem with bots and inappropriate content.

Head to head

Features edge: DiscordR1R11R15R25
Discord Discord is praised for its extensive features, including voice and video calls, screen sharing, custom servers, channels, roles, and bots, making it ideal for gaming and community building R11R28. Users appreciate its ability to connect people globally with low latency R58. However, recent updates have introduced issues like video call camera rotation problems, screen sharing glitches, and difficulties with notifications and server management R1R15R25.
Kik Messaging & Chat App Kik offers basic messaging and is valued for not requiring a phone number, which some users see as a privacy benefit . It lacks a call feature, which users desire R72. Some users miss older features like anonymous chats and 'Going Live' . The app is criticized for its inability to send photos, and a lack of organization features for groups .
Ease of Use & Reliability tieR1R2R3R5
Discord Discord users report significant difficulties with account creation, login, and verification, often encountering blank screens or being unable to use existing emails/numbers R3R5. The app also suffers from frequent bugs, including calls glitching, screens flipping, camera issues (upside down or sideways), and messages not loading R1R2R15.
Kik Messaging & Chat App Kik is widely reported as unreliable, with frequent freezing, crashing, and slow performance R67. Users experience issues with messages not sending or loading, and notifications being buggy R67. The app often requires multiple restarts to function .
Community & Safety edge: DiscordR4R7R8R20
Discord Discord is praised for fostering communities and allowing users to talk with friends R20. However, some users express concerns about the community, describing people as awful, rude, and selfish R7. There are also serious allegations of the app normalizing grooming, having many pedophiles, and containing NSFW content, hackers, and scammers R43R45R59. Users also report being banned for unclear reasons R4R8.
Kik Messaging & Chat App Kik is heavily criticized for being flooded with bots, catfish, scammers, and fake profiles R69R73R82. There are severe and repeated allegations of the app being full of child pornography and explicit content, making it unsafe and disgusting R78. Users also report being easily banned .
Price/Value & Support edge: DiscordR33R49R61R82
Discord Discord is a free app with in-app purchases. Some users complain about specific 'boost beta' features being useless or not having a choice in which features they receive R33. Support is criticized for being difficult to access, with users unable to log into the support website or receive notifications R49.
Kik Messaging & Chat App Kik is a free app with in-app purchases, but users complain about excessive and long ads that interrupt conversations and try to trick them into paying R61. Some users perceive it as no longer a free app due to the push for payments . There's also a complaint about the subscription not providing a full month . Support is not mentioned positively, with users stating reporting bots is pointless due to zero oversight R82.
Pick Discord if

You need a versatile platform for group communication, gaming, and community building with robust voice and video capabilities, and are willing to tolerate some recent software bugs and account access issues R58.

Pick Kik Messaging & Chat App if

You prioritize anonymity and a simple messaging experience without needing to share your phone number, and are prepared to contend with significant app instability, ads, and a high prevalence of bots and potentially inappropriate content R67R73R78.

Evidence note: Discord's recent reviews are heavily skewed by technical bugs, particularly camera and login issues, which impact its perceived reliability despite its high lifetime rating. Kik's reviews are consistently negative across multiple dimensions, with severe concerns about content and functionality.

Frequently asked

Is Discord good for group calls?
Yes, Discord is highly recommended for group calls and is considered one of the best calling apps for talking with friends globally, offering features like screen sharing and low latency, although some users report occasional glitches with calls and screen presenting R1R28R58.
Does Kik have video calling?
No, Kik Messaging & Chat App does not have a call feature, and users have requested its addition R72.
Are there many bots on Kik?
Yes, Kik is heavily criticized for being flooded with bots, catfish, and fake profiles, making the app practically unusable for some users R69R73R82R102.
Is Discord safe for children?
User reviews express serious concerns about Discord's safety for children and teens, citing issues with racist content, hate crimes, normalized grooming, and a high prevalence of pedophiles and NSFW content R43R45R59.
Why is Kik getting bad reviews?
Kik is receiving bad reviews due to its unreliability, frequent freezing and crashing, excessive and intrusive ads, a lack of essential features like calls and photo sending, and significant problems with bots, scammers, and explicit, often illegal, content R61R67R72R78.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 110 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R1] Discord 2/5 · US Calls glitch a lot: Please fix stage presenting. I’ll be in a call watching someone present something whether it be for work or personal calls it’ll just constantly not show one of the people showing their screen. Just shows a black screen with purple squares spiraling. No sound either. All I can do is constantly refresh my app till it works if ever but I miss a lot of conversations due to it.
  2. [R11] Discord 5/5 · US .: Es una aplicación buena para juegos y para hablar se la recomiendo 💯💯
  3. [R15] Discord 3/5 · US Video issues: After the update my video stopped working properly. It shows me in landscape mode when my phone is upright. I tried to trouble shoot it but it isn’t working. I can’t seem to download the app before the newest update!!
  4. [R25] Discord 2/5 · US Video Call - Camera Rotation!!: Please fix the camera. It keeps rotating no matter what WE do (even with iPhone portrait locked “on”), started Friday 7/10. I tried restarting my phone, updated the latest version (336.0), fixed my settings, still having the same issue. It’s very annoying. I hope you’ll find resolution soon. Thank you.
  5. [R2] Discord 4/5 · US I like it: in like it but I was on call and then my screen flipped
  6. [R3] Discord 3/5 · US I CANNOT CHAT: I lost my account with my email and it doesn’t allow me to use the same email again and if I make up a new one its keep forcing me to send a code so please recover my account )
  7. [R5] Discord 4/5 · US WHY..: So I tried making a new account and then a moment later I had to verify my account and number so I did but it didn’t work bro. Fix your verification
  8. [R4] Discord 1/5 · US Bans you for no reason: This app termed me for sending a pic of my Minecraft inventory
  9. [R7] Discord 1/5 · US WORST APP EVER: The people on this app are awful, rude, selfish, and mean. Discord pushes for bad updates that don’t make the app better. Terrible user inner-face.
  10. [R8] Discord 5/5 · US Hey discord team I love your app but this needs to be fixed: A friend told me that discord is giving out bans out to any images containing grid like patterns also I would like to add my account as been added as a two step account and I never did it nor have I ever been hacked before so why did it do it and not sent me the code and two step for everything when I just want to reset my password and d
  11. [R20] Discord 5/5 · US App: I love this app! It’s wonderful and I can talk to my friends
  12. [R33] Discord 1/5 · US Stupid boost beta: Why is it some servers get certain features like setting up a server theme and others get setting up game servers? I don’t want to set up a useless game server, I want the theme, stop giving us bs or at least give me a choice, not the useless one I don’t want.
  13. [R49] Discord 1/5 · US support sucks + updates suck.: Ive tried SOOOOO hard to log into the discord support website and it keeps telling me my info is wrong. Idk what you want me to do with that when its right…like saved in my phone right. I wrote out my password and email so perfectly i even changed my passwords a few times. I was reaching out for help bc gmail deleted my email i was using on the account and the fact i
  14. [R61] Kik Messaging & Chat App 1/5 · US Be ready: For a bunch of bs with the adds
  15. [R82] Kik Messaging & Chat App 1/5 · US Not very good at all. It’s also does not appear the review part of this app works any better.: This app is flooded with bots and catfish. It’s freezes up often. It fails to load completely often. You can’t administer administration options to rooms often. Reporting bots, catfish a frauds is pointless, as there’s zero oversight. It’s basic a free for all, be here at your own risk.
  16. [R28] Discord 5/5 · US The best calling app: This is the best calling app to call my friends with you can even use sounds
  17. [R58] Discord 5/5 · US Best Messaging and Calls: This is the best messaging and calls. I can call ppl who are across the world from me with low latency.
  18. [R72] Kik Messaging & Chat App 3/5 · US Call feature: Needs one.
  19. [R69] Kik Messaging & Chat App 3/5 · US Bots, hookers, and site signup scams: I keep thinking there’s a human out there somewhere.
  20. [R73] Kik Messaging & Chat App 1/5 · US Bots: To many bots Crazy how this app has fallen
  21. [R102] Kik Messaging & Chat App 1/5 · US robots: too many fake profiles and robots
  22. [R43] Discord 1/5 · US Weird: This app has caused children, teens, even adults due to the lack of thing you can do is someone is racist, or just spewing hate crime, it has normalized grooming, majority of ppl who use it are pedos, or people who are say too online, if this was about community it would have more rules, people die due to the dangers of this app, and cases pop up every year more than 200 cases like this
  23. [R45] Discord 1/5 · US App needs to be taken off the App Store: This app has a bunch of nsfw content on there and there are hackers and scammers and other things too, this app is literally the worst app ever made
  24. [R59] Discord 1/5 · US Trash: Pedos every where in this app
  25. [R67] Kik Messaging & Chat App 1/5 · US Unreliable: This app isn’t reliable when it comes to sending and receiving messages.
  26. [R78] Kik Messaging & Chat App 3/5 · US Rating is to boost.: This app is full of Child Pornography and people paying to see it. Full of it. Babies, toddlers, kids, teens. Everything. it’s hard to even avoid. report this app.

Synthesized from 110 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store