A lightweight, native Discord client for Windows

MaiCord is written from scratch in C++ and draws its own interface with Direct3D 11. No Electron, no browser engine, nothing to install: one small portable app that stays out of your way.

Download v0.3.4 5.7 MB View sourceSource on GitHub

v0.3.4Build passing

Free and open source (MPL-2.0) · Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit · Updates itself · All releases

MaiCord in the Aurora gradient theme, with stars and comets drifting behind a #general channel. Juniper finishes typing and posts, reactions come in and Ada replies. Around the conversation: the server list, the channel list, the header with search, server tags beside names and the member list grouped by role.
5.7 MBportable download
7.9 MBon disk, one EXE and one DLL
~60 msto the first frame*
~0%CPU while nothing changes

Why another client?

The official desktop app is a web page running in Electron, and it carries a whole browser with it. MaiCord renders on the GPU and only redraws when something on screen changes, so it starts instantly and sits idle at near-zero CPU. It is built in freestanding C++23 with no runtime dependencies beyond the DLLs that ship with Windows.

Screenshots

Every pixel below is drawn by MaiCord's own Direct3D 11 renderer. The people, servers and messages are made up.

The same channel in the dark theme: an image with reactions, a reply, a link preview, server tags and the member list.
The dark theme.
The same channel in the light theme.
The light theme.
A profile popout over the channel, showing a banner, bio, server tag, role and a game activity card with artwork and elapsed time.
Profiles with roles and rich presence.
The Appearance page of MaiCord's settings, with theme and colour-theme choices.
Appearance settings.

Features

MaiCord covers the Discord features you use every day, and more arrive with each release.

Chat

  • Markdown, code highlighting and ANSI colors
  • Embeds, galleries, stickers and custom emoji
  • Replies, forwards, pins, reactions, threads, forums and polls
  • Voice messages, GIF picker and file drag and drop
  • Search filters, mentions inbox and a Ctrl+K quick switcher

Voice and video

  • Voice channels with end-to-end encryption (DAVE)
  • Push-to-talk and per-user volume
  • Soundboard and stage channels
  • Watch Go Live streams and cameras, decoded on the GPU

Servers

  • Roles, permissions, members, bans and audit log
  • Emoji, stickers, soundboard and invites
  • Scheduled events and community onboarding
  • Per-server profiles and privacy settings

Accounts

  • Two-factor sign-in: security keys, Windows Hello, authenticator apps, SMS
  • QR code login
  • Up to five saved accounts with quick switching
  • Full profile editor with banners, decorations and effects

Built for Windows

  • Native notifications, tray icon and taskbar badge
  • Spellcheck and IME through Windows text services
  • Screen reader support through UI Automation
  • Signed automatic updates

Make it yours

  • Themes for colors, type, spacing and animated backgrounds
  • Dark, light and AMOLED bases
  • Native plugins with a stable C API
  • Plugin permissions you approve

Install

  1. Download MaiCord-0.3.4-windows-x64.zip (5.7 MB) from the latest release.
  2. Extract it anywhere, for example %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\MaiCord.
  3. Run MaiCord.exe. No installer or admin rights are needed.

Requires Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit), a CPU with AVX and a GPU with Direct3D 11 support.

Changelog

MaiCord updates itself, and every update is checked against a signature built into the client before it installs.

0.3.4

Features

  • Show signed changelogs and build details on the Updates page
  • Allow 640 emoji per guild
  • Allow 4000-character messages for Nitro

Performance

  • Count every media upload path in the perf probe
  • Reserve fewer message scene rows up front and size-optimise history merging
  • Decode JPEG previews up to 2048 px reduced on the CPU
  • Size the perf probe's account-state page table to the struct

and 23 more changes on GitHub

0.3.3

Features

  • Add the DM profile panel, view titles and animated typing dots
  • Add toasts for copies and saves, and copy buttons for invites

Fixes

  • Reconnect the account after unexpected stops and fix gateway gaps
  • Fix poll voting and refresh the poll UI
  • Fix the sticker and emoji pickers and Lottie mattes

and 18 more changes on GitHub

0.3.2

Features

  • Show rich activities on profiles and in user rows
  • Show an elapsed timer on the connected voice channel
  • Add an opt-in probe that renders website screenshots
  • Show joined threads by join time; hide empty categories; rank linked roles last
  • Add a website on GitHub Pages
  • Show a bare progress track while a download waits

Performance

  • Add an idle phase with the background effect to the perf probe

and 39 more changes on GitHub

FAQ

Is MaiCord free?

Yes. MaiCord is free and open source under the Mozilla Public License 2.0, and you can build it yourself from the source on GitHub.

Is it an official Discord app?

No. MaiCord is an unofficial third-party client, not affiliated with or endorsed by Discord Inc. Using third-party clients may violate Discord's Terms of Service and could put your account at risk. Use it at your own discretion.

Where are my sign-ins stored?

On your PC only, in %LOCALAPPDATA%\MaiCord, encrypted with Windows Data Protection so they can be read only by your Windows account.

How do updates work?

MaiCord checks GitHub for new releases and verifies each update against a signature built into the client before installing it.

Can I share my screen or camera?

Not yet. You can join voice, watch Go Live streams and see cameras today; sending video and screen share are on the roadmap.

Does it run on macOS or Linux?

No. MaiCord is built for Windows 10 and 11 and uses Direct3D 11 and other Windows APIs directly.