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Discourse
Foster Vibrant Online Communities
4.0
(63)
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Discourse Reviews & Product Details

Discourse Overview
What is Discourse?

Discourse is a great tool for creating online forum experiences. The Discourse ecosystem is designed to be easy to use and user-friendly, with a range of features like spam blocking, moderation, and notifications. The open-source environment also integrates with tools like Slack, Zendesk, and WordPress. The platform supports convenient forum design and provides a range of native integrations, automatic trust systems, and a comprehensive reporting dashboard where users learn more forum trends to help them learn more about the audience and drive more insightful discussions.

Company Civilized Discourse Construction Kit, Inc.
Year founded 2013
Company size 11-50 employees
Headquarters New York, NY, USA
Social Media
Discourse Categories on Findstack
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Crevio
Sponsored
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$29.00/month
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Ask Questions about Discourse
What Discourse is best for?
How does Discourse compare to Thinkific?
What are the pros and cons of Discourse?
Discourse Product Details
Capabilities
API
CLI
OSS
Segment
Small Business
Mid Market
Enterprise
Deployment Cloud / SaaS / Web-Based, On-Premise Linux
Training Documentation
Languages English
Discourse Pros and Cons
Pros
  • Open source environment gives users more control
  • Simple user interface for creators and forum users
  • Automatic trust system minimizes spam
Cons
  • Limited to only forum functionality
  • Open source environment requires coding knowledge.
Discourse Features
API Access
Activity Feed
Analytics and Reporting
Automated Workflows
Branding Customization
Content Library
Content Moderation
Content Scheduling
Customizable Profiles
Discussion Forums
Event Management
File Sharing
Gamification
Knowledge Base
Live Chat
Member Directory
Mobile Access
Multilingual Support
Notifications
Polls and Surveys
Private Messaging
Role-Based Permissions
SEO Tools
Search Functionality
Single Sign-On (SSO)
Subscription Management
Third-party Integrations
User Management
User Tagging
Video Conferencing
Discourse Media
Discourse 0
Discourse 1
Discourse 2
Discourse 3
Discourse Screenshots
Disclaimer
Our research is curated from diverse authoritative sources and meant to offer general advice. We don’t guarantee that our suggestions will work best for each use-case, so consider your unique needs when choosing products and services. Feel free to share your feedback.
Last updated: December 11, 2024
Discourse Logo
63 Discourse Reviews
4.0 out of 5
Mid Market (51-1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
3.5
KL
Krys L.
Product Manager
Share
"Great Forum Software!!!"
What do you like best about Discourse?

The ability to have both private and public threads make it possible to have as much privacy as you would like.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

The tags are a bit confusing, could be more user friendly. Also, private messages are not private to admins.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

Open source is a huge plus. Speaking to the discussion side, community members are more prone to engage here as well. You can easily track conversations and not be bogged down with hundreds of messages since posts are written more fluidly here.

Mid Market (51-1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
3.5
SV
Sahil V.
Business System Analyst Ii
Share
"Best for online forums "
What do you like best about Discourse?

It’s one of the easiest way to create forum online. The best part is we can assign n number of admins to any forum and The interface is very simple and modern.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

So far this software works fine for me but when it comes to customisations or to edit any existing forum. It doesn’t perform well

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

I am using this in my organisation for taking opinions of my other colleagues.

Small Business (50 or fewer emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
3.0
SP
Samridhi P.
Graduate Teaching Assistant
Share
"Great for online discussions"
What do you like best about Discourse?

Discourse is a simple yet great software for ANY sized online communities. I like the fact that it is easy to navigate, great design, simple layout and is FAST. This software definitely promotes productive online discussions.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

When I first started using it, it took me some time to navigate through it and get used to the features. However, once I got used to it I found it super user-friendly.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

The fact that this software comes with user trust system makes moderation a lot easier. It runs well in all of my devices.

Small Business (50 or fewer emp.)
Dec 28, 2018
 Source
Overall Rating:
3.0
MK
Matthew K.
Independent Business Owner
Share
"Basics of Discourse"
What do you like best about Discourse?

It’s a very simple tool for keeping track is various sites that run on the discourse framework. Like a bookmarker, but for businesses.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

The app is very barebones. If you’re looking to manage more than a dozen sites, you’re better off with the desktop client.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

It helps me manage multiple discourse set-ups, giving me quick access to the info I need the most. It’s helpful in the communications department.

Mid Market (51-1000 emp.)
Feb 13, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
5.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"By far the best (and most affordable!!) option for community software"
What do you like best about Discourse?

Discourse is already amazing. Yet, the pace of development is staggering. You can interact directly with the co-founders, developers, and the rest of the Discourse community at meta.discourse.org. That's something you probably won't get with any other community software! As an open source project, the level of innovation and collaboration from multiple stakeholders appears to be well beyond what any private company could sustain. Discourse is fast, modern, and easy to use. It can handle a small community and scale to work with millions of people. It is incredibly simple to moderate and serve as the admin for a Discourse community. The ability to integrate Discourse with other platforms is advanced and convenient. You absolutely have to spin up a version of Discourse and try it out before making a decision.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

Whenever I have a complaint, I can bring it to the Discourse community at meta.discourse.org and see if others agree. When the concern is shared, the Discourse team will work to improve the product within months. Any dislikes about Discourse get resolved in a relatively short time.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

It is enabling us to bring together a global community, provide customer service, offer paid access to content, develop niche groups, and even run our intranet.

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
5.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Great discussions"
What do you like best about Discourse?

I like the best that the discussions on Discourse are well organized and easy to read through

What do you dislike about Discourse?

I have not found anything to dislike about Discourse as of now

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

I use it for research and technical advice/forums

Small Business (50 or fewer emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
5.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Really great community!"
What do you like best about Discourse?

I love how professional the community on Discourse is. There’s a ton of great information and it’s a safe place for constructive conversation.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

Honestly I have no complaints although sometimes it can be difficult to find the threads I am looking to join.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

Discourse has allowed my business to gain insight and feedback from other professionals and customers

Small Business (50 or fewer emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
5.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Connect on a whole new level"
What do you like best about Discourse?

I like that someone who is looking for my niche services can inquire about them here. Not only can they ask about them, I get a place where I can talk about what I do and what I can offer them. It’s where supply meets demand and demand meets supply. It also helps me and people like me to cultivate fans of what we do. It’s Hollywood for everyone else.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

I wish it were a bit more colorful and eyegrabbing at first sight. It’s one thing to be searched but one wants to have the ability to really stand out from the rest.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

Reaching more clients has always been a huge issue for me. Discourse can help me with that by allowing a platform for me to say “Hey, this is what I do. Could this work for you?” So mainly for me it would be the networking aspect of Discourse that solves a lot of my problems. It also gives me a chance to outline exactly what I do and don’t do. I don’t always get to do that with a basic website or just a pamphlet.

Mid Market (51-1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
5.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"The best forum software out there and open source too!"
What do you like best about Discourse?

Its very useful for replacing the old mailing list software with an open source and user friendly experience. It also helps for users to choose and use forum threads without the user interface by subscribing via mailing list mode. It's also good for open communication for the whole organization too.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

At first, I wasn't sure how to use tags since everything was lowercase and it feels a bit messy for an user-centric experience. Also, private messages can be seen by administrators which sometimes it might not be clear enough to the public.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

It's an open source and configurable with many other add-ons in order to help with integration with other services. Also, every conversation are trackable easily without having the risk of being lost or disappear in a big storm of many many other messages too.

Mid Market (51-1000 emp.)
Dec 14, 2018
 Source
Overall Rating:
5.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Collaboration+Communication"
What do you like best about Discourse?

Discourse is a streamlined discussion platform that has greatly improved our discussion workflow by providing a clean and consistent interface and a simple to use platform that everyone can get started with in an instant

What do you dislike about Discourse?

As the number of people scale up, Discourse can get very slow unless you have top of the line hardware that it can run on. Moments like those, you can't help but think of getting a cloud based solution

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

We've moved our ideas and communication workflow to Discourse. This has helped us work on the move, on simple web apps that everyone can contribute to using just a cell phone. It's just increased our turn around time, and made it easier, and fun even, to communicate

Small Business (50 or fewer emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.5
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Discourse is a from-scratch reboot, an attempt to reimagine what a modern Internet discussion forum "
What do you like best about Discourse?

Discourse pares all the complexity away and puts just the essential stuff on screen – the conversations you care most about, based on your participation.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

There is nothing I dislike about this product.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

defend itself from trolls, bad actors, and spammers — and the most engaged forum members can assist in the governance of their community.

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.5
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Creative concept "
What do you like best about Discourse?

I like that you can create a forum with your community or team members. Great for tips and discussions

What do you dislike about Discourse?

Nothing that comes to mind at this time

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

If you find an easier way to do something and want to share it or if you have a question, great place for discussion

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.5
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"A great product for creating a forum"
What do you like best about Discourse?

Discourse is easy to use and allows users to communicate easily and efficiently which is vital. Members can come together in one place and ask questions, answer questions, as well as get help and assistance when needed.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

It takes a bit getting used to and I don't think its as organized as it could be. It seems that questions can pile up quickly and it almost feels like I am swimming in unread emails. The navigation takes a bit of practice.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

This has helped our business come together and streamline communication between various business lines. It has also provided for a central place to ask questions and seek help and guidance which the employees find valuable.

Mid Market (51-1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.5
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Very organized -- good bang for your buck!"
What do you like best about Discourse?

We know discourse isn't the most robust forum software out there, but for the price, it does very well! Keeping things organized is incredibly easy - especially if you're wanting to have posts grouped by specific topics as well. The moderation customization is surprisingly robust though - you can assign key individuals specific roles that you want them to perform, and what abilities they'll be able to have while in the forum.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

Wish it was more robust. There are other forum solutions out there, but they were all at exorbitant prices and required dev-level setup. Discourse integrated with our CRM and our support software, which were two of the big things we needed. But I wish you could customize more around the posts and folders. Meaning, you could add up-votes/down-votes to certain tickets/bugs. Or assign a post to a specific moderator using logic.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

Help-center user-forum for both internal and external use.

Mid Market (51-1000 emp.)
May 17, 2022
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Discourse"
What do you like best about Discourse?

everything is very good. I have no suggestions.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

Sometimes the notifications do not work properly

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

answer customer questions and have history of answers kind of like stack overflow

Small Business (50 or fewer emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Works Ok As A Mailing List"
What do you like best about Discourse?

This worked ok as a mailing list and enjoyed the forum option for fans to get engaged. It offers a unique tool that is why we chose the platform, but wish it could have done more so we could use it as a platform for multiple efforts.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

....but for it to compete with other platform options, it needed more tools and options for increased usability. I would rather have one platform that manages several things, then have to use 3 including Discourse.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

Simple way to send emails and liked the discussion forum options.

Small Business (50 or fewer emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Good system"
What do you like best about Discourse?

Users can choose to use forum threads without the User Interface by subscribing via mailing list mode.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

Private Messages can be seen by Administrators, something which might not be clear to everybody.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

We've used it several times to use it with our equipment.

Mid Market (51-1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Great Overall, Customization takes time"
What do you like best about Discourse?

There are several great things about this platform. You can assign TL (trust levels) to users, and you can use this system to onboard moderators, additional admins, and other people to help manage your community. You can organize topics, threads, and categories in nearly any way you want, and the system setup is pretty elaborate.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

The way the replies system is set up, the conversation can get convoluted easily, and can lead to quickly derailing conversations. Also, to add features like a "solved!" Button to threads that ask for help with something, has to be a external integration. The search function is highly indexed, and unless you have a keyword or know exactly what you are searching the forum for, you might get lost in the forum queue.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

As a freelancer, I'm a professional moderator. I specialize in creating, managing, and maintaining forums and online communinities. I use discourse to help administrate users in a forum-style setting. The discourse design is optimized for discussion, which means that topics get old quickly - discourse makes sure those old topics get pushed to the back, and make space for the new topics.

Mid Market (51-1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Simply futuristic! A revolutionary way to manage your own virtual community!"
What do you like best about Discourse?

It simply breaks with the way of carrying the virtual community traditionally, It is not just about asking questions and writing answers like StackOverFlow, StackExchange, but it is about getting social interaction, maintaining a coexistence and establishing links with the community. I like this a lot because it is about empowering the community to lead itself, being the only way to keep at bay those who, instead of contributing, start publishing spam or behave like a troll.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

Being free software, the company must be able to customize the software according to their needs. Obviously, each company is different, it does not make sense to apply a single solution. This power of personalization is only given by free software. Just as there are for WordPress, it is expected that for Discourse there will also soon be a wide variety of accessories, so that each organization can customize their installation to their liking.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

A partner of our company requests a crisis management document in social media and obtains several examples of different real cases from our clients, it was very useful in that case.

Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
Jan 28, 2019
 Source
Overall Rating:
4.0
AG
Verified Reviewer
Founder
Share
"Open Source for Forums - Discourse"
What do you like best about Discourse?

Frankly that it's open source and easy to use. Plus I don't know of any other software or cloud-base program to handle communications and data in large group settings or forums. This was very helpful with a previous job. There are also a lot of threads you can add to keep information organized.

What do you dislike about Discourse?

I never really understood the private message function. Not sure why I need it to contact administrators when I was handling a group meeting. Setting up mailing lists seemed to be too manual - not easy to upload IMO.

What problems is Discourse solving and how is that benefiting you?

We used it for client and group meetings to record data in an effective and efficient way. We did use in it in that way although then uploaded it over to Basecamp which was used on a more corporate level.