Free Discord Server Rules Templates
Building a thriving Discord community starts with a strong foundation. The most critical piece of that foundation is a clear, well-defined set of rules. A great ruleset prevents chaos, sets expectations for new members, and empowers your moderation team. This guide provides everything you need: copy-paste-ready templates, formatting tips, and a clear strategy to implement them effectively.
Why Clear Rules Are Essential
As a server grows, unwritten etiquette breaks down. Explicit rules are non-negotiable for a healthy, scalable community. They serve several key functions:
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Setting Expectations
Rules immediately inform new members of your community's standards, preventing misunderstandings and behavioral friction.
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Creating a Safe Environment
Explicitly prohibiting harassment, hate speech, and other toxic behaviors is the first step in building a truly safe and inclusive space.
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Empowering Moderators
Clear guidelines give your moderation team a consistent framework, making their job easier and protecting them from accusations of bias.
Formatting and Presentation
How your rules look is just as important as what they say. A well-formatted rules channel is more inviting, easier to scan, and signals a level of professionalism that encourages members to take them seriously.
Basic Formatting
Discord uses Markdown to style messages. Mastering the basics is key to a readable document. Use headers for categories, bold text for key terms like "ban," and lists to make rules easy to scan. For a complete guide, check out our article on all Discord text tricks.
Using Color for Emphasis
While Discord doesn't have a native color feature, you can use code blocks and syntax highlighting as a workaround to add color to your text. It can be complex to do manually, but thankfully, there are tools that simplify the process. For an easy way to generate colored text for your rules, check out the Rebane Color Text Generator.
Aesthetic Touches
Simple visual elements can dramatically improve readability and make your server look more professional.
- Banners: Use a custom 16:9 image (e.g., 960x540px) to serve as a header for your rules section.
- Emojis and Symbols: Add emojis or special text symbols in channel names (e.g., 📜 for #rules) or within the text to provide quick visual cues and personality.
- Dividers: Use text-based dividers to visually separate sections and break up long blocks of text. You can find a wide variety of aesthetic dividers and borders to copy and paste from sites like Reverelia.
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Copy-and-Paste Rule Templates
Here are several robust templates designed as starting points for common server types. Simply copy the text from the code block and paste it directly into your Discord channel.
General Community / Social Server
# 📜 SERVER RULES
> Welcome to our community! To ensure this is a safe, welcoming, and enjoyable space for everyone, please read and abide by the following rules. Failure to do so will result in moderation action, up to and including a **permanent ban**.
## 💬 GENERAL CONDUCT
- **Be Respectful and Civil.** Treat all members with respect, regardless of their background, identity, or opinions. Harassment, hate speech, sexism, racism, or any form of discrimination will not be tolerated.
- **No Spamming.** Do not send repeated messages, images, or @mentions. This includes excessive use of CAPS LOCK, emojis, or text walls that disrupt conversation.
- **Keep Conversations in English.** To ensure our moderation team can effectively monitor chat, please use English in all public channels.
- **No Inappropriate Content (NSFW).** Do not post sexually explicit, pornographic, or excessively gory content in any channel not explicitly marked as NSFW. All NSFW content must be confined to the designated 🔞 channels.
- **Use Channels Appropriately.** Please post content in the correct channels. Read the channel descriptions to understand their purpose.
## 🛡️ SAFETY & PRIVACY
- **No Doxxing or Sharing Private Information.** Sharing the personal information of any user without their explicit consent is strictly forbidden and will result in an immediate ban.
- **No Advertising or Self-Promotion.** Do not advertise other Discord servers, social media accounts, or commercial products without permission from a staff member.
- **Follow Discord's Terms of Service.** All members are expected to adhere to Discord's official Terms of Service (ToS) and Community Guidelines. You can read them here: https://discord.com/terms
> If you witness a rule being broken, please report it to a @Moderator.Gaming Community
# 🎮 GAMING COMMUNITY RULES
> Welcome, gamer! Our goal is to create a fun, competitive, and non-toxic environment for everyone. Please follow these rules to keep the community awesome.
## 💬 GENERAL CONDUCT
- **Be Respectful and Civil.** No toxicity, flaming, or personal attacks. Treat all members with respect. Harassment, hate speech, or any form of discrimination will not be tolerated.
- **No Spamming.** Do not flood chat with messages or excessive @mentions. Keep bot commands in the designated `#bot-commands` channel.
- **No Inappropriate Content (NSFW).** All NSFW content must be confined to the designated 🔞 channels.
- **No Unauthorized Advertising.** Do not advertise other Discord servers or streams without permission. You may post your content in `#self-promotion` channels where available.
## ⚔️ GAMING-SPECIFIC RULES
- **No Spoilers.** Do not post spoilers for new games, movies, or shows outside of the designated `#spoilers` channel. For new releases, a **two (2) week** spoiler-free period is in effect for all general channels.
- **No Cheating or Exploits.** The discussion, promotion, or distribution of cheats, hacks, or game exploits is strictly forbidden.
- **Respect All Gamers.** Do not belittle or insult others based on their game choice, skill level, or platform. Elitism has no place here.
## 🎤 VOICE CHAT ETIQUETTE
- **Be Mindful in Voice Chat.** Avoid excessive background noise, screaming, or playing loud music. Use Push-to-Talk if your microphone is sensitive.
- **Do Not Join VCs Uninvited.** If a voice channel is in use by a group, please ask for permission in a text channel before joining.
> If you have an issue with another member, please open a support ticket or DM an @Admin.Study / Academic Server
# 📚 ACADEMIC & PROFESSIONAL SERVER RULES
> Welcome. To maintain a productive and respectful environment conducive to study and professional growth, all members are required to adhere to the following rules.
## 🏛️ CODE OF CONDUCT
1. **Maintain Professionalism and Respect.** All interactions should be civil and respectful. Constructive debate is encouraged, but personal attacks, harassment, and discriminatory language are strictly prohibited.
2. **Keep Discussions On-Topic.** Please use the designated channels for their intended purpose. Off-topic conversations should be limited to the `#lounge` or `#off-topic` channels to keep study areas focused.
3. **No Academic Dishonesty.** Do not request or provide answers for graded assignments, tests, or exams. Collaboration on learning is encouraged, but **cheating is forbidden**.
4. **Cite Your Sources.** When sharing academic claims, please provide sources where possible. Do not knowingly spread false or misleading information.
## ⚖️ CONTENT & SHARING POLICIES
- **No Piracy or Copyright Infringement.** Do not share links to pirated software, textbooks, academic papers, or any other copyrighted material. This is illegal and a violation of Discord's ToS.
- **No Spam or Unsolicited Promotion.** Do not spam messages or post advertisements for services, products, or other communities without prior approval from the administration.
- **No NSFW or Inappropriate Content.** This is a professional environment. All content should be safe for work.
> By participating in this server, you agree to these rules. Violations will be handled by the moderation team and may result in removal from the community.Putting Your Rules into Action
A great ruleset is useless if no one sees it. Proper implementation and fair enforcement are what bring your rules to life.
Setting Up Your #rules Channel
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Create a Read-Only Channel
Create a channel named #rules and place it at the top of your channel list. Go to its permissions and disable the "Send Messages" permission for the @everyone role.
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Post Your Rules
Paste your finalized rules into the channel. Now, only staff can post or edit them.
Onboarding with Rules Screening
If your server is set as a "Community Server," you can enable Rules Screening in your settings. This is the best way to ensure new members see your rules. It presents them with a pop-up of your rules that they must explicitly agree to before they can interact with the server.
