Discord users are plagued by discolored streams when sharing their screens or going live, especially while playing games. Several users have reported that the image appears washed out and discolored compared to the Discord menus and interface surrounding it.

Though frequently occurring with NVIDIA GPUs, the problem isn't solely limited to NVIDIA hardware. Users with other GPUs have also reported encountering it. Discord hasn't addressed this issue as of now, leaving many users frustrated and seeking workarounds.

In this article, we explore several different solutions to resolve this annoying image color distortion issue during screen sharing on Discord.

1. Restart the Discord App

Sometimes, the screen and color issues are minor glitches in the app or system. A simple reboot or refresh can clear things up and have your Discord app working properly again. Completely closing the Discord app and relaunching it have helped many users.

2. Check Discord Servers Statuses

The problem may not always be on your end; it could sometimes be related to Discord servers. If the Discord servers are facing technical difficulties, you might have problems during live streaming or screen sharing. So, before diving into troubleshooting your computer, verify that Discord servers are functioning properly.

Head over to the Discord Status page to see if there's any problem with the servers. This page provides real-time updates on the health of Discord's systems, including any ongoing outages or service disruptions.

If there are issues with Discord servers, your only option is to wait it out. If the Discord Status page shows everything running normally, then the issue is likely related to your computer or network.

3. Disable Discord's Latest Technology Settings

Discord employs advanced technology to capture screens for sharing, utilizing hardware acceleration, adaptive encoding, and optimizations to enhance capture performance and quality. This setting is enabled by default. However, some users have reported that this feature is known to cause flickering, black screen, and discoloration issues.

To disable this feature, follow these steps:

  1. Open the Discord app on your computer and click the settings cog icon (User settings) in the bottom left corner, next to your username.
  1. Go to the 'Voice & Video' section on the left in the Discord Settings menu.
  1. On the right-side pane, scroll down to the SCREEN SHARE section and switch the 'Use our advanced technology to capture your screen' slider to the 'X' (Off) position.

4. Turn Off Hardware Acceleration

The hardware acceleration feature uses your graphics card (GPU) instead of your CPU to handle the screen capture process, for a smoother and less resource-intensive gaming experience.

However, if you are screen-sharing high-resolution or fast-paced content, it can overload your graphics card, causing screen discoloration on your computer. Here's how you can disable hardware acceleration:

  1. In the Discord app, click the 'Settings' icon on the left panel.
  1. From the APP SETTINGS list, click 'Advanced' on the left and turn off the toggle (switch to x position) next to 'Hardware Acceleration'.

After disabling the hardware acceleration, restart the app and check if the discoloration occurs while screen sharing.

5. Update the Discord App

Discord's developers consistently roll out updates to improve the app and address bugs. If you're experiencing discoloration on your screen, it's possible that updating the app could resolve this issue.

Updates happen automatically once you've installed and logged in. But if you want to update the app right away, you can also force an update by pressing Ctrl+R while Discord is running.

Alternatively, go to the system tray (up arrow icon) on the taskbar, right-click on the Discord icon, and select 'Check for updates'.

6. Update your Graphics Driver

Color-related problems during Discord Go Live or screen sharing have been mostly reported with NVIDIA graphics cards. The Discord team identified a regression in NVIDIA's video encoder within the NVIDIA 545.84 driver. This bug messes with color values, resulting in the discoloration and other issues you're seeing.

Fortunately, NVIDIA has released a new hotfix driver update, version 546.31 to fix this issue. So, installing the GeForce Driver Version 546.31 or the later versions should fix the discoloration in your Go Live stream and screen sharing.

If you don't have an NVIDIA graphics card, but you still experiencing the color issue in Discord, updating your graphics card should fix it. You can download the latest drivers directly from your graphics card manufacturer. Here's how you can update graphics cards from the two most popular brands: Nvidia and AMD:

  1. First, identify your graphics card's make and model.
  2. If you don't know your graphics card brand or model, press Windows+R, type dxdiag and press Enter.
  1. In the DirectX Diagnostic Tool, check the 'Display 1' and/or 'Display 2' tab for graphics card information. If you have a dedicated and integrated graphics card, you would have Display 1 (Integrated graphics) and Display 2 (Dedicated graphics).

Updating Nvidia Graphics Drivers

  1. Once you have graphics card details, head to the Nvidia Drivers page.
  2. Choose the correct specifications from the drop-down menus (product, product series, operating system, etc.). Make sure to select 'Game Ready Driver' from the Download Type menu.
  3. Then, click 'Search' to find the correct Nvidia driver for your graphics.
  1. Then, click the 'Get Download' next to the latest driver version.
  1. Once, the driver is downloaded, install it and restart your computer. If installing the latest driver didn't fix the problem, install the driver version 537.58 or earlier.
  2. Alternatively, you can search for and open the 'GeForce Experience' app.
  3. Go to the 'Drivers' tab, and click the 'CHECK FOR UPDATES' button. If you have any updates, click 'DOWNLOAD'.
  1. Then, click the 'EXPRESS INSTALLATION', and follow the instructions to install the driver.

Updating AMD Graphics Drivers

  1. For AMD graphics cards, go to the AMD Driver Support page, choose your specific GPU model from the product lists, and click 'SUBMIT'.
  1. On the next page, select the operating system and click 'DOWNLOAD'.
  1. After the driver is downloaded, install it.
  2. Alternatively, you can open the 'AMD Software' app, and click the 'Settings' icon at the top left corner.
  1. Then, click the 'Check for Updates' to download and install updates.

7. Rollback Nvidia’s Driver Update

If the graphics card's most recent driver update is the culprit behind your Discord screen-sharing discoloration problem, reverting to the previous version can resolve the issue.

  1. Open your Start menu, search for 'Device Manager', and select the result.
  2. In the Device Manager, expand the 'Display adapters' option.
  1. Then, right-click the graphics card and select 'Properties'.
  1. Switch to the 'Driver' tab in the Properties window and click 'Roll Back Driver'.
  1. Choose a reason for rolling back and click 'Yes'.

Rolling back to the driver should fix the screen-sharing discoloration issues in Discord if it is caused by the recent driver update.

8. Disable Open264 Video Codec Features

Discord offers Open364 video codec settings that can reduce CPU and bandwidth usage during video calls and screen shares. While Open364 provides decent quality for your streams, it generally doesn't look as good as H.264 at the same bitrate. So, you might see some pixelation, reduced sharpness, or even image discoloration if you use it.

This setting is enabled by default which may cause problems when you're called are screen sharing with someone who doesn't have Open364 enabled. Here's how you can disable it.

  1. In the Discord app, click the 'Settings' icon at the bottom left corner.
  1. In the Settings menu, click on 'Voice & Video' settings on the left.
  1. Then, scroll down to the VIDEO CODEC section, and turn off the toggle for 'OpenH264 Video Codec provided by Cisco Systems, Inc.' setting. Doing this will also disable the 'Hardware Acceleration' and 'AV1 video codec' settings.
  1. Then, restart the app and try screen sharing again and see if the problem occurs again.

9. Reinstall Discord

If you're still having the issue, a corrupted Discord file might be behind the issue.  You can try uninstalling the Discord app, download a fresh copy from our website, and install the app.