Discord is a powerful communication platform loved by gamers, creators, educators, and communities worldwide. One of its most popular features is the role system, where you can assign colored roles to users, giving them a specific hierarchy, display color, or set of permissions. Occasionally, however, users may run into a frustrating issue: the color roles just don’t seem to work as expected. Whether the colors won’t appear beside usernames or roles aren’t showing up properly, this guide aims to help troubleshoot and fix those problems.
If color roles aren’t working in Discord, it’s usually because of role hierarchy issues, the role not being displayed separately, or it’s placed below another role. Typically, adjusting role settings and ensuring the right hierarchy placement resolves this. Always make sure that the server settings, permissions, and individual roles are configured properly. If this doesn’t solve it, you might consider refreshing your client or contacting Discord support.
There are several possible reasons color roles may not work in a Discord server setup. Let’s explore the most common culprits and how to fix them.
Discord determines which role color to display based on the highest visible role in a user’s role list. If a colored role is placed below another role in the role hierarchy—even if it’s not colored—Discord will ignore the color of the lower role.
Fix: Go to your server settings and drag the colored role above all other non-displaying roles. Save the changes. This should fix color role visibility.
This setting is what makes a role show up separately from other users on the member list. If it’s not enabled, even the most beautifully colored role won’t be displayed.
Fix: Edit the role in question and enable “Display role members separately from online members” in the role settings menu.
If a user has several roles, Discord will display the color from the highest-positioned role that has a color. If more than one role is colored, and the topmost one has no visible permission or is disabled in display, it might create confusion about what should be showing.
Fix: Only assign one colored role for display purposes or organize roles so the top visible role is the one with the color you want to be shown.
Sometimes the color technically works, but it’s so similar to the Discord background (especially in dark theme) that it appears invisible.
Fix: Change the color of the role to something more distinct. Bright colors or high contrast shades tend to work better.
On rare occasions, Discord may experience a client-side bug or server sync delay that prevents new settings or role changes from displaying correctly.
Fix: Log out and log back in. You may also want to restart the app, clear cache, or try reinstalling. Make sure you are using the latest version of the client or try using the browser version for troubleshooting.
Discord’s mobile app sometimes behaves differently than the desktop client. Color roles may appear inconsistently or require refreshes to be visible.
Fix: Update to the latest version of the app and refresh the server view. If needed, reinstall the app to eliminate potential glitches.
If you want a quick guide to fix color roles not working, follow these steps:
If none of the above solutions work, the problem might be server-specific or related to deeper account issues. In such rare cases, it may be necessary to reach out to Discord’s official support channels.
When contacting support, be sure to include:
This usually happens because the colored role is placed below another role in the hierarchy or the display option isn’t enabled. To fix it, move the colored role higher and enable “Display role members separately.”
Discord only displays the color of the highest role in the hierarchy that has a color. While you can assign multiple roles, only one color will be shown—the one from the highest role.
This often happens because the color is similar to Discord’s background color, especially in dark mode. Try choosing a bolder color that stands out more.
Most of the time it’s a misconfiguration — such as role order or toggles. However, if everything seems set correctly and the issue continues, it could be a platform bug or compatibility issue with your app version.
Generally, yes, but the mobile app may not always update role colors immediately or display them consistently. Always test changes on both platforms if possible.
By following these steps and keeping role management organized, Discord users and server administrators can ensure colored roles work effectively and contribute positively to server structure and aesthetics.