Are there alternatives to Digg for community discussions?

Data as of Oct 5, 2026Based on 350 AI responses from ChatGPT Search and Google AI ModeReviewed by Dimitry Apollonsky · Oct 5, 2026

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Alternatives to Digg depend on your goals. For broad, public news discussions, Reddit is the primary successor. If you prefer real-time, focused conversation, Discord or Slack are better fits. For owners who want to run private, branded communities with courses or gamification, look at platforms like Circle, Skool, or Mighty Networks. You can also explore decentralized options such as Lemmy for those who prioritize user-controlled data.

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Are there alternatives to Digg for community discussions?

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Google AI ModeSep 29, 2026

Yes, there are several strong alternatives to Digg depending on whether you are looking for general link-sharing and voting, deep tech-focused discussions, or decentralized, community-driven platforms.

The top alternatives for community discussions and social news aggregation include:

Reddit : The most direct spiritual successor and eventual giant compared to Digg. It relies entirely on user-submitted links, media, and text posts that are upvoted or downvoted by the community, branching out into millions of niche subreddits.
Hacker News : Run by Y Combinator, it features a minimalist, text-heavy interface focused on technology, startups, and computer science. It captures the purist, high-signal link-and-comment discussion dynamic that early Digg and Reddit used to have.
Lemmy & Mbin : Open-source, federated (Fediverse) alternatives modeled after Reddit and link-aggregating networks. They allow users from independent servers to interact with each other, offering a decentralized approach where communities maintain independent control over hosting and moderation.

If you are looking for platforms that capture the spirit of social news aggregation, link-sharing, and community-driven discussions modeled after Digg (or its spiritual successor/sibling, Reddit), several distinct alternatives stand out depending on what you're looking for:

Reddit - The giant and direct contemporary of old-school Digg. It uses a very similar upvoting/downvoting mechanics for user-submitted links, images, and text posts, broken down into millions of niche communities (subreddits).
Hacker News - Run by Y Combinator, this is a text-heavy, minimalist social news aggregator laser-focused on computer science, technology, startups, and entrepreneurship. It features a very active, highly analytical community discussion section under each submitted link.
Lemmy - A decentralized, open-source alternative to Reddit and link-aggregator sites that operates on the Fediverse. Communities can host their own servers ("instances") while users across different servers can still interact, vote, and discuss content together.
Slashdot - The "grandfather" of tech-focused social news and community discussion sites. Users submit brief summaries of tech and science stories with a link to the source, accompanied by a deeply opinionated, threaded comment section.
Fark - A classic community news aggregation and social bookmarking site where users submit weird, funny, or mainstream news stories accompanied by custom headlines, leading to long-standing community inside jokes and discussions.
Tildes - A smaller, invite-focused, and strictly moderated text-based community discussion platform designed to mimic the early, high-signal discussion culture of older social aggregation sites without the sensationalism.

If you're looking for a specific type of community, let me know:

Are you interested in tech and programming , or general news and culture?
Do you prefer a large mainstream user base or a quieter, niche forum?

I can point you toward the exact platform that fits your style.

Sources cited in this answer2

Yes. If by Digg you mean the older model of discovering interesting links and then discussing/voting on them, there are several alternatives. They differ quite a bit in how community-oriented they are.

Lemmy — Probably the closest structural alternative: topic-based communities, link/text posts, threaded comments, and voting. It's federated, so different independently operated servers can interact.
Mbin — Similar to Lemmy, but combines discussion/link aggregation with more microblogging-style content.
Hacker News — Excellent if your interests are technology, programming, startups, science, and internet culture. It's much more focused than Digg.
Tildes — Smaller and more discussion-focused, with slower-moving threads rather than an endless stream of content.
Discord — Better if you want an actual persistent community rather than a news/link aggregator. It supports both real-time chat and forum-style channels.
Discourse — More traditional forum structure, particularly good for communities that want durable, searchable discussions rather than a social-media feed.
Stack Exchange — Best when discussions revolve around questions that can have concrete answers; less suitable for general conversation.

If you're specifically looking for the old Digg feeling

I'd look at Lemmy, Mbin, and Tildes first. They retain more of the combination of discover something → read it → discuss it → vote on it than Discord or conventional forums do.

There are also some interesting smaller communities emerging around alternatives to Digg/Reddit; recent discussions among former Digg users specifically mention Lemmy, Mbin, and other Fediverse platforms as places people are exploring.

If you tell me what you liked about Digg—e.g. news discovery, funny links, political discussion, niche communities, anonymous commenting, or the voting system—I can narrow this down to 3–5 places that fit that particular experience.

Sources cited in this answer7

Yes. If you mean Digg-style communities where people submit links, discuss them, and vote on what rises to the top, there are several options in 2026:

Lemmy — Probably the closest structural alternative. It has communities, link/text posts, threaded comments, and voting, but is federated across independently operated servers.
Hacker News — Excellent if you're mainly interested in technology, programming, startups, and interesting web links. It's more focused and minimalist than Digg.
Tildes — A smaller, discussion-focused community emphasizing longer, more substantive conversations rather than rapid-fire content.
Mbin — A federated platform combining link discussions with microblogging-style content. It overlaps substantially with Lemmy and the wider Fediverse.
Discord — Better if you want ongoing communities and real-time conversation rather than a public, news-feed-style site. Many servers also have forum-style channels.
Quora — More oriented toward questions and answers than link discovery, but useful for topic-based discussions.
Discourse — More traditional forums, particularly good for focused communities that want organized, persistent discussions rather than a social-news feed.

If you specifically miss old-school Digg

I'd look at Lemmy first. Its basic flow—discover a topic, submit a link, vote, and participate in threaded discussion—is particularly close to the social-news model. The tradeoff is that its communities are spread across different servers, so finding the right instance/community takes a little getting used to.

If what you liked about Digg was discovering interesting links rather than joining large communities, Hacker News and Tildes are also worth exploring.

If you tell me what you liked about Digg—news discovery, niche communities, voting, comments, less toxicity, or simply the old-web feel—I can narrow this down to 2–3 options.

Sources cited in this answer7

Yes. If by Digg you mean a place to discover interesting links and then discuss them with a community, there are several alternatives, depending on what you want the experience to feel like:

Lemmy — Probably the closest structural match: topic-based communities, link/text posts, voting, and threaded comments. Unlike Digg, it is federated, so communities live on independently operated servers that can interact with one another.
Hacker News — Good for technology, startups, programming, and related subjects. It has a very simple link-and-comment format and tends toward relatively focused discussions.
Tildes — A smaller, discussion-oriented community emphasizing longer, more substantive conversations rather than viral content. Access is more limited than mainstream platforms.
Discord — Better if you want an active community around a particular interest rather than a public news/link aggregator. Conversations are more immediate and can include voice/video as well as text.
Discourse forums — Many individual interest communities run on Discourse. These are particularly good when you want persistent, searchable discussions organized around specific topics rather than a constantly scrolling feed.
Mbin — Another federated option in the Fediverse, combining link aggregation/discussion with microblogging features. It can be interesting if you want something broader than a traditional forum.

If you want the old-school Digg feeling

I'd look first at Lemmy. It retains the basic find something → vote → comment → browse what the community found interesting loop, while giving you access to many independently operated communities.

If what you specifically miss is Digg's discovery of interesting stories, rather than the social aspect, the choices are somewhat different. I can also give you a list of 10 active Digg-like sites in 2026, with their approximate size, topic focus, and how closely each resembles old Digg.

Sources cited in this answer4

Yes, there are several robust alternatives to Digg (and its spiritual cousin, Reddit ) depending on whether you are looking for tech-focused news, decentralized platforms, or general community-driven link aggregation.

The best alternatives for community discussions and social news curation are organized below by their style and focus:

Hacker News - Best for technology, startups, science, and intellectual discussions. Run by Y Combinator, it features a minimalist, text-only interface where users submit links and engage in deeply analytical, high-quality comment threads.
Lobsters - A computing-focused community very similar to Hacker News, but with a heavy emphasis on open-source software, technical deep dives, and an invite- or application-based system designed to keep comment quality high.
Tildes - Best for generalist, thoughtful, and respectful community discussions. Tildes is a non-profit, invite-only (though relatively easy to join via community members) platform focused entirely on reversing the toxicity and superficial engagement often found on larger mainstream social sites.
Lemmy - Best for a decentralized, open-source alternative. Lemmy operates on the Fediverse (via ActivityPub), meaning it is a network of independent servers that can talk to each other. It functions closely to traditional link-aggregation and voting platforms, but without corporate ownership.
Fark - A classic internet news-aggregator and commentary community that predates Digg's golden era. Users submit weird, funny, or mainstream news stories, and the community delivers snarky, long-running comment threads.
Product Hunt - Best if you specifically loved Digg for tracking new gadgets, apps, software, and tech innovations. It centers on daily user submissions, upvoting, and product-focused discussions.

If you're looking for a specific type of community, tell me:

Are you looking for tech/programming content or general news/culture?
Do you prefer a traditional centralized site or an open-source/decentralized network?

I can help you pick the best fit.

Sources cited in this answer3

Yes, there are several solid alternatives to Digg depending on the specific type of community discussion or content curation you are looking for. Because Digg pioneered the social news aggregation and voting model, its spiritual successors and peers fall into a few clear categories:

Reddit : The ultimate and most direct successor to the old-school Digg model. It relies on community-driven link submission, upvoting/downvoting, and granular sub-communities (subreddits) covering every niche interest imaginable.
Hacker News : Run by Y Combinator, this text-and-link-heavy aggregator is the go-to spot for deep discussions on technology, startups, programming, and science. The comment quality tends to be analytical, straightforward, and relatively low-noise compared to general social media.
Lemmy : A decentralized, open-source alternative to Reddit and Digg that runs on the Fediverse. If you prefer a platform independent of corporate ownership where communities (instances) federate and interact across servers, Lemmy is a growing hub for link-sharing and discussion.
Lobste.rs : A computing-focused, invite-only link aggregator and discussion community. It operates similarly to Hacker News but features a tighter, highly technical focus, strict community moderation logs, and an explicit focus on reducing noise.
Fark : One of Digg's oldest surviving contemporaries. Fark relies on user-submitted news stories paired with often humorous, snarky community commentary managed by longtime editors and a tight-knit community.

If you're looking for a community focused on a specific topic (like tech, general news, or comedy), let me know and I can recommend the best specific platform for your interests.

Sources cited in this answer3

Yes. If you mean Digg-style community discussion—people posting links or topics, voting, and discussing them—there are several good alternatives. Digg itself shifted back toward news aggregation after its 2026 Reddit-style reboot was shut down in March.

Best alternatives

Lemmy — Probably the closest modern match. It has topic-based communities, posts, voting, and threaded comments, but is decentralized across independently run servers.
Reddit — Still the biggest general-purpose option, with communities covering almost every subject.
Hacker News — Excellent if you're primarily interested in technology, startups, programming, and thoughtful link discussions.
Discord — Better for ongoing, tight-knit communities and real-time conversation. Its forum channels can provide more structured discussions.
Tildes — Smaller and more deliberately focused on thoughtful, long-form discussion rather than viral content.
Mbin — A Fediverse option combining Reddit-like link discussions with microblogging.
PieFed — Another open-source, federated alternative in the same general ecosystem as Lemmy.
Discourse — Best if you want actual forums centered around durable, organized discussions rather than a social-news feed.

My picks

Closest to old-school Digg: Lemmy Best for tech: Hacker News Best for serious/long-form discussion: Tildes or Discourse Best for niche communities and live interaction: Discord Best decentralized option: Lemmy/Mbin/PieFed

If what you specifically miss about old Digg is “discover interesting links, see what the community thinks, and have a comment thread underneath”, Lemmy is probably the one I'd try first.

Are there alternatives to Digg for community discussions?

Are there alternatives to Digg for community discussions?

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If you're specifically looking for the old Digg feeling

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If you specifically miss old-school Digg

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If you want the old-school Digg feeling

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Best alternatives

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