To steal an emoji or sticker on Discord, you add a copy of it to a server you manage. Either save the image and upload it in Server Settings, or reply to the message with /emoji steal and the Better Tickets bot copies it for you. Neither way needs Nitro, but you do need the Create Expressions permission on your server.
What "stealing" an emoji means
Custom emojis belong to the server that uploaded them. Without Nitro, you can only use them inside that server. Nitro lets you send them elsewhere, but they still belong to the original server and stop working if it deletes them.
Stealing gives your server its own copy. Once it's uploaded, everyone in your server can use it, with or without Nitro, and it stays even if the original disappears. Only custom emojis and stickers can be stolen. Standard emojis like 😎 are already available to everyone.
Steal an emoji by hand
- Open Discord in a web browser at discord.com/app and find a message with the emoji.
- Right-click the emoji and choose Open image in new tab. The image is served from
cdn.discordapp.com/emojis/followed by the emoji's ID. - Save the image from that tab.
- In your server, open Server Settings → Emoji and choose Upload Emoji.
- Pick the saved file and give the emoji a name.
The file has to be 256 KB or smaller, in JPEG, PNG, GIF, WebP or AVIF format.
Stickers work the same way, under Server Settings → Stickers. A sticker file must be a PNG, APNG or GIF of up to 512 KB, sized to 320 × 320 pixels, and animated stickers can last up to 5 seconds.
Steal emojis and stickers with a bot
Saving images one by one gets slow, especially for a whole message of reactions. With Better Tickets in your server:
- Reply to the message that has the emojis or stickers, or paste the emojis into the command.
- Run
/emoji steal. - Page through what was found and choose Steal as Emoji or Steal as Sticker for each one.
To skip the browser and add everything at once, run /emoji steal all:True while replying to the message. Each run picks up to 10 items, and the reply says what was added and why anything failed.
The bot checks the same limits Discord does. Anything over 256 KB is flagged as too large for an emoji instead of failing silently, and it checks for free slots before uploading. You need Create Expressions (Administrator includes it) to steal, and the bot needs Create Expressions and Manage Expressions.
Emoji and sticker slots
Every server has a fixed number of slots, and boosting the server raises it:
| Boost level | Emoji slots | Sticker slots |
|---|---|---|
| No level | 50 | 5 |
| Level 1 | 100 | 15 |
| Level 2 | 150 | 30 |
| Level 3 | 250 | 60 |
If the server is full, delete an emoji you no longer use under Server Settings → Emoji before adding new ones.
Lottie stickers can't be copied
Some stickers, including many of Discord's own animated ones, are Lottie files rather than images. Discord only lets verified and partnered servers upload Lottie stickers, so these can't be stolen as either a sticker or an emoji.
Frequently asked questions
Can I steal emojis on Discord without Nitro?
Yes. Nitro only lets you use another server's emojis where they are. Stealing means adding a copy to your own server, which works without Nitro: save the image and upload it, or reply to the message with /emoji steal from Better Tickets.
Why can't I steal a normal emoji like 😎?
Standard emojis are Unicode characters that everyone already has, so there's nothing to copy. Only custom emojis and stickers that a server uploaded can be stolen.
What permission do I need to add emojis to a server?
Create Expressions to upload new emojis and stickers, or Manage Expressions to edit and delete them. Server owners and members with Administrator have both.
Why won't my emoji upload?
The file is probably too big or the server is out of slots. Emojis are capped at 256 KB and stickers at 512 KB and 320 × 320 pixels. Each server also has a fixed number of emoji and sticker slots that grows with its boost level.
Can I turn an emoji into a sticker?
Yes, as long as the image fits the sticker limits. With Better Tickets, choose Steal as Sticker instead of Steal as Emoji in the /emoji steal browser. Lottie stickers are the exception: they can't be uploaded by a server at all.