When you set up a Discord welcome screen and select specific channels to display, the welcome screen may fail to save your channel selection. You click Save Changes, but the page refreshes and your chosen channels are gone. This issue is caused by a permission mismatch or a browser caching conflict in the Discord client. This article explains the root cause and provides three step-by-step methods to restore the welcome screen so it retains your channel selections.
Key Takeaways: Fix Discord Welcome Screen Not Saving Channels
- Server Settings > Welcome Screen > Manage Channels: Adjust channel permissions to allow the @everyone role to View Channel and Read Message History.
- Ctrl+F5 (Windows) / Cmd+Shift+R (Mac): Hard refresh the Discord app or browser client to clear stale cache that blocks save actions.
- Clear Discord Cache Data: Delete the %appdata%/discord/Cache folder to remove corrupted cache files that prevent settings from persisting.
Why Discord Welcome Screen Channel Selections Do Not Save
The welcome screen is a server feature that shows new members a curated list of channels and a brief description of each. When you configure this screen, Discord validates that every channel you add is visible to the @everyone role. If a selected channel has its permissions set to deny View Channel for @everyone, Discord rejects the entire save operation silently. The page reloads and your selection disappears.
A second cause involves the Discord client cache. The desktop app and browser version store cached copies of server settings. When you update the welcome screen, the cache may still hold an older version of the configuration. The client then overwrites your new selection with the cached data, making it appear that the save failed.
A third, less common cause is a transient server-side error. Discord’s backend may temporarily fail to write the welcome screen configuration to its database. This usually resolves within a few hours, but you can accelerate the fix by clearing your client cache and re-saving.
Steps to Fix Welcome Screen Channel Selection Not Saving
Follow these methods in order. After each method, test by opening the welcome screen again and checking that your selected channels remain.
Method 1: Adjust Channel Permissions for @everyone
- Open Server Settings
Right-click your server name in the channel list and select Server Settings from the context menu. - Go to the Roles tab
In the left sidebar, click Roles. Find the @everyone role at the top of the list and click it. - Edit channel permissions for @everyone
Scroll to the Channel Permissions section. Next to each channel you want on the welcome screen, click the edit icon. Enable the View Channel permission. Also enable Read Message History so the welcome screen description can load. - Save the role changes
Click the Save Changes button at the bottom of the role editor. Repeat for any other roles that need access to the same channels. - Reconfigure the welcome screen
Go to Server Settings > Welcome Screen. Remove all channels from the list, then add them again. Click Save Changes. The channels should now persist.
Method 2: Hard Refresh the Discord Client
- Close the welcome screen settings
Exit the Server Settings menu and return to the main Discord window. - Perform a hard refresh
On the Discord desktop app or browser client, press Ctrl+F5 on Windows or Cmd+Shift+R on Mac. This clears the cached page data for the current session. - Reopen Server Settings
Right-click your server and select Server Settings > Welcome Screen. Add your desired channels and click Save Changes.
Method 3: Clear Discord Cache Files
- Close Discord completely
Right-click the Discord icon in the system tray and select Quit Discord. Ensure no Discord process is running in Task Manager. - Open the Discord cache folder
Press Win+R, type%appdata%/discord, and press Enter. Locate the Cache folder inside the Discord directory. - Delete the Cache folder
Select the Cache folder and press Shift+Delete to permanently remove it. Do the same for the Code Cache and GPUCache folders if they exist. - Restart Discord
Launch Discord. Sign in and navigate to Server Settings > Welcome Screen. Configure your channel selections and save.
If Discord Welcome Screen Still Has Issues After the Main Fix
Welcome Screen Button Does Not Appear for New Members
Even after saving channels, new members may not see the welcome screen button at the top of the channel list. This happens when the server has not enabled the welcome screen feature for the @everyone role. Go to Server Settings > Welcome Screen and ensure the toggle Enable welcome screen is switched on. Also verify that the @everyone role has the Use External Emoji permission enabled if you added emoji to channel descriptions.
Welcome Screen Resets After a Server Boost Tier Change
Discord resets the welcome screen configuration when a server loses a Boost tier that previously allowed the feature. If your server drops from Tier 2 to Tier 1, the welcome screen may revert to its default state. You must reconfigure the welcome screen after the Boost tier stabilizes. Check your server’s Boost progress under Server Settings > Server Boost to confirm the current tier.
Welcome Screen Shows Old Channels Even After Editing
If the welcome screen still displays channels you removed, the Discord client is serving a cached version. Hard refresh the client using Ctrl+F5 (Windows) or Cmd+Shift+R (Mac). If the issue persists, clear the Discord cache as described in Method 3. On the mobile app, force close the app and reopen it.
Discord Welcome Screen Features: Server Settings vs Channel Permissions
| Item | Server Settings > Welcome Screen | Channel Permissions (@everyone) |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Defines which channels appear on the welcome screen and their descriptions | Determines whether @everyone can see and read each channel |
| Save behavior | Fails silently if any selected channel is hidden from @everyone | Must allow View Channel and Read Message History for each welcome screen channel |
| Impact on new members | Shows a list of channels with descriptions when they join | Controls actual access to the channel content |
| Configuration location | Server Settings > Welcome Screen | Server Settings > Roles > @everyone > Channel Permissions |
Now you can fix the welcome screen channel selection save issue by adjusting @everyone permissions, clearing the Discord cache, or performing a hard refresh. Start with the permission check because it is the most common cause. After saving, test by joining the server with a second account to confirm the welcome screen displays correctly. As an advanced tip, use the Ctrl+Shift+I developer tools in the Discord browser client to watch the network request when you save the welcome screen — a 403 error indicates a permissions problem, while a 200 response with no data change suggests a cache issue.