Study Together vs Group Study Timer
Study Together built one of the biggest online study communities, and it now runs under StudyStream. Here's what that means in 2026, how it compares with Group Study Timer, and which one suits the way you like to study.
Study Together and Group Study Timer exist for the same reason: studying next to other people is easier than studying alone. They go about it in different ways. Study Together started as a Discord server where strangers study together on camera, and it grew into one of the largest study communities online. Group Study Timer is a study timer and tracker with rooms for you and the people you choose.
We make Group Study Timer, so we've tried to be fair. Every detail about Study Together and StudyStream below comes from their own websites, their App Store and Google Play listings, and Discord's own member count, all checked in late September 2026. Where they're the better choice, we say so.
Choose Study Together, which now means its Discord server and StudyStream's video rooms, if you want to study on camera alongside strangers at any hour of the day. Its Discord server has about 1.08 million members. Choose Group Study Timer if you'd rather study with your own friends or exam group, want your hours logged by subject, and don't want video or a daily time limit on the free plan.
Study Together is now part of StudyStream
If you last used Study Together a couple of years ago, a lot has changed. It began on 1 July 2020 as a Discord community, grew into a Berlin startup, and added study rooms on its own website in 2021. In April 2025, Knowledge Collective Ltd, the company behind a similar platform called StudyStream, took over Study Together's operations.
The Study Together website now says it has joined StudyStream and asks new users to sign up there. Existing members who don't want their data kept under the new owner can ask for their account to be deleted. The Discord server is still running, and StudyStream's own Discord link leads to the same server.
So in 2026, "Study Together" really means two things: the Discord server, and StudyStream's web and mobile apps. We compare both with Group Study Timer below.
What you get with Study Together today
The Discord server
The server is huge. Discord's own count showed about 1,078,000 members on 28 September 2026, with more than 60,000 online when we looked, and its description calls it the largest study and productivity server on Discord. You join voice channels and study with camera on, with your screen shared, or just with the chat. In the camera and screen-share channels you're expected to show one or the other, which keeps those rooms focused.
Your time in study channels is tracked, and there's a community leaderboard. The rules say people who "farm" study calls or show unrealistic study stats can be removed from it. Joining is free, and the server's rules set a minimum age of 13, or the age of digital consent in your country if that's higher.
StudyStream's focus rooms
StudyStream runs live video focus rooms that are open 24 hours a day. Its own blog compares them to a shared digital library, with cameras on and mics off while everyone gets on with their own work. Around the rooms, StudyStream offers:
- a Pomodoro timer and a task list
- daily streaks, study stats and a leaderboard
- pinned study partners, and filters to find students by country, subject and interests
- private spaces you can invite people into
- a social feed, events, and AI tools that turn notes into digital notes and quizzes
StudyStream runs on the web, with an iPhone app (which also runs on Apple Silicon Macs) and an Android app. Its store listings say it connects more than 270,000 students and professionals. Accounts are for people aged 16 and over.
One detail worth knowing if you care about your numbers: StudyStream's app explains that its leaderboard counts the whole time a session is open, including meals and breaks.
What it costs
The Discord server is free. StudyStream is free to join, but its own blog, in March 2026, described the free plan as one hour a day in the focus rooms, with Premium for unlimited time. As listed in the US App Store in September 2026, Premium cost $6.99 a month or $69.99 a year, and a Basic plan was listed at $1.99 and $3.99 a month. Google Play in the US listed in-app items from $1.99 to $69.99, and both app listings say the app contains ads.
How Group Study Timer is different
Group Study Timer is a free online study timer that runs in any browser, on a phone, tablet or computer, with nothing to install. It's built around your own study time first. You pick a timer (Pomodoro at 25/5 or 50/10, a 1-hour or 2-hour block, or your own length), choose the subject, and start. Every session is logged by subject and builds into streaks, a heatmap, and daily and weekly analytics.
The group side is smaller and more personal than a million-member server. You can open a private room and share its join code with friends or classmates, or join a public group for your exam from our communities page. Everyone in a group appears on a live leaderboard, and idle detection pauses the clock when nobody is really at the desk, so the rankings reflect real work. There's a group chat for the breaks, a to-do list, syllabus trackers, wallpapers, and a Focus Audio player where you can search for study music or paste a YouTube link. Our guide to studying with friends online shows how the rooms work.
There's no video, so if seeing other people at their desks is what keeps you going, you'll need to add a video call yourself. It also can't block other apps, and there's no app-store app. The free plan doesn't limit how long you study each day. An optional Premium plan adds extras such as AI analysis, animated backgrounds and custom group codes.
Study Together vs Group Study Timer at a glance
Study Together and StudyStream details are from their websites, store listings and Discord, checked in September 2026.
| Feature | Study Together and StudyStream | Group Study Timer |
|---|---|---|
| Best known for | A huge Discord study community and live video rooms with strangers | A study timer and tracker with rooms for your own group |
| Who runs it | Knowledge Collective Ltd, which also runs StudyStream, since April 2025 | Us, the Group Study Timer team |
| Where it runs | Discord on any device, and StudyStream on the web, iPhone and Android | Any modern browser on a phone, tablet or computer |
| Video | Central: cameras on in StudyStream rooms, camera or screen share in Discord study channels | No video |
| Community size | About 1.08 million Discord members, and 270,000+ StudyStream users by its own count | Smaller: private rooms and public groups rather than one giant server |
| Studying with people you know | Private spaces on StudyStream, or a Discord voice channel with friends | Private rooms with join codes, plus public groups for your exam |
| Tracking | Study stats, streaks and community leaderboards | Hours by subject, streaks, a heatmap, and daily and weekly analytics, with idle detection on leaderboards |
| Timer | Pomodoro timer in StudyStream rooms | Pomodoro 25/5 and 50/10, 1-hour, 2-hour and custom |
| Extras | AI notes and quiz tools, a social feed and events | To-do list, syllabus trackers, wallpapers and a Focus Audio player |
| Minimum age | 16 for StudyStream accounts, 13 for the Discord server | 13, or 16 where local law requires it |
| Price | Discord is free. StudyStream is free for one hour a day, with Premium at $6.99 a month in the US App Store | Free. Optional Premium adds extras such as AI analysis, animated backgrounds and custom group codes |
Which one should you use?
Study Together built something genuinely useful, and for some students it's still the better choice. Here's how we'd decide.
Study Together or StudyStream is the better pick if
- You want company at any hour. With about a million people on the Discord server and video rooms open around the clock, someone is always studying, even at 3am your time.
- Being seen is what keeps you working. If a camera on your desk and a grid of other people studying is what stops you drifting, that's exactly what these rooms are built for. Group Study Timer has no video.
- You already spend time on Discord. The server has chat channels, a leaderboard and a large, active community, all in an app you may already have open.
- You want to meet new study partners. StudyStream lets you filter people by country, subject and interests, and pin the ones who keep you accountable.
Group Study Timer is the better pick if
- You'd rather study with people you know. A private room for your friends or class, with a shared leaderboard, is the whole point of Group Study Timer.
- You want your hours by subject. Seeing that physics got nine hours this week and chemistry got two is more useful for exam planning than one total.
- You don't want to be on camera. Some students find video rooms distracting, or just don't want strangers seeing their room. Here you see names and hours instead.
- You study for long stretches on the free plan. There's no daily time limit, whereas StudyStream's free plan covers one hour a day in its rooms.
- You're under 16. StudyStream accounts start at 16, so younger students are limited to the Discord server. Group Study Timer is open from 13, or 16 where local law requires it.
If you're comparing other study apps too, our roundup of the best study timers in 2026 covers more options.
Or combine them
Some students keep one foot in each. They drop into a Study Together voice channel or a StudyStream room for the feeling of a busy library, and run Group Study Timer in another tab to log the subject and keep their friend group's leaderboard honest. If you do this, keep the timers matched, for example a 50/10 Pomodoro in both, so your breaks line up.
Set up a room for your own study group
Create a private room, share the join code, and see everyone's hours on a live leaderboard. It runs in your browser, with nothing to install.
Create a Study Room →Frequently asked questions
Is Study Together still running?
Yes, in a different form. Since April 2025, Knowledge Collective Ltd, the company behind StudyStream, has run Study Together, and the Study Together website now asks new users to sign up on StudyStream. The Study Together Discord server is still active, with about 1.08 million members in late September 2026.
Is StudyStream the same as Study Together?
They are now run by the same company, and Study Together's website says it has joined StudyStream. StudyStream is the web and mobile platform with live video focus rooms, while the Study Together Discord server carries on as the community, and StudyStream's own Discord link points to it.
Is Study Together free?
Joining the Discord server is free. StudyStream is free to join, but its free plan gives you one hour a day in the focus rooms, according to StudyStream, and Premium removes the limit. In the US App Store in September 2026, Premium was listed at $6.99 a month or $69.99 a year.
How many members does the Study Together Discord have?
About 1.08 million, according to Discord's own count on 28 September 2026, with more than 60,000 members online at the time. The server describes itself as the largest study and productivity server on Discord.
How old do you have to be to use StudyStream?
You have to be 16 or older to activate a StudyStream account, and the iPhone app is rated 16+ on the App Store. The Study Together Discord server sets a minimum age of 13, or the age of digital consent in your country if that is higher.
Is Group Study Timer a good Study Together alternative?
It depends on what you liked about Study Together. If it was studying on camera with strangers at any hour, StudyStream is still the closer match. If you want rooms for your own friends or exam group, hours logged by subject and no video, Group Study Timer suits that better, and it runs in any browser.
Study Together is now part of StudyStream, and its Discord server is still one of the biggest study communities online. Pick it if you want video rooms full of people at any hour and don't mind a daily limit on StudyStream's free plan or paying for Premium. Pick Group Study Timer if you want to study with people you know, track your hours by subject, and skip the camera.
Sources we checked in September 2026: the Study Together website, Study Together's April 2025 notice about Knowledge Collective, Study Together's FAQ and server rules, the Study Together Discord invite and member count, StudyStream on the US App Store, StudyStream on Google Play, and StudyStream's blog on its timer and free plan. App details and prices change and vary by country, so check each app before you pay for it.