How to make a Minecraft server

Before anything else, find out which version of Minecraft your friends have. This decides the whole setup.

• Everyone plays on a PC (Windows, Mac or Linux) with the launcher from Mojang: that is Java Edition. You get the most freedom: plugins, mods and modpacks.
• Everyone plays on a phone, tablet, console or the Windows store version: that is Bedrock Edition.
• A mix of both: you want a crossplay server. It runs Java, and Bedrock players join through a translator called Geyser.

Not sure? Read Java or Bedrock: which server do you need first. It takes two minutes and saves you from starting over.

Running a server on your own PC is free, but it comes with three catches.

• The PC has to stay on for as long as anyone wants to play, and the game takes memory away from everything else you do on it.
• Friends outside your house can only join if you open a port on your router. That means logging into the router, and it shows your home address to everyone who joins.
• Upload speed at home is usually far lower than download speed, and that is the direction a server needs.

A hosted server avoids all three. It runs in a data centre, it has its own address, and your PC can be off. That is what the rest of this guide assumes.

Want to try it at home first? This is the whole route for a Java Edition server. It works the same on Windows, Mac and Linux; only the way you open a terminal differs.

1. Install Java. Minecraft 26.1 and newer need Java 25, and 1.20.5 to 1.21.11 need Java 21. Which Java version your Minecraft server needs has the full table.
2. Download the server file for your Minecraft version from the official Minecraft website, put it in an empty folder and rename it to server.jar.
3. Open a terminal in that folder and start it once with java -Xms2G -Xmx2G -jar server.jar nogui. It stops straight away and leaves a file called eula.txt.
4. Open eula.txt, change eula=false to eula=true and save. That line says you accept the Minecraft end user licence, and the server refuses to run without it.
5. Start it again with the same command. The first start generates the world; when the console prints Done, join from your own game with the address localhost.
6. For friends in other houses, forward TCP port 25565 on your router to the local address of your PC and allow Java through the firewall. They join with your public IP address.

A small start file saves you typing that command every time. On Windows, save these lines as start.bat in the same folder and double click it:

@echo off
java -Xms4G -Xmx4G -jar server.jar nogui
pause

-Xmx is the most memory the Minecraft server may use and -Xms what it takes at the start. Leave enough for your operating system and for the game itself if you play on the same computer: on a PC with 16 GB, 4 GB for the server is plenty for a few friends.

For Bedrock, Mojang offers its own Bedrock server software for Windows and Linux. Unzip it, run bedrock_server and forward UDP port 19132 instead of 25565.

The server software itself is free. What you pay for is where it runs and who keeps it running. These are the three usual routes for a Minecraft server for friends:

On our plans the price follows the memory you choose, a longer term costs up to 20% less per month, and nothing is added for setup. Compare the sizes on the Minecraft server plans page, or set your own size on the configure page.

At home or hosted, a Minecraft server leans on four parts, and they matter in this order.

Every plan of ours runs on an AMD Ryzen 9 7950X with DDR5 memory and NVMe storage, so the first three parts are covered at every size, and the network part is our job. How much RAM a Minecraft server needs works out the memory player by player.

Memory (RAM) is the one number that decides how many players and how many mods fit. A small world for a few friends needs far less than a modpack.

These are starting points, not limits. How much RAM a Minecraft server needs shows the sum behind them, and the server finder does it for you in three questions.

The server software decides what you can add to your Minecraft server later. Plugins and mods do not mix, so this choice matters more than the version number.

Each family has its own comparison: Paper, Purpur or Spigot for plugins and Fabric, Forge or NeoForge for mods. You can switch later in Settings, but a world that grew up with mods cannot simply move to plugins.

1. Pick a plan on the plans page, or build your own size with the memory slider.
2. On the configure page, choose the edition (Java, Bedrock or Crossplay), the server software and the Minecraft version. If you are not sure, Paper on the newest version is the safe choice for Java.
3. Give the server a name and pick its address. This is the address your friends type in, so keep it short.
4. Create your account and pay. The server is set up for you; you do not install anything yourself.
5. Open the server from your dashboard. The Console tab shows it starting. When the console says Done, the world is ready.

The first start takes longest, because the world is being generated. Later starts are much quicker.

A fresh server uses the default settings of Minecraft. A few are worth changing before anyone joins, because they are awkward to change once people have built things.

• Difficulty: easy, normal or hard. Peaceful removes hostile mobs completely.
• Game mode: survival for most worlds, creative for a building server.
• PvP: whether players can hurt each other. Turn it off for a relaxed friends server.
• Seed: the number a world is generated from. It only matters before the world exists; changing it later means a new world.
• Whitelist: when it is on, only the names you add can join. For a private server, turn it on.

Most of these live in a file called server.properties, which you can open in the Files tab. The server name in the multiplayer list (the MOTD) and the server icon are in Settings.

An operator, or op, can use admin commands such as changing the time or teleporting players. Give that to yourself first.

1. Open the Players tab of your server.
2. Under operators, type your exact Minecraft username and add it.
3. Join the server and try /time set day. If it works, you are an operator.

Only give op to people you trust completely. Whitelist and operator levels explains the four levels and when to use which.

The address of your server is on the Overview tab. Send that to your friends. On Java they add it under Multiplayer, Add Server. On Bedrock phones, tablets and Windows it goes under Servers, Add Server, together with the port the panel shows.

If someone cannot get in, Can't connect to your Minecraft server goes through the causes one by one, from the most common to the rare.

Two things are worth doing on day one.

• Make a backup in the Backups tab. If a plugin or a mistake ruins the world, you can go back to this moment.
• Decide on plugins or mods now, not after a week of building. Switching from Paper to Fabric or Forge later is possible, but mods and plugins do not mix, so it is easier to choose once.

On Paper or Purpur, a handful of plugins covers what most groups of friends ask for in the first week. All of them are in the plugin catalog of the control panel, and install plugins on your Minecraft server shows how to add one.

Start with two or three and add more when someone asks for them. Every plugin costs a little memory and a little tick time, and a short list is easier to keep up to date.

• Choosing the edition before asking your friends. A Java server with friends on phones means starting over, or adding crossplay later.
• Mixing plugins and mods. Paper reads plugins, Fabric and Forge read mods. A mod dropped into a Paper server does nothing, and the same goes for a plugin on Forge.
• Leaving the whitelist off on a private server. Without it, anyone who learns or guesses the address can walk in. Whitelist and operators takes two minutes.
• Opening a world in an older version. Minecraft updates a world to a newer version, never back. Make a backup before every version change; change your Minecraft server version shows the safe order.
• Giving operator to every friend. Operators can give items, change the time and ban players. Hand out single commands with LuckPerms instead.
• Too little memory for a modpack. Most packs state a minimum for the server; below it the server crashes during the start, often with an out of memory error.

Each of these is a two minute fix on the first day and a long evening of repairs once the world is a few weeks old.