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How to join your Minecraft server

Your server has an address that works like a web address: players type it once, save it, and click it from then on. This guide shows where to find it and how to use it on every device.

Find your address

  1. Open your dashboard and click your server.
  2. The Overview tab shows the address at the top. There is a button to copy it.
  3. On a crossplay or Bedrock server, the panel also shows the Bedrock port. Copy that too.

You chose the first part of the address when you ordered. You can add another address later under Settings, for example a shorter one, and both keep working.

Use the address, not a number. The address keeps working if your server is ever moved to another machine; a number might not.

Join from Java Edition

  1. Start Minecraft Java Edition with the same version as the server. The version is in Settings under Minecraft version.
  2. Click Multiplayer, then Add Server.
  3. Type any name for it, and paste the address into Server Address.
  4. Click Done. The server appears in the list with its message and player count.
  5. Double click it to join.

If the server runs a modpack, players first need the same modpack in their launcher. Join a modded server shows how.

Join from Bedrock on phone, tablet or Windows

  1. Open Minecraft and tap Play.
  2. Go to the Servers tab and tap Add Server.
  3. Fill in a name, the address, and the port from your panel.
  4. Tap Save, then pick the server to join.

Bedrock on Xbox, PlayStation and Switch cannot add servers this way. Java and Bedrock crossplay mentions the workarounds console players use.

Share it with friends

Send the address in your group chat, and for Bedrock players the port as well. Two things to do before you send it:

  • If the whitelist is on, add your friends' exact usernames in the Players tab first, or they will be turned away with a message that they are not whitelisted.
  • Tell them the Minecraft version. A player on a newer or older version gets an outdated client or outdated server message instead of the world.

The server shows as offline

When the list shows a red cross or cannot connect, check the panel first: is the server running? The Console tab shows it. A stopped server starts with the start button.

Running, but still no luck? Can't connect to your Minecraft server goes through the other causes one at a time.

Questions

Do players need to type a port?

Java players do not; the address is enough. Bedrock players type the port the panel shows, because Bedrock asks for it separately.

Can I change my server address?

You can add another address in Settings. The old one keeps working, so players who saved it are not locked out.

Why does my friend see a different player count?

The server list refreshes when you open it. Press Refresh in the multiplayer screen to see the current count.

Checked against Minecraft Java 26.2 and current Bedrock, September 2026. Written by the Cheapest Minecraft Hosting team, updated .