How to join a Minecraft server on Java Edition

To join a Minecraft server on Java Edition, open the game, click Multiplayer, then Add Server, paste the server's address into the Server Address box and click Done. The server now has its own row in your list, and you join it by selecting that row and clicking Join Server.

The rest covers what trips people up on a public server: ports, the server row, game versions and your first minutes. Playing on a phone, tablet or Windows Bedrock instead? Read how to join a server on Bedrock.

Still looking for a server? The Java server list has 94 servers that are playable right now, each checked by our pinger once a minute, and how to choose a server helps you pick one worth your evenings.

What you need before you join

• A copy of Minecraft: Java & Bedrock Edition for PC. One purchase on minecraft.net gives you both editions. Java runs on Windows, macOS and Linux.
• The Minecraft Launcher, signed in with the Microsoft account that owns the game.
• An account that may play online. On a child account a parent controls this in Microsoft family settings. When it is blocked, the game says "Multiplayer is disabled. Please check your Microsoft account settings." Parents will find more in Minecraft servers and kids.
• The server's Java address. On every ServerList server page it is the first field in the join panel, and clicking it copies it.

Add a server step by step

1. Open the Minecraft Launcher, choose Minecraft: Java Edition and click Play.
2. On the title screen, click Multiplayer. The first time, a screen titled "Caution: Third-Party Online Play" explains that servers are run by other people, not by Mojang or Microsoft. Read it and click Proceed.
3. Click Add Server.
4. Type any name in Server Name. It is only the label in your list.
5. Paste the address into Server Address, for example play.example.net.
6. Leave Server Resource Packs on Prompt for now.
7. Click Done. The server appears as a row in your list.
8. Double-click the row, or select it and click Join Server.

Saved server or direct connection

Direct Connection, on the same screen, joins once without saving anything. For a server you plan to come back to, Add Server is better: before you join, the saved row shows if the server is up, how full it is and if your version fits.

Addresses with a port, and addresses without one

Most addresses are a plain host name like play.example.net. When there is no port, the game first checks the address for a DNS SRV record, a small signpost that names the real port, and otherwise uses Java's default port, 25565. That is why many servers on unusual ports still have clean addresses.

When a server needs its port typed out, the owner writes it after a colon: play.example.net:25570, or with a numeric IP, 203.0.113.10:25570. Type it exactly like that into the single Server Address box. Java has no separate port field.

Two mistakes we see a lot:

• Using the Bedrock port. Servers that accept both editions often show a second address with port 19132. That one is for Bedrock only.
• Adding extras. No http://, no spaces, no slash at the end. The address is a host and, sometimes, a port.

The server resource pack prompt

Many servers send a resource pack with their own textures, sounds or menu art. On Prompt, joining shows "This server recommends the use of a custom resource pack." and you choose Yes or No. Some servers make the pack mandatory, and then the message reads "This server requires the use of a custom resource pack." Declining it disconnects you.

A server pack only applies while you are on that server. If you once clicked No and want the pack after all, select the server, click Edit and set Server Resource Packs back to Prompt or Enabled.

Reading the server row in your list

Each saved server gets a row that says a lot before you click anything. Here are three playable Java servers from our list, drawn the way your game draws them:

1. 

   ExtremeCraft EXTREMECRAFT Spears!Survival: New Eco TreasureRelics Bosses and more!

   430/5000

   Up 99.99% in 30 days2,707 votes in 30 daysjoin.extremecraft.net

2. 

   BendersMC FOUR ELEMENTS MINECRAFT SERVER HTTPS://DISCORD.GG/BENDERSMC

   288/1200

   Up 100% in 30 days1,102 votes in 30 daysplay.bendersMC.co

3. 

   AugustaMC AugustaMC [1.21.10] 👑 Towny | ★ ADVENTURE AWAITѕ ★ | augustamc.com

   26/500

   Up 100% in 30 days952 votes in 30 dayssl.augustamc.com

See the full list

Measured 19 Oct 2026, 22:55 UTCHow we measure

From left to right:

• Icon. The 64 by 64 picture the server sends, or a grey default landscape if it has none.
• Name. Whatever you typed in Server Name.
• MOTD. The message of the day, two lines under the name where owners announce the mode, an event or a new season.
• Player count. Top right, players online over the maximum, for example 152/500. Hover over it for a sample of names. Servers can replace that sample with their own text, and players who switched off Allow Server Listings in their Online settings appear as Anonymous Player.
• Ping bars. More green bars means a faster connection from your computer. Hover for the number in milliseconds. If the ping gets no answer, the bars become a red cross and the MOTD line says "Can't connect to server". "Can't resolve hostname" means the address has a typo or does not exist.
• Version text in red. When a server does not accept your game version, the player count is replaced by the server's version text in red, and hovering the red cross shows "Incompatible version!".

The latency on a ServerList page is measured from our pinger, not your home, so your bars can differ.

Picking the right game version

The launcher installs the newest release by default, but fewer servers name it than you might expect. Right now, 35 of the 94 playable servers on our list name 26.3 as the newest version they accept (34 of 104 at 00:36 UTC on 18 October 2026). Most of the rest top out at 26.2, 26.1.2 or 1.21.11, and some of those let newer clients in anyway through a plugin. Trust your own server list: if a row shows red version text, switch versions.

The 26.x version numbers

Until the end of 2025, versions looked like 1.21.11, the last of the old style. In 2026 Mojang switched to the year and the drop: 26.1 arrived on 24 March 2026, 26.2 on 16 June and 26.3 on 15 September. A third number marks a hotfix, as in 26.1.2. So 26.1 came straight after 1.21.11, and there is no "1.26".

Bedrock counts differently: a friend on Bedrock 26.50 is on the same drop as you on Java 26.3, so do not compare the two numbers.

Servers that accept many versions

Plugins like ViaVersion (newer clients on an older server) and ViaBackwards (the reverse) let one server accept many versions. Networks also sit behind a proxy such as Velocity, and the proxy answers the ping. That is where version text like Velocity 1.7.2-26.3 comes from.

That range describes the door, not the rooms. Right now 46 of the 53 playable servers that advertise a range start it at 1.7.2 (46 of 49 on 18 October 2026), which is Velocity's own default and says little about what plays well behind it.

If the description or the server's Discord names a recommended version, use it for the fewest glitches: blocks and items newer than the server's own version do not exist there.

Switching versions with launcher installations

1. In the Minecraft Launcher, open the Installations tab.
2. Click New installation.
3. Give it a name, pick the version from the Version list and click Create.
4. On the Play tab, choose that installation in the menu next to the Play button, then click Play.

Keep Latest release as your default, since it updates itself, and do not open single-player worlds in an older installation, because that can damage them.

Your first five minutes on a new server

• Read what pops up. Some servers show a "Server Code of Conduct" screen you have to accept before you can play.
• Find your way out of the lobby. Networks start you in a hub with signs, NPCs or a compass menu for picking a game mode.
• Type /help and /rules. Plugins differ, so /help is the real list of what this server offers. Read the rules once. Bans for x-ray, auto-clickers or alt accounts are common and hard to undo.
• Register on cracked servers. Servers in offline mode cannot check your account, so a login plugin asks you to type /register <password> <password> the first time and /login <password> after that. Choose a new password, never the one for your Microsoft account. What is a cracked server explains the trade-offs, and the cracked server list shows which ones are playable.
• Ignore the chat toast. "Chat messages can't be verified" means the server does not enforce Minecraft's chat signing. It is common and harmless.
• Spot the vote link. Many servers ask you to vote for them on server lists, often with an in-game reward. Why servers ask you to vote explains what happens behind that button.
• Keep your account to yourself. No staff member ever needs your password or a code from your email. Anyone who asks is trying to take the account.

If it does not connect

Every other message is explained in Can't connect to a Minecraft server?.

FAQ

Do I need to pay to join servers?

No. Owning Java Edition is enough, and joining needs no subscription. Realms is a separate paid service for private worlds. Servers may sell ranks or cosmetics, and Mojang's Usage Guidelines do not allow them to sell a competitive gameplay advantage.

Can I join Java servers from Bedrock?

Only when the server runs Geyser, a bridge that translates between the two editions. Those servers publish a second address and port for Bedrock players, and the crossplay list collects them. This is how the servers on our list split by edition:

• Java onlyNo Bedrock address on the listing367% of players
• Bedrock answersPublishes a Bedrock address that answered our Bedrock ping7290% of players
• Bedrock silentPublishes a Bedrock address that never answered213% of players

Of 129 servers that were playable, 72 also answered on Bedrock and 21 publish a Bedrock address that never answered.

Measured 19 Oct 2026, 22:55 UTCHow we measure

Can Java and Bedrock players play together? explains what changes for the Bedrock side.

Why does it say outdated server?

Your game is newer than the server accepts. Spigot, Paper and BungeeCord often say "Outdated server!", the unmodified server says "Incompatible client! Please use" and a version. Add an installation with the version it names, or wait for the server to update.