Are Minecraft servers safe for kids? A parent's guide

Public Minecraft servers can be a good place for children to play, but there is no single answer to "are they safe", because every server is run by its own owner with its own rules, moderators and store. You control the basics through your child's Microsoft account, which decides whether they can join servers and chat at all, and the rest comes down to checking a server before they join and keeping the conversation going.

This guide is written for adults who do not play. No Minecraft knowledge needed.

The short version for busy parents

• Someone else runs every server. Not Mojang or Microsoft, but an individual or a small team, often volunteers and sometimes teenagers. Rules and moderation vary a lot.
• Account settings come first. On your child's Microsoft account you decide whether they can play online with others and who can talk to them. These settings apply to Minecraft on PC, consoles and phones.
• Spending happens in two places. Purchase controls on consoles and phones cover Minecoins, the in-game currency. Many server shops are websites that take a card directly, and those controls never see them.
• Check before they join. Look for clear rules, visible staff, a way to report people and a store that sells looks, not power. Keep younger children away from anarchy servers and harsh PvP modes.
• Calmer options exist. Small whitelisted servers, Realms and private servers keep the player list short.
• Talk about it. Ask for a tour of their favorite server and agree on what to do if someone makes them uncomfortable.

What a public server is, and who runs it

A server is a computer running a Minecraft world that other people can join over the internet. A public server lets anyone in who has its address. Big ones host thousands of players at once, small ones a handful of friends.

Servers are run by individuals, groups of friends and a few small companies. Mojang does not review or approve them. Its Minecraft Usage Guidelines set rules for what servers may sell, but day-to-day moderation is entirely up to each owner. The exception is the short list of Featured servers on Bedrock, which are official partners of Mojang and Microsoft.

Age ratings do not cover any of this. Minecraft is rated PEGI 7 and ESRB E10+, and those ratings describe the game itself. What other players say and build online is not rated.

A word about us. ServerList lists servers that their owners submit, pings each one every minute and shows its uptime and player numbers. We do not join every server to vet its community, so being listed here is not a safety endorsement. What we can do is show you useful signals, explained below, and act on reports.

Settings that matter

Microsoft and Xbox family settings for multiplayer and chat

Minecraft uses a Microsoft account for online play on every device, including Java Edition on PC. If your child's account is a child account in your Microsoft family, you, as the family organizer, control its online safety settings. You can change them in the Xbox Family Settings app on your phone, at account.microsoft.com/family, at account.xbox.com/settings or on an Xbox console. The Xbox Family Settings app page explains what each option covers.

Two settings decide most of what happens on servers:

1. Joining multiplayer games. If this is blocked, the Multiplayer button in Java Edition stays grey with the message "Multiplayer is disabled. Please check your Microsoft account settings", and servers will not work on the other versions either.
2. Communication with other people. This decides if your child can send and receive text and voice messages, and from whom.

Changes can take a while to apply. Signing out of Minecraft and back in usually helps. The wording of these settings shifts between app versions, so look for the meaning rather than the exact words.

On Xbox, PlayStation and Switch, the game's Servers tab only offers the Featured servers. Joining any other server there needs a workaround, which our console guide explains, so if your child plays on other servers from a console, ask how they set it up.

Inside the game there is a second layer. On Java Edition, Options, then Chat Settings, lets your child set chat to Shown, Commands Only or Hidden. Pressing P during play opens the Social Interactions screen, where they can hide one player's messages or report a message to Mojang.

Minecraft itself has no voice chat. Some servers add proximity voice chat, usually through a mod your child would have to install or a web page opened next to the game. Many servers also run their support, events and applications on Discord, which requires users to be at least 13, and older in some countries.

Purchase controls on consoles and phones

Minecoins, the currency for Minecraft's Marketplace on consoles, phones and Windows, are bought through the device's own store. That means the usual purchase approvals cover them: Ask to buy in Microsoft Family Safety, Ask to Buy on Apple devices, purchase approvals in Google Family Link, and spending limits on Nintendo and PlayStation accounts. The Featured servers on Bedrock sell their extras for Minecoins, so the same approvals apply there.

Java Edition servers, and most Bedrock servers outside the Featured list, sell ranks and crate keys on their own website instead, through a web shop paid by card or PayPal. None of the console or phone controls see those purchases. Keep saved cards out of the browser your child uses, and look out for unfamiliar shop names on your statements. Refunds are up to the server and its payment provider, and many stores say all sales are final. Mojang's guidelines do require servers to give anyone who pays an online purchase history, which helps if you need to dispute a charge.

How to judge a server before your child joins

Rules, staff and reporting

Open the server's rules. Good rules are specific about chat, bullying and personal information, and say what happens when someone breaks them. Look for a staff list, a way to report a player (an in-game /report command, a ticket channel on Discord, or a contact form), and signs that reports get answered.

On a serverlist.net listing, look for the owner's "Rules and moderation" and "Community and staff" sections. A filled-in section at least shows the owner has thought about moderation. The sections are new and owners are only starting to fill them in: right now 0 of 216 listings have a rules section. If a listing has neither, look for the rules on the server's website or Discord.

The listing also shows how long the server has been listed, how reliably it stays online and how many people play at different hours. A server that has run steadily for a year with a stable player base usually has a settled staff team. Our guide to choosing a server explains how to read those numbers.

Chat filters and private messages

Most larger servers run a filter that blocks swearing and links. Smaller servers vary, so ask or check the rules. Players can send private messages with commands such as /msg and /tell, which are part of the game itself. Many servers add /ignore name, which stops one person from messaging your child.

Most people in server chat are kids playing a game. Online games are still one of the places where adults who want to contact children look for them, and the warning signs are the same as anywhere: someone who offers free ranks or items, asks for secrets to be kept, wants photos or personal details, or asks to move the conversation to another app. Agree with your child that any of those means leaving, blocking and telling you.

Stores, ranks and crates

Mojang's guidelines let servers sell cosmetics, such as a colored name or a pet, but nothing that gives paying players a competitive advantage. They also say everything a server sells must suit all ages, and they name gambling as something that does not, though they do not mention crates by name. Crate keys are the part to watch: paid keys that open a box with a random reward. They work like loot boxes, and for children they are the most common way small purchases add up.

Look through the store together before agreeing to any spending, and set a budget. Server owners can read our guide to what Mojang allows servers to sell.

Modes to avoid for younger children

Servers are organized around game modes, and some are much rougher than others.

Right now 30 of our 216 listings carry the anarchy tag (19 of them playable in the last week) and 39 are cracked. On 18 October 2026 that was 30 anarchy listings, 21 of them playable, and 39 cracked, out of 216. Tags appear on every listing, so these are easy to avoid. The PvE and creative lists are gentler places to start.

Whitelisted and small community servers

A whitelisted server only lets in players the owner has approved. You usually apply, often on Discord, and some servers ask for a minimum age or a short introduction. The result is a smaller group of people who know each other, and an owner who knows who is on their server.

They are rarely listed publicly, because they do not need many new players. Our whitelist list is small, 2 listings right now (2 on 18 October 2026). Small public vanilla servers, which keep the game close to how Mojang made it, can feel similar. A small server is only as good as its owner, so read the rules and look at the Discord before your child applies.

Realms and private servers as alternatives

Realms is Mojang's own subscription for a private world that only invited players can join. Java Realms and Bedrock's Realms Plus allow you plus 10 other players online at the same time, and the basic Bedrock plan allows you plus 2. Java and Bedrock players cannot share a Realm. On Bedrock, a share link lets anyone who has it join, so inviting friends by gamertag keeps the list tighter. Details are on minecraft.net.

A private server is one you rent from a hosting company or run on a home computer, with a whitelist of your child's friends. It takes more setup, but you decide every rule.

For siblings in the same house, a world opened to the local network (LAN) on a PC, phone or tablet needs no subscription at all, and consoles offer split-screen on one TV.

Talking with your child about servers

Ask your child for a tour of the server they like most. Most kids love showing off what they built, and five minutes of watching tells you a lot about the chat and the people.

Agree on a few things together:

1. Which servers are fine, and that a new one gets a look from you first.
2. A spending limit, and that nothing gets bought without asking.
3. What stays private: real name, school, town, photos, and any account password. Nobody needs a password to give a reward or a rank.
4. What to do when something feels wrong: leave the server, block or hide the player, take a screenshot (F2 on Java Edition) and tell you.

Make it clear that telling you never gets them in trouble. Children stop reporting things when reporting costs them their game time. If your child gets banned from a server, our guide to bans and appeals explains how appeals work.

Reporting a listing on serverlist.net

Every server page on serverlist.net has a "Report this listing" link at the bottom. Pick the reason that fits, for example "Inappropriate content" or "Scam or spam", and add a few words about what you saw. Reports land in a queue that our admins review. We can hide or remove a listing from serverlist.net. We cannot moderate the server itself or ban players on it, so report harmful behavior inside a server to its staff as well.

If you believe a child is in danger, contact the police, or a national reporting line such as NCMEC's CyberTipline in the United States or CEOP in the United Kingdom. How we measure servers, and what our numbers mean, is explained on the methodology page.