How to join a Minecraft server

Every listing on this site shows an address such as play.example.com. That address is all you need — there is nothing to download, no account to make on the server and no invite to wait for. The game connects, the server sends you its world, and you are in.

Java Edition

Start Minecraft and choose Multiplayer from the main menu.
Click Add Server.
Put anything you like in the name field — it is only a label in your own list — and paste the address into Server Address.
Click Done, then double-click the entry.

Most servers publish a bare hostname with no port because they have set up an SRV record, a DNS entry that tells your game which port to use. When a server does run on a non-standard port the listing shows it and you type the whole thing, colon included: play.example.com:25566. The default Java port is 25565.

Direct Connect, on the same Multiplayer screen, joins an address once without saving it. It is the fastest way to try a server you are not sure about.

Bedrock Edition

Open the Play menu and switch to the Servers tab.
Scroll past Mojang's featured servers to the bottom and choose Add Server.
Enter a name, the address and the port. Bedrock asks for the port in its own field and does not read SRV records, so you have to fill it in — the default is 19132.
Save, then tap the entry to connect.

Consoles are the exception

On Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch the Servers tab lists only Mojang's partner servers and there is no Add Server button at all. Console players who want to reach anything else generally point their console's DNS at a third-party redirect service, which replaces the featured list with its own menu. That is nothing to do with us, and it is worth knowing that it routes your connection through somebody else's machine before you set it up.

Realms is not the same thing

Minecraft Realms is a small private world hosted by Mojang on a monthly subscription and joined through an invite rather than an address. Realms are not public, hold a handful of players and never appear on server lists. Everything on this site is an ordinary public server you can join by address.

When it will not connect

"Outdated client" or "Outdated server" means your game version does not match what the server accepts. Switch your launcher profile to the version on the listing; see what server versions mean.
"Can't resolve hostname" is a typo nine times out of ten. Use the copy button on the listing rather than retyping the address, and check you have not pasted a trailing space.
"Connection refused" or a timeout usually means the server is genuinely down, though most restarts only take a minute or two. See why a server shows as offline.
"You are not whitelisted on this server" means it only admits approved players. Plenty of servers are application-only by design; the listing or their Discord will say how to apply.
"Failed to verify username" is an authentication hiccup on the server's side rather than yours. Waiting a minute and reconnecting almost always clears it.
Java Edition asking you to sign in on a server tagged cracked is normal. Those servers run in offline mode and accept any username, which is also why nothing stops somebody else logging in as you there.
Nothing happens at all and you are on Bedrock: check the port. A Bedrock entry with the wrong port fails silently rather than explaining itself.

Once you are in

Nearly every server drops you into a lobby or spawn area with signs, NPCs or a portal per gamemode. Read the rule book if you are handed one — most bans are for things the server explained in the first thirty seconds. /help lists the commands available to you, /spawn takes you back, and on survival servers /rtp or /wild is usually how you get far enough out to build without landing on somebody.

If the server turns out not to suit you, that costs you nothing. Our guide to choosing a server covers what to look at before you invest an evening in one.