What is Minecraft? Build, Discover Realms & More

Platforms + Features

Buy Minecraft: Java & Bedrock Edition* and get both versions of the game for the price of one. You can easily switch between Java and Bedrock Edition using the unified launcher and cross-play with any current version of Minecraft, including consoles and mobile.

*macOS and Linux are compatible with Minecraft: Java Edition only.

Compare the key features of Minecraft Bedrock Edition and Java Edition.
	Java	Bedrock
Cross-Platform Compatibility Allows you to play with friends on different devices.	Cross-play with Windows, Mac, and Linux	Cross-play with Windows 10, Windows 11, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, PS5, and mobile
Split screen multiplayer (Available only on consoles) Playing split screen allows up to four players to play on the screen at the same time.	Not Included	Included
Controller/touch support Use a compatible game controller or touch screen.	Not Included	Included
Minecraft Marketplace Discover new ways to play Minecraft with unique maps, skins and texture packs. Available in-game from your favorite community creators. Purchases and Minecoins roam across Windows 10, Xbox One, Mobile, and Switch.	Not Included	Included
Marketplace Pass Play 150+ pieces of exciting content for one low monthly price!	Not Included	Included
Downloadable Content (DLC) Use add-ons to customize your experience. Transform the look, and even change the behavior of mobs.	Not Included	Included
Mods Independent, user-made additions and changes to the game.	Included	Not Included
Official featured multiplayer servers (online multiplayer requires subscription sold separately) Public servers, partnered with Minecraft, that anyone can join, with multiplayer mini-games.	Not Included	Included
Realms Realms are servers, run by us, just for you and your friends. Invite an infinite number of friends to join your personal Realm, and play with up to 10 at a time.	Included	Included
Realms Plus Get access to 150+ Marketplace Pass content items to play locally or on your personal Realm server. Play with up to 10 players at a time who can access all of the content in your Realm - for free!	Not Included	Included
Host your own server Share your world with your friends and players around the globe. Host your own multiplayer game server. Join custom servers from mobile and PC.	Included	Included
Join player-hosted multiplayer servers Multiplayer games hosted on other player’s servers.	Included	Included
Achievements/Trophies Complete certain challenges to earn achievements or trophies. Only available in Survival mode.	Not Included	Included
LAN or Wifi Multiplayer Play with friends over LAN or WiFi.	Included	Included
Parental Controls with Xbox Live or Microsoft Accounts Xbox Live and Microsoft Accounts have age-appropriate controls and settings that you can adjust to suit your family’s needs.	Not Included	Included
Ray Tracing Advanced graphics capabilities including support for physical based rendering, realistic lighting, vibrant colors, realistic water, and more. Content available in Minecraft Marketplace. Requires a DXR capable GPU.	Not Included	Included

Discover Minecraft

Build anything you can imagine, uncover eerie mysteries, and survive the night in the ultimate sandbox game. In Minecraft, every playthrough is different, and unforgettable adventures await behind every corner. Explore and craft your way through an infinite world that’s yours to shape, one block at a time.

Steve and Alex are building a castle and watchtower into a hillside.

Build sprawling settlements or a humble dirt hut. This world is yours to shape!

A snow-topped mountainside in Minecraft is covered in oak, pine, and cherry trees.

Traverse striking landscapes and discover the mysteries beyond the horizon.

Zombies, skeletons, and creepers approaching a small house at night which is defended by Alex and Steve.

Try to survive the night or seek out thrilling foes in perilous dimensions.

3 Minecraft characters are stepping out of a nether portal into the Overworld.

Go on a shared adventure! Play with friends in person or online via cross-play.

A series of wooden walkways covered in spiders and cobwebs crisscrosses a dark cavern.

Play exciting community-made content from Minecraft Marketplace and Marketplace Pass.

How it works

Gather Resources

The typical Minecraft journey starts with punching a tree to gather wood. The rest is up to you, whether you mine for precious ores or seek out rare materials. Just make sure to stock up on food!

Minecraft’s Alex swings their sword at a creeper

Survive the Night

When the sun goes down, hostile mobs abound. Will you face them or sleep through the night? And remember: it’s always dark underground...

Minecraft’s Alex and Steve building together with stone and wooden scaffolds

Build Amazing Things

Craft tools, build a humble shelter, or engineer your base with redstone. Can you build a base in the Nether? Only one way to find out.

Over a dozen Minecraft mobs jumping toward the viewer

Explore Game Modes

Shape your Minecraft experience, whether you want to create without restraints or literally fight to survive.

Steve and Alex stepping out of a cave with tools in hand

Survival mode

For the daring adventurers, nothing beats battling dangerous mobs, exploring dizzying landscapes, and crafting your way to victory in Survival mode.

Alex, Steve and several Minecraft mobs on top of a hill

Creative mode

Set your imagination free with limitless resources, immunity to damage, and the ability to fly! In Creative mode, nothing stands in the way of the perfect build.

Play with Friends

Survive and build with friends, join lively communities, or create your own private server with Realms!

Steve and chicken characters on a hill looking across at other characters on a grassy hill

Public

Online

Connect and play with players across the world, wherever they are.

1M+ Players
Bedrock

Play in a custom world together with other players.

Discover community-run servers, full of activities and home to thousands of players.

3 Minecraft characters around a Nether portal with chickens, a rabbit and Creeper mob

Private

Realms

Play locally or online in your own server; a persistent online world, safely stored in the cloud.

Up to 11 Players
Bedrock

Get instant access to a catalog of 150+ Marketplace Pass content items, with new fun stuff added every month.

Create and manage your own personal server together with up to 10 friends.

Alex and goat in a boat with other characters on an island fishing and cooking by a fire

Private

Co-Op

Play couch co-op together with friends and family on your device.

4+ Players
Bedrock

Play in a custom world together with other players on a shared platform or through a LAN.

Play with friends and family on a local private server with separate devices.

Expand your world

Minecraft is always evolving thanks to our regular game updates as well as a growing catalog of creator content at Minecraft Marketplace. Check out the latest below!

Steve, Alex, and other characters battle against breezes, bogged, and other mobs in a Trials Chamber, beneath the text: Minecraft Tricky Trials

Daring adventures. Surprising rewards!

Team up or go solo and discover new decorative blocks, hostile mobs, items, weapons, paintings, and the trial chambers – a sprawling structure stuffed with traps and treasures for every player!

Start exploring

Add-Ons

Customize your Minecraft worlds more than ever before! Add custom blocks, items, mobs, recipes, and more to craft a unique game experience.

Start exploring

Marketplace Pass

Play 150+ pieces of exciting content with Marketplace Pass! Dive into worlds, mash-ups, skins packs, texture packs, and more.

Learn more

Minecraft Realms

A subscription to your own personal Minecraft server, where you can easily and safely play online with friends in shared worlds across devices.

Learn more

Minecraft Marketplace

Keep your gameplay endlessly inventive and fun with skin packs, texture packs, and more—some of which were built by our very own community members!

Explore the Marketplace

The Trails & Tales Update

Ride a camel, hatch a sniffer, and trim your armor. Write and store your books in the chiseled bookshelf, because every story matters!

Learn More

Craft Your Path

Set your sights for adventure, wander aimlessly, or seek out something new in the Wild Update! The choices are endless, and all of them yours.

Learn More

Caves & Cliffs Update

Explore bigger mountains, caves, and biomes along with an increased world height and updated terrain generation in the Caves & Cliffs Update.

Learn More

Nether Update

Welcome to the Nether. Stronger materials, scarier biomes, and snoutier mobs bring the heat to an already fiery dimension.

Learn More

Buzzy Bees

Minecraft is buzzing! Discover how bees breathe life into their surroundings, bringing speedier crop growth, homey hives, and sticky honey!

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Village & Pillage

Discover the most adventurous update yet! Defend against new threats, build with new blocks, and experience life in all-new villages.

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Update Aquatic

Take a deep breath and dive into a vibrant new world beneath the surface! Full of marine life, new mobs and colorful sea-nery, Minecraft’s oceans get their biggest update yet!

Learn More