Minecraft Realms: a private server from Mojang

What is Minecraft Realms?

Minecraft Realms is the official private server hosting service, run directly by Mojang Studios. You pay a monthly subscription and Mojang sets up and maintains the server for you: no port forwarding, no software to install, no worrying about uptime.

In practice, Realms is the simplest way to play on a shared world with a group of friends. The owner buys a subscription, invites players from inside the game and that's it. The server runs 24/7, even when the owner is offline.

In 2026, Realms is still the only official way to get a private Minecraft server: Mojang offers no alternative to it.

Important: Realms: Java Edition and Realms: Bedrock Edition are two completely separate products. They differ in price, features, player limit and supported platforms. You can't put Java players and Bedrock players on the same Realm.

Realms: Java Edition vs Realms: Bedrock Edition

This is the most common source of confusion. Although both services are called "Realms", they work independently of each other. You buy one or the other; they don't come as a bundle.

Realms: Java Edition

• Price: about 30 PLN/month (~$7.99 USD), a single plan with no variants
• Player limit: up to 10 at once (plus the owner, 11 in total)
• Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux (Java Edition only)
• World slots: 3 (one can be active, the others stay stored)
• Minigames: yes, a built-in library of minigame maps
• Data packs: yes, you can upload custom data packs
• Forge/Fabric mods: no, mods aren't supported
• Realms Plus: not available, it's a Bedrock-only feature

Realms: Bedrock Edition

• Basic plan: about 16 PLN/month (~$3.99 USD), up to 2 players
• Standard plan: about 32 PLN/month (~$7.99 USD), up to 10 players
• Platforms: Windows 10/11, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android
• Crossplay: yes, all Bedrock players can play together whatever their platform
• World slots: 3 (standard plan) or 1 (basic plan)
• Add-ons: yes, behavior packs and resource packs
• Realms Plus: yes (standard plan), access to more than 150 Marketplace items

What you get with a subscription

Whichever edition you choose, every Realms subscription includes:

• A server that runs 24/7: your friends can join at any time, even when you're not online. The server runs on Mojang/Microsoft infrastructure and has stable uptime.
• Automatic backups: Realms takes automatic snapshots of your world. On Java Edition you can roll back to any backup from the last few days. This protects your progress from bugs and griefing.
• No network setup: no port forwarding and no firewall configuration. Players join through an invite, without typing in a server address.
• Invite system: on Java you invite players by username or, since version 26.3, with an invite code. Each Realm can have up to 5 codes, and you can give each one an expiration date, deactivate it or delete it. The player enters the code on the "Join Realm" screen. Deleting a code doesn't remove the players who joined with it, so remove them by hand if you need to. On Bedrock, an invite link or your friends list is all you need.
• Whitelist and permissions: you control who can join. You can give operator permissions to selected players.
• Free trial: a 30-day trial with no card required up front (terms may vary by platform).

On Java Edition you also get access to the minigame library: ready-made worlds and games made by the community that you can load onto your Realm with one click.

How to set up Realms step by step

Java Edition

1. Open Minecraft Java Edition and click "Minecraft Realms" in the main menu.
2. Click "Buy a Realm!" (or "Try for free" if a trial is available to you).
3. Enter a server name and a short description.
4. Choose the world type: a new world, one uploaded from a file, or one from the minigame library.
5. Confirm the payment. Mojang accepts payment cards (Visa, Mastercard) and PayPal.
6. Once the Realm is created, click the configure icon next to its name.
7. In the "Players" tab, invite your friends by entering their Minecraft usernames. Since version 26.3 you can also give them an invite code, which they enter on the "Join Realm" screen.
8. Done: your friends will see your Realm in their list and can join at any time.

Bedrock Edition

1. Open Minecraft Bedrock Edition and click "Play".
2. Go to the "Worlds" tab, click "Create New" and then "Create on Realms".
3. Choose a plan: 2 players (about 16 PLN/mo) or 10 players (about 32 PLN/mo).
4. Enter a name for your Realm.
5. Confirm the payment through your platform's store (Microsoft Store, PlayStation Store, Nintendo eShop, App Store, Google Play).
6. Once the Realm is created, open its settings and invite players from your friends list or share an invite link.
7. Players on any Bedrock platform (Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, phone, Windows) can join through crossplay.

The whole process takes 2-3 minutes. That's the main advantage of Realms over third-party hosting or your own server: there's nothing technical to configure.

Realms vs hosting vs your own server

Realms isn't the only way to get a Minecraft server. There are three main routes: Realms (Mojang's official server), hosting from a third-party provider, or your own server on your computer or a VPS.

The key difference: Realms is a black box. You pay and it works, but you have no access to the server console, you can't change the server software version and you can't add mods. Hosting gives you an admin panel, FTP access and full control. Your own server gives you complete freedom, but you have to maintain it.

If you're looking for Minecraft hosting, check out our Minecraft hosting comparison. And if you want to set up a server yourself, we have a step-by-step guide.

Realms Plus (Bedrock Edition only)

Realms Plus is an extended version of the standard Bedrock plan (10 players). For the same price (~32 PLN/mo) you get the server plus access to more than 150 items from the Minecraft Marketplace: maps, skins, texture packs, minigames and adventure worlds.

The Realms Plus catalog rotates every month. Mojang adds new items and removes old ones, so there are fresh maps and skins to try each month. The items you download work both on your Realm and in single-player.

Is Realms Plus worth it?

That depends on whether you use the Marketplace. If you regularly buy skins, maps or texture packs with Minecoins, Realms Plus can pay off, because it gives you content worth several hundred Minecoins a month for the price of the server alone.

If, on the other hand, you only play a vanilla world with friends and the Marketplace doesn't interest you, Realms Plus gives you nothing beyond what the standard plan does. There's no separate, cheaper 10-player plan "without Plus": this is the price.

Realms Plus isn't available on Java Edition. Java players get a single plan with no extra content.

Realms limitations Mojang doesn't advertise

Realms is a convenient service, but it has significant limitations worth knowing before you buy. These are the most important ones:

No mods on Java Edition

This is the biggest drawback of Realms: Java Edition. You can't install Forge, Fabric or NeoForge mods. The only things you can upload are data packs and resource packs. If you want to play with mods like Create, Cobblemon or Sodium, Realms is out. You need hosting or your own server.

No plugins

You can't install Spigot/Paper plugins on either version of Realms. No WorldGuard, LuckPerms, EssentialsX or Dynmap, nothing of the kind. Realms runs only Mojang's official server software (vanilla), with no way to swap it for Paper, Spigot or Purpur.

10 players max

The limit is fixed. You can't raise it, not even by paying extra. If you're planning a public server or a community with more than 10 people online at once, Realms won't be enough.

Limited configuration

You have no access to the server console or the server.properties file. You can change a few basic options (game mode, difficulty, cheats), but you have no control over the tick rate, spawn protection, entity limits or any advanced settings. On Java, the 26.3 snapshots (since August 2026) split render distance and simulation distance in the Realms settings into two separate sliders and raised the maximum render distance from 12 to 25 chunks. Mojang noted that these settings may still change based on player feedback.

Performance out of your control

Realms runs on Mojang/Microsoft infrastructure, and you have no say in how much RAM your server gets or where it's physically located. Players in Poland may see 50-100 ms ping, because Realms servers are mainly in Western Europe and the US. With hosting you can pick a server location in Poland or Germany.

No custom domain or IP

You can't assign your own IP address or domain to a Realm. Players join only through Mojang's invite system, not by typing in a server address. That rules Realms out as a platform for a public server.

Dependence on Mojang

Mojang can change the pricing or the terms of service, or shut down Realms, at any time. Minecraft version updates on Realms happen automatically: you can't stay on an older version if a new update breaks your data packs or builds with custom mechanics.

Managing your world: backups, uploads, slots

Downloading and uploading a world

Realms lets you download your world as a file at any time. This matters for two reasons:

• Moving off Realms: if you decide to switch to hosting or your own server, you can download the world and keep playing without losing progress.
• Local backup: you have full control over your data and don't depend on Mojang.

It works the other way too: you can upload an existing world to Realms. If you have a world from single-player or from another server, just import it.

World slots

On Java Edition and the standard Bedrock plan you have 3 world slots. Only one can be active at a time, but switching between them is instant. That's handy if you want, for example, a survival world, a creative world and a minigame world.

On the basic Bedrock plan (2 players) you get only 1 slot.

Automatic backups

Realms automatically takes snapshots of your world. On Java Edition the backups are kept for a few days and you can roll the world back to any of them. That protects you from griefing, bugs and builds destroyed by accident.

What happens after you cancel your subscription?

When you cancel Realms, the server shuts down, but your world isn't deleted right away. Mojang keeps it for about 18 months. If you renew your subscription within that time, you'll find the world exactly where you left it. After 18 months the data is deleted permanently.

Tip: before you cancel, always download your world to your drive. It takes a minute and makes sure you won't lose hundreds of hours of work.

Is Minecraft Realms worth the price?

The honest answer: it depends on what kind of player you are.

Yearly cost comparison

• Realms Java (10 players): about 360 PLN/year (30 PLN x 12 months)
• Realms Bedrock basic (2 players): about 192 PLN/year (16 PLN x 12 months)
• Realms Bedrock standard (10 players): about 384 PLN/year (32 PLN x 12 months)
• Hosting (10 players, with mods): about 180-480 PLN/year (15-40 PLN/mo)
• Your own server: 0 PLN (not counting electricity and setup time)

For a similar or lower price, hosting gives you mods, plugins, a choice of location and full control. Realms wins only on ease of setup: if that convenience is worth the price to you, it's a fair choice.

For most groups of players who play Java Edition with mods, third-party hosting is the better choice. But if you play with your family on different platforms (say, you on PC, the kids on an iPad, someone on a Switch), Realms Bedrock with crossplay is the only option that works "out of the box".

Frequently asked questions

Summary

Minecraft Realms is the easiest way to play together with friends: it's up and running in 2 minutes, with no setup, automatic backups and 24/7 uptime. For that convenience you pay about 30-32 PLN a month and give up mods, plugins and full control over the server.

For a casual group of friends playing vanilla Minecraft, it's a sensible investment. For anyone who wants mods, plugins or a public server, hosting is the better pick. No sentiment: Realms exists for convenience, not for advanced players.