How To Play Minecraft with Friends (Java Edition 2026)

So you want to play Minecraft Java Edition with your friends, but Minecraft doesn't make it obvious how. There's no big "invite friend" button on the main menu. No matchmaking lobby. Just a "Multiplayer" tab asking for something called a server address.

So, how do you actually play with your friends? Well, there are five different ways, and the right one depends on how serious you are about playing together.

Quick Overview

For anyone who gets bored reading a guide, here's a quick summary:

Each option trades something for something else. Renting a server trades money for reliability. Self-hosting trades convenience for control. LAN trades flexibility for simplicity. The "best" depends on your situation, but for the majority of friend groups, the top option is the one to beat, so let's start there.

Rent a server (Best for most players)

Renting a server is what I'd recommend to almost anyone serious about playing Minecraft with friends. You pay a monthly fee, a company runs the hardware and security, and your world stays online 24/7, whether your computer is on, off, on fire, or being repaired.

What is rented Minecraft hosting?

Rented Minecraft hosting is a slice of a dedicated machine in a data center, pre-configured to run Minecraft server software and reachable from anywhere with an internet connection. The provider handles the operating system, Java configuration, firewall, DDoS protection, and backups, so the only thing you touch is the in-game experience.

Now, I've been making Minecraft videos for the past six years on YouTube as Shulkercraft, and our main survival world is 6,000+ days old. That's not a world you can comfortably play on your own PC let alone using LAN. I've tried multiple ways to host my world to make videos together with Robin (Shulkercraft's co-founder), and the best method has always been to rent a server, it just makes the hosting part easy, so we can just focus on two things: playing together and making videos.

How it works

Here's the exact process to get playing with friends using a hosting provider:

1. Pick a hosting provider. For this example, we're using WiseHosting.
2. Pick your RAM. 4 GB covers most vanilla and lightly-modded friend groups. 6 GB is the sweet spot if you're running plugins or a small modpack. For heavier modpacks like RLCraft or Create, you'll want 8 GB or more.
3. Pick the closest server location. I run mine from Finland because me and Robin are both closest to Finland. Always pick the location closest to you and your friends. This ensures you all can play with low ping.
4. Pay and pick your version. Vanilla, Forge, Fabric, Paper, or any of the 15,000+ modpacks WiseHosting supports out of the box.
5. Add your friends to the whitelist. This protects your server so only your friends can join.
6. Copy your server IP. Drop it in your group chat.
7. Join the server. Go to "Multiplayer", click "Add Server", type in your server name (you can call it whatever you want), copy your IP in the address box and hit "Connect".

Pros

• Your world is online 24/7. Friends can play while you're at school, asleep, or at work.
• Easy setup. The entire process to set up a Minecraft server takes less than 5 minutes.
• Access to 24/7 support team. hatever happens to your server or game, support is available around the clock to help with any issues. You are never alone when stuck.
• High-performance hardware. Your server runs on a strong CPU in a data center, giving you a lag-free experience.
• No port forwarding required. This is why most people never end up self-hosting on their own PC, since it can get very technical.

Cons

• It costs money. That's the only catch, but paying a few dollars a month buys you a server that's faster, safer, and significantly less frustrating than running one yourself.

Host a LAN server

Paying for a server isn't for everyone, especially if your friend group is small and you all hang out in the same place. That's where LAN comes in. LAN play has been in Minecraft since the beginning, and it still works exactly the way it did in the early days. Same simple setup, same hard limitation: everyone has to be on the same network.

What is LAN play?

LAN (Local Area Network) play is a built-in Minecraft feature that turns your single-player world into a temporary multiplayer server for anyone on the same physical network. Friends in the same house or same Wi-Fi can join with zero setup.

How it works

Here's how to open a LAN world for your friends:

1. Open your single-player world in Minecraft.
2. Press Escape to open the pause menu.
3. Click "Open to LAN."
4. Pick your game mode and options (survival, creative, allow cheats, etc.).
5. Click "Start LAN World."
6. Your friends open their multiplayer menu and your world appears automatically.

Pros

• Completely free. Built into Minecraft since launch.
• Zero setup. No IPs, no passwords, no accounts to configure.
• Instant. From singleplayer to multiplayer in under 30 seconds.
• Perfect for sleepovers and family play. When everyone's in the same room, this is unbeatable.

Cons

• Not 24/7 online. The world only stays online while the host is online. If the host closes the world, everyone gets kicked.
• Only works on the same physical network. Friends across town or across the country can't join.
• No customization. It's very limited to what you can do with it since you don't get access to any files or panel when hosting a world.
• Doesn't work for most friend groups. Most of your friends probably aren't on the same network, making it impossible for them to join.

Use Mojang's Friends List feature

LAN's biggest weakness is geography. The moment your friends aren't on the same Wi-Fi, you're stuck. For years, Mojang's only answer was "pay for a server or set up port forwarding.". In 2026 May Mojang finally added a friends list in the 26.2 snapshot. It's the first official way to play with friends online without paying for a server or having to be on the same network to play.

What is the Minecraft friends list?

The Minecraft friends list is a built-in feature that lets you add other Minecraft accounts as friends and invite them directly into your single-player world. No IP, no server software, no third-party tools required.

How it works

Here's how to get a friend into your world using the friends list:

1. Update to the 26.2 snapshot (or later).
2. Click the friends icon in the main menu.
3. Type your friend's username and add them.
4. Open a single-player world and click "Multiplayer."
5. Switch the toggle to "Multiplayer online", set your game mode, and apply changes.
6. Accept your friend's join request from their friends list.

Pros

• Completely free. Built into the game, no add-ons needed.
• Don't need to be on the same network to play. Mojang handles the networking layer. You can play with anyone, anywhere.
• No third-party tools. Everything happens inside the Minecraft client.

Cons

• Not 24/7 online. If the host logs out, everyone get kicked.
• Performance depends on your PC. Your machine is still doing all the work.
• No mods or plugins. Vanilla only, no customization. Once Minecraft releases the feature you likely won't be able to play mods built for older versions of the game.
• No backups. The host is responsible for making saves of their world.
• Still in snapshot testing. You can't officially play it and the stability is hit-or-miss as of writing.

Self-host your own server

The friends list is free, but it's quite limited when it comes to customization and uptime. If you want mods, plugins, persistent uptime, or any kind of serious customization without paying for hosting, you have one option left: host your own Minecraft server.

It's free, fully customizable, but it can get very technical which is not the most recommended option for beginners.

What is self-hosting?

Self-hosting means running the official Minecraft server software directly on your own computer. Your PC becomes the server, your home internet handles the connection, and your friends connect via your home IP address.

How It Works

Making your own Minecraft server on your PC has lots of moving parts: Java versions, server softwares, port forwarding, firewall rules all of which require a separate guide to cover. Instead, check out our guides which walk your through self-hosting step-by-step for each different use case:

• Vanilla: How To Make A Vanilla Minecraft Server
• Modded: How To Make A Modded Minecraft Server
• Modpack: How To Make A Modpack Minecraft Server
• Plugins: How To Make A Paper Minecraft Server

Pros

• Completely free. No monthly fee or subscription.
• Total control. Any mod, any plugin, any config file is yours to edit.
• Great for learning. If you want to actually understand how Minecraft servers work, self-hosting is the fastest teacher.
• No third parties. If you have a very powerful CPU at hand or home server, it can be more powerful than to rent from a hosting provider.

Cons

• Not 24/7 online unless your PC stays on. If you shut it down, your friends get kicked.
• Performance depends on your PC. Running Minecraft and the server on the same machine can hurt performance, causing lag.
• Port forwarding is required. You have to open a port on your router, which exposes your home IP and can invite DDoS attacks if done wrong.
• No automatic backups. If your hard drive fails or someone griefs spawn, your world is gone.
• You are tech support. When the server crashes or has issues, you are alone with problems.

Join a public server

All four options so far assume you want to run your own world. The fifth flips that entirely: you don't host anything, you just join someone else's server. Public servers are run by third parties and open to anyone with the IP. They're the fastest way to start playing Minecraft multiplayer.

What is a public server?

A public server is a Minecraft server run by a third party and open to anyone with the server IP. Most offer servers give you a wide range of game modes to play like bedwars, skyblock, prison, survival, creative, and many have player counts in the thousands, although there are servers with a lot less players (between 10-100).

How it works

Here's how to join a public server with your friends:

1. Find a server on a listing site like minecraftservers.org or minecraft-mp.com.
2. Copy the server IP from the listing.
3. Open Minecraft and click "Multiplayer."
4. Click "Add Server" and paste the IP.
5. Click Join, and tell your friends to do the same so you can find each other in-game.

Pros

• Completely free. Doesn't cost any money to play multiplayer.
• Instant access. You're playing within 60 seconds of finding a server.
• Prebuilt server. The server is built for perfect multiplayer experience: from minigames to survival worlds with economy.
• Massive communities. Big servers have polished economies, ranks, events, and active player bases.

Cons

• You're playing with hundreds strangers.
• Zero control. Rules, plugins, world resets are all the owner's call.
• The server can vanish. Owner gets bored, closes the server, and your progress is gone.
• Spawn is picked clean. Finding unexplored land near spawn is nearly impossible.

Final thoughts

Playing Minecraft with friends got dramatically easier in 2026. Mojang added a friends list, hosting providers are faster and cheaper than they were five years ago, and self-hosting is more mature than it ever has been with so many guides out there that can help you out with creating a server or troubleshooting issues.

Have a question about playing with friends? Ask me on Discord.