BedrockTogether is a free phone app that gets around the one thing console Minecraft refuses to do: let you type a server address. It works brilliantly on Xbox and PlayStation, differently and riskily on Switch, and not at all on a few things people keep trying. Here is every mode, step by step, with the trade-offs the app's marketing does not lead with.
What BedrockTogether is and how it works
Minecraft on Xbox, PlayStation and Switch only shows Mojang's featured servers; there is no Add Server button like on phones and Windows. What consoles do show is any world running on the same local network. That is how two consoles in one house play together. BedrockTogether runs on your phone and advertises itself as one of those worlds. When the console joins it, the app hands the connection straight to the address you typed. The console never knows the difference, nothing is installed on it, and the game stays unmodified.
The one place that trick cannot work is the Switch, which does not display LAN worlds at all. For that the app has a second, beta mode that goes through Xbox Live instead. The two modes have different requirements and very different risk profiles, so they get separate sections below.
Which platforms it works on
| Platform | Mode | Works? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xbox One / Series S / Series X | LAN (PlayStation · Xbox tab) | Yes | Same Wi-Fi. Game Pass Core needed for online play. |
| PS4 / PS5 | LAN (PlayStation · Xbox tab) | Yes | Same Wi-Fi. PlayStation Plus and a Microsoft sign-in needed. |
| Nintendo Switch / Switch 2 | Switch · Friends (beta) | Sometimes | Broadcasts via Xbox Live from a throwaway account. Ban risk. DNS is the reliable route. |
| Phone, tablet, Windows | Not needed | n/a | These have a real Add Server button. |
| Realms | Any | No | Realms have no public address to transfer to. |
| Java-only servers | Any | No | Unless the server runs GeyserMC; then join the Geyser port. |
Setup on Xbox and PlayStation (LAN mode)
Install the app and join the same Wi-Fi
Install BedrockTogether from the App Store or Google Play. Put the phone on the same Wi-Fi network the console uses. This is the step that fails most: a guest network, mobile data, a VPN, or a router with client isolation switched on all put the two devices on different networks as far as Minecraft is concerned. On iOS, allow the app's Local Network permission when asked.
Enter the server address and port
Stay on the PlayStation · Xbox tab. Type the address into the IP field and the port into Port. Bedrock's default is 19132, but hosted servers almost always use their own number, so copy it from the host's panel rather than assuming.
IP: yourname.spawnfort.host Port: 25600
Watch Ad and Run
Tap Watch Ad and Run. After the ad the app checks it can reach the server, then starts broadcasting. Keep it in the foreground and the phone awake; the moment it is suspended the broadcast stops.
Find the server on the console
Open Minecraft, then Play. The server is listed in the Worlds tab as a local world (older builds list it under Friends, then LAN Games). Select it and you are transferred to the real server. The console-specific pages go deeper, including the DNS alternative and the subscription gates: Xbox and PS5 and PS4.
Setup on Nintendo Switch (Switch · Friends beta)
Why LAN mode cannot work on Switch
The Switch build of Minecraft does not display LAN worlds. There is no setting to flip; the tab simply never shows them. So the LAN broadcast that works on Xbox and PlayStation has nothing to appear in, and older guides that tell Switch owners to install the app and look in the Friends tab are sending them to an empty screen. The app's own troubleshooting page says the same thing.
Create a throwaway Microsoft account with a gamertag
The beta works by signing the app into a Microsoft account and emulating a Minecraft client on Xbox Live, so that your real account sees a friend hosting a joinable game. That emulation is the risky part. BedrockTogether's Switch page states that it "may break Xbox Live's terms of service, and the account you sign in with could be banned". Make a new Microsoft account for this, give it an Xbox gamertag at xbox.com, and never use your main account.
Friend it from your play account
On the Switch (or at xbox.com), send a friend request from the account you actually play on to the throwaway gamertag, and accept it from the other side. The broadcast only appears to friends of the broadcasting account. Skipping this is the most common reason the Friends tab stays empty.
Sign in and broadcast
- Open BedrockTogether and switch to the Switch · Friends tab.
- Enter the server address and port.
- Tap Sign in and Broadcast and sign in with the throwaway account.
- Tap Broadcast to Friends.
Join from the Friends tab
On the Switch, open Minecraft, then Play, then the Friends tab. The throwaway account shows as hosting a game. Join it and you are transferred to the server. Tap Stop Broadcast in the app when you are done. If it does not show, restart Minecraft; the friends list can take a moment to sync.
The ban risk, in plain words
The account doing the broadcasting is impersonating a game client, and Microsoft can and does ban accounts for that. If it happens, you lose the throwaway account and nothing else, which is the entire point of the throwaway. The beta can also stop working when the broadcasting service has an outage, with nothing you can do on your end. This is why the Switch guide leads with the BedrockConnect DNS method and treats this as the fallback.
Joining a Java server through BedrockTogether
The app can only transfer you to a server that speaks the Bedrock protocol. Point it at a plain Java server and the console times out. If the Java server runs GeyserMC with Floodgate, type the Geyser port (often 19132 on self-hosted servers) rather than the Java port, and it works like any Bedrock server. On SpawnFort, crossplay is a checkbox and the Bedrock port is the same number shown for Java.
Free vs Pro
The free app shows an ad before each run and stores two saved servers. An ad-free version is offered from the app's Info screen and lifts the saved-server limit. Nothing about the connection itself differs between the two.
Does BedrockTogether still work?
As of September 2026, yes. The LAN mode works on every Xbox and PlayStation that runs Minecraft, and the Switch · Friends beta is live with the caveats above. What has changed over the years is the surrounding landscape: the older "friend a public bot" trick has largely died because bots fill up and BedrockConnect switched its own off, and Realms remain unreachable by any of this.
When the server does not appear
| Symptom | Cause and fix |
|---|---|
| Nothing in Worlds / LAN Games (Xbox, PlayStation) | Different networks. Move both devices to the main Wi-Fi; no guest network, mobile data or VPN. Turn off client / AP isolation on the router. |
| Was there, then gone | The app was suspended. Keep it in the foreground; on Android exclude it from battery optimisation. |
| iPhone never shows anything | Settings, BedrockTogether, Local Network permission is off. Turn it on. |
| Appears, but you get kicked or “Unable to connect to world” | Wrong port, server offline, version mismatch, a whitelist without you, or a Java server with no Geyser. |
| Switch Friends tab stays empty | The broadcasting account is not friends with your play account, has no Xbox profile, or is banned. Check all three, then restart Minecraft. |
| Switch broadcast starts then fails | The broadcasting service is down. Wait, or use the DNS method instead. |
BedrockTogether vs BedrockConnect DNS: which to use
| BedrockTogether (LAN) | BedrockConnect (DNS) | |
|---|---|---|
| Needs | A phone on the same Wi-Fi | Nothing but the console |
| Xbox / PlayStation | Best choice | Works; PlayStation may need the alternate DNS |
| Switch | Only the Friends beta, with ban risk | Best choice |
| Console changes | None | Manual DNS, revert afterwards |
| Failure mode | Network isolation, app suspended | Volunteer instance down |
| Cost | Free with ads, paid ad-free | Free |
The short version: on Xbox and PlayStation use the app, on Switch use DNS, and keep the other one in your back pocket. Both need the same thing from the server side, a stable address and a port, which is what a hosted server gives you.