Minecraft MOTD generator_

What a Minecraft MOTD is and where it shows

The MOTD (message of the day) is the one or two lines of text under your server's name in the multiplayer list. Every player sees it before they join, so it is your one line of marketing: what the server is, which version, and why to click. On Java it comes from the motd key in server.properties (or from a plugin or proxy that overrides it); on Bedrock it is the server-name key. Formatting uses the section sign § followed by one character: a color (§a is green) or a style (§l is bold). A color code also resets every style before it, which is why §l§a is plain green but §a§l is bold green.

Minecraft color codes

The 16 colors work everywhere: vanilla, Paper, proxies and Bedrock. The last column is the name MiniMessage and JSON text components use for the same color.

Formatting codes

Styles stack (§l§o is bold italic) until a color code or §r resets them. §k (obfuscated) shows as constantly changing random characters; it is unreadable by design, so use it as decoration at the ends of a line, never for the words.

Hex colors and gradients: by version and where they work

Hex colors arrived in Java 1.16. In legacy text they are written as §x§R§R§G§G§B§B (one § per hex digit; the generator emits this for the raw and & outputs) and in MiniMessage as <#RRGGBB>. A gradient is just a different hex color on every character, or a <gradient:#a:#b> tag in MiniMessage. The catch: the vanilla server.properties MOTD never renders hex, whatever the version. It only understands the 16 colors and the styles. To show hex or gradients in the server list you need something that builds the MOTD itself.

Clients older than 1.16 cannot read the §x form either: they show the leftover letters and digits as garbage. If you still have 1.12 players, stay with the 16 colors.

Java vs Bedrock MOTD differences

Running a crossplay server with Geyser? Bedrock players see the Java MOTD through Geyser, but Geyser squeezes both lines into Bedrock's single-line list, so keep line 1 self-explanatory and treat line 2 as optional.

How to set your MOTD

• server.properties: stop the server, open server.properties, replace the motd= line with the generator's server.properties output (the § is already escaped as § and the line break as \n), save as plain text, start the server.
• Paper with a MOTD plugin: paste the MiniMessage output into the plugin's config (MiniMOTD uses line1 and line2), then run its reload command.
• BungeeCord or Velocity: the proxy answers pings, so set the MOTD in config.yml or velocity.toml; the backend servers' MOTDs are never shown.
• On SpawnFort: open your server's Settings, paste the raw § output into the Message of the day field (up to 150 characters) and save. No file editing, no FTP; the server restarts with the new MOTD. New here? The how to make a Minecraft server guide covers the first start, and how to join a Minecraft server is what you send your friends once the MOTD is live.

Common MOTD mistakes

• Pasting a raw § into server.properties. Older servers read the file as ISO-8859-1 and show § or a box. Use the escaped § form, which works on every version.
• Lines too long. Over roughly 270 px (about 45 normal letters) the first line wraps into the second and the real second line disappears. Watch the meter above each line.
• Unicode that does not render. Most emoji and many symbols are not in Minecraft's default font and show as boxes; arrows, bullets and box-drawing characters (», •, ■) are safe. In server.properties every non-ASCII character must be a \u escape, which the generator writes for you.
• Hex in a vanilla MOTD. It shows as letters and digits. Either use the 16 colors or move the MOTD to a plugin or proxy.
• Forgetting the reset. Bold carries on until a color code or §r; a §l on line 1 does not bleed into line 2, but inside a line it runs to the end.

Still naming the server? The server name generator pairs well with this page, and the server.properties generator builds the rest of the file around your MOTD.