Minecraft Java

The right jar, your choice

Your client area installs and updates your server for you — no command line, no manual configuration.

Vanilla

The official Mojang game, unmodified — the simplest way to play with friends.

Optimized Spigot fork, the reference choice for heavy plugins and large player counts.

Paper fork with even more configuration and gameplay options.

The historical foundation of the Bukkit plugin ecosystem.

The standard for mods, both client-side and server-side.

Forge's community-driven successor, closely tracking recent versions.

Lightweight and quick to update — often the first to support a new version.

Paper fork that splits the world into regions across several cores — for very large player counts, at the cost of reduced plugin compatibility.