The Best Plugins for your Minecraft Server

22 December, 2022

Plugins are a great way to customize a Minecraft server. The plugins are what create the theme of the server. They can be used for minigames and gametypes like survival, server management, as well as other purposes. It can be difficult to choose the right plugins for your Minecraft server, with over 40,000 available on Spigot. We know how difficult it can be to choose plugins so we have compiled a list with our top recommendations!

This list does not include the Minecraft version that you are using. This is because many servers will run Minecraft versions ranging from 1.5.2 up to the most recent Minecraft updates. We try to keep a broad view of our choices, based on our experience with them, the reliability and flexibility of the plugin.

Non Premium Plugins

EssentialsX

A phenomenal plugin. It has over 100 commands and features that are useful on almost every server. It is a must-have program for every server.

LuckPerms

LuckPerms is a plugin that makes it easy and accessible to set up permissions and ranks on your Minecraft server. This plugin not only offers an in-game editor, but also an online editor that you can access from your browser.

Worldedit is a popular plugin. However, it has been optimized for speed and ease of use. This plugin will not only improve the standard aspects of WorldEdit, but it will also boost the performance and efficiency of plugins that depend on WorldEdit.

WorldGuard

This plugin is the best way to protect your Minecraft server. Worldguard allows you to add protections to spawn and other builds on the server. Flags can be used to set certain variables true/false, such as player damage.

GriefPrevention

WorldGuard is focused on server admin builds like Spawn, but GriefPrevention protects the players. This plugin will allow the community protect their builds, chests, and other assets.

ClearLagg

Lag reduction is one of the most frustrating aspects of server development. ClearLagg is a great plugin that will monitor server lag and offer optimizations to help reduce it.

CoreProtect

This is a must-have tool for server owners! Coreprotect provides a complete database of actions for your server. Coreprotect will locate the time and details of any player/mob who caused the block, chest or other action. This plugin allows you to rollback any area of the map to a date before it was destroyed.

Vault

This plugin is very basic and does not require any commands or in-game usage. However, hundreds of plugins will require Vault to function properly. This plugin should be downloaded for safety.

Dynmap

Imagine being able view your entire world on a website. Dynmap allows you to do exactly that. Dynmap allows you to display the entire server world in an online web browser. This allows you to view different terrains and where players are located.

NuVotifier

This plugin is great and allows you to notify the server whenever a vote for a Minecraft server is sent.

Voting Reward

This plugin is great for NuVotifier because it allows the owner of the server to set rewards whenever a player votes.

PlaceholderAPI

This plugin allows you to use placeholders for many popular plugins. This will display information such as the player balance, level and factions.

Viaversion

You want your server to be able to support all the latest versions of Minecraft without the need to upgrade it on the servers. Viaversion is the perfect solution! This plugin allows players to join your server on multiple Minecraft versions.

protocolsupport

Protocolsupport is similar to Viaversion. It allows players to connect with older versions of the server than the server is set for.

Citizens

This plugin is very popular and can be used to create NPCs. This plugin can be used to create NPCs, from AI characters to statues that can interact with players.

Holographic Displays

This plugin is a great way to provide information to players about your server. This plugin is commonly used in server spawns. It will project text holograms which can provide all kinds of information, such as useful commands and the number of online players.

SkinRestorer

This plugin is great for offline servers. Skins can be removed when a server is set to offline mode. Skinrestorer allows players to read their skins and can even change their skins with a single command.

NametagEdit

This plugin allows users the ability to modify their name tags and names reflected in the tab list.

Staff+

Moderating a Minecraft server has never been easier! Staff+ allows server staff to ban, blacklist and go invisible.

OldCombatMechanics

The mechanics of combat have changed with 1.9 Minecraft. This plugin allows servers to be restored to their pre-1.9 fighting methods.

Premium Plugins

McMMOOne the oldest plugins, McMMO can be used to add enchancements to your base game like new skills.

Featherboard
This plugin is very common and can be found on many of the largest servers in the world. Featherboard displays a graphic on the right side of your Minecraft screen that shows your name, level, or any other options the server owner may wish to set.

LiteBans
The perfect ban management plugin is available! Litebans allows servers to ban players by their IP, UUID, or name. It allows ban and kick screens to be customized, chats toggled, and lockdown to be enabled on the server.

DeluxeChat
This is a great way to format chat servers! DeluxeChat provides an easy-to-use formatting system that allows you to add tooltip messages and custom chat colors.

ShopGUI+
The economy is one of the most important aspects of a Minecraft server. A shop is essential for a successful server economy. ShopGUI+ allows you to create a shop without the need to build a structure. This plugin makes it easy to create and manage a GUI shop.

UltraPermissions
This plugin makes it easy to create permissions and groups. UltraPermission created a GUI to be used in-game to manage players, add permissions, and create groups.

CMI
This plugin is a great replacement for EssentialsX. CMI adds hundreds more commands and features to your servers, such as item finders, portals, kit editors, and many other useful features.

Bannerboard
This plugin is so cool! Bannerboard uses maps in Minecraft to render custom images. This plugin is often found on larger servers because it uses their logo as the server banner.

Spartan Anti-cheat
An anticheat plugin is essential as security is one of the most important aspects of a Minecraft server. Spartan AntiCheat can be used on medium-sized servers. It features false positive detection, performance optimizer, monodirectional targeting, and many other great features!

VoteParty
This plugin is amazing and will reward players with customized rewards when the server reaches a certain number of votes.

This list contains some great plugins that you can use on your server. However, it is only a small part of the overall picture. There are over 40,000 plugins available for Minecraft servers. It is important to check for dependencies before downloading any plugin.