NapNodes
Free tool · Minecraft Java

Minecraft color codes

Every Minecraft colour and style with its code in each format, and a converter: paste the text of a rank, a MOTD or a plugin message, see it as in the game and copy it in the format each place asks for.

Format converter

[VIP] Name » Hello!

It has hex colours: they show from Minecraft Java 1.16. For older versions, use “Only the 16 colours”.

With “&”

For EssentialsX, LuckPerms, TAB and almost every plugin (hex colours as “&#RRGGBB”).

&6&l[VIP] &fName &7» &#5b4ae8Hello!

MiniMessage

For Paper and the plugins that read MiniMessage (their page or config says so).

<gold><bold>[VIP] </bold><white>Name <gray>» <#5b4ae8>Hello!

With “§”

For files that want the “§” as it is, and what the game itself saves.

§6§l[VIP] §fName §7» §x§5§b§4§a§e§8Hello!

Only the 16 colours

For versions before 1.16 and places without hex colours: each colour becomes the closest of the 16.

&6&l[VIP] &fName &7» &9Hello!

The 16 colours

ColourPluginsGameMiniMessageHex
Black&0§0<black>#000000
Dark Blue&1§1<dark_blue>#0000AA
Dark Green&2§2<dark_green>#00AA00
Dark Aqua&3§3<dark_aqua>#00AAAA
Dark Red&4§4<dark_red>#AA0000
Dark Purple&5§5<dark_purple>#AA00AA
Gold&6§6<gold>#FFAA00
Gray&7§7<gray>#AAAAAA
Dark Gray&8§8<dark_gray>#555555
Blue&9§9<blue>#5555FF
Green&a§a<green>#55FF55
Aqua&b§b<aqua>#55FFFF
Red&c§c<red>#FF5555
Light Purple&d§d<light_purple>#FF55FF
Yellow&e§e<yellow>#FFFF55
White&f§f<white>#FFFFFF

The formatting codes

StylePluginsGameMiniMessage
Bold&l§l<bold>
Italic&o§o<italic>
Underline&n§n<underlined>
Strikethrough&m§m<strikethrough>
Obfuscated (scrambling letters)&k§k<obfuscated>
Reset colour and styles&r§r<reset>

Hex colours (any colour, since 1.16) are written &#5B4AE8 in almost every plugin, &x&5&B&4&A&E&8 in the oldest ones and <#5B4AE8> in MiniMessage. For a letter-by-letter gradient, use the gradient text generator.

Where they're used

  • The MOTD (the text in the server list): in server.properties, only the 16 colours. Make it with the MOTD generator, which writes the line ready to paste.
  • Ranks: a LuckPerms group's prefix (/lp group vip meta setprefix "&6&l[VIP] "). How to create them is in LuckPerms: ranks and permissions.
  • Names and chat: with EssentialsX, /nick &bAlex and chat colours for whoever has the permission. More in the EssentialsX guide.
  • /tellraw messages and command blocks: there you don't use codes but the colour name in JSON (the MiniMessage column, without the “<>”). The /tellraw generator writes it for you.
  • Plugin configs (messages, menus, tab list, holograms): in the format each one says; on a NapNodes server, you edit them in Files in the panel.

Frequently asked questions

What's the difference between “&” and “§”?

None in the colour: the game uses “§”, but it isn't easy to type on a keyboard, so plugins let you use “&” and swap it for “§” before showing it. In a plugin's config it's almost always “&”; in server.properties (the MOTD), “§” or its \u00A7 form.

Can I type in colour in the chat?

Not on a server without plugins: the game doesn't allow codes in the chat. With EssentialsX, anyone with the chat colour permission can type “&a” and it comes out green. That permission is given with LuckPerms.

Why do I see the codes instead of the colours?

Because the plugin showing that text doesn't understand that format. Convert it with the tool: almost all of them understand “&”, many new ones only MiniMessage (<red>) and the oldest don't understand “&#” hex colours.

Since which version are there hex colours?

Since Minecraft Java 1.16. Before that there were only the 16 in the table; for those versions, use the “Only the 16 colours” output, which swaps each colour for the closest one.

Why isn't “&l&6” bold?

Because in Minecraft a colour code resets the styles before it. Colour first, then style: “&6&l”. MiniMessage doesn't have this problem: each tag lasts until you close it.

Does it work on Bedrock?

The 16 colours and the styles with “§”, yes (Bedrock also has a few colours of its own). Hex colours and MiniMessage are Java only.

No server yet?

At NapNodes you get a free Minecraft server, no card, running Paper: rank and chat plugins are installed from Mods & plugins, without downloading anything, so you can use these colours from day one.

Create your free server

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