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How to Add Colors to Your Minecraft Server MOTD

Set a colored two-line MOTD in server.properties using Minecraft formatting codes. Includes the full code list, a working example and common mistakes.

By MinecraftCave Team 3 min read 1 views

The MOTD is the short message shown under your server's name in the multiplayer list. On a Java server you set it with the motd line in server.properties, and you color it with formatting codes: the section sign § followed by one character. In server.properties the section sign is written as §.

Set the MOTD in server.properties

  1. Stop the server.
  2. Open server.properties in the server folder.
  3. Find the line that starts with motd=.
  4. Replace the text after = with your message.
  5. Save the file and start the server.

The default is:

motd=A Minecraft Server

Color codes

Code Color Code Color
§0 Black §8 Dark gray
§1 Dark blue §9 Blue
§2 Dark green §a Green
§3 Dark aqua §b Aqua
§4 Dark red §c Red
§5 Dark purple §d Light purple
§6 Gold §e Yellow
§7 Gray §f White

Format codes

Code Effect
§l Bold
§o Italic
§n Underline
§m Strikethrough
§k Obfuscated (scrambled characters)
§r Reset color and formatting

A working two-line example

The MOTD has two lines. Use \n to start the second one.

motd=§6§lCedar Valley §r§7Survival 1.21\n§aNew season open now

This shows "Cedar Valley" in bold gold, "Survival 1.21" in gray, and a green second line.

Common mistakes

  • Putting the format before the color. On Java, a color code clears earlier formatting. Write the color first, then the format: §6§l, not §l§6.
  • Forgetting to reset. Bold and other formats continue until a color code or §r.
  • Using & in server.properties. The ampersand form (&6) belongs to plugins that translate it for you. The vanilla motd line only understands the section sign.
  • Making it too long. Text that does not fit on a line is cut off in the server list. Keep each line short and check it in the game.
  • Expecting hex colors. The motd line supports the 16 legacy colors. Gradients and RGB colors need a plugin or proxy that sends a richer MOTD to newer clients.

Bedrock servers

Bedrock Dedicated Server does not use motd. The name shown in the server list comes from the server-name line in its server.properties, and it cannot contain semicolons.

Preview before you restart

Restarting a server to test each change is slow. The Minecraft color and format codes tool previews legacy colors and copies the code in the form you need, including the § escape for server.properties.

Once your MOTD looks right, a matching image helps on listing sites: the server banner generator exports a static banner, and you can add your server to MinecraftCave for free.

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