Minecraft servers on Switch, PS5 and Xbox: join any server

On Switch, PlayStation and Xbox, Minecraft is the Bedrock Edition. Its Servers tab only shows a handful of partner servers there, The Hive or CubeCraft for instance, and no button to add another one. Yet the game can join any Bedrock server: you just have to open the way to it by another route.

Before you start

• The server must accept Bedrock. A Java-only server can't be joined from a console; a Java server running Geyser can. The list of servers open to Bedrock keeps only those.
• Note its address and Bedrock port, usually 19132, from its page or its Discord.
• Online play on console generally requires the platform's subscription: Nintendo Switch Online, PlayStation Plus or Game Pass on Xbox. The game's page in your console's store tells you what applies.
• The Microsoft account used on the console must allow multiplayer; otherwise, see Minecraft multiplayer disabled.

The three methods at a glance

Method	What you need	Advantage	Limit
An app on your phone	a phone on the same Wi-Fi as the console	no setting on the console	the phone stays on next to it
Change the console's DNS	edit the network settings once	a real server list, reusable	a third-party service sees your DNS requests
Add the server as a friend	the server must offer it	nothing to install	only on servers that have it

Method 1: an app on your phone

Apps such as BedrockTogether, on Android and iOS, make the console believe a local game is running on your network: the server then shows up as a LAN world.

1. Install the app on a phone connected to the same Wi-Fi as the console.
2. Enter the server's address and Bedrock port, then start it.
3. On the console, open Minecraft, Play, Friends tab: the server is listed among the LAN games. Join it.

The app must stay open while you connect. If nothing shows up, check that the console and the phone really are on the same network: no guest Wi-Fi, no mobile data.

Method 2: change the console's DNS

The open-source BedrockConnect project redirects the partner servers to a menu where you enter the address of your choice.

1. Take the DNS address published on the official BedrockConnect project page, on GitHub. It can change, and can differ by console: don't copy the one from an old tutorial.
2. In the console's network settings, switch the connection to manual DNS and enter that address as primary DNS. Keep your router's or a well-known DNS (1.1.1.1, 8.8.8.8) as secondary.
3. In Minecraft, Servers tab, open a partner server: a menu appears in its place. Add the server's address and port there, then join it.

The DNS service sees the domain names your console looks up as long as the setting is active. Switch back to automatic DNS when you no longer need it.

Method 3: add the server as a friend

Some servers have an Xbox account that "hosts" a game: add that account as a friend from the console, and the server appears in the Friends tab as a game to join. The account name is given on the server's page or Discord. It's the simplest method when it's offered.

Where to find the DNS setting

Console	Path in the settings	Good to know
Nintendo Switch	System Settings › Internet › Internet Settings › your network › Change Settings › DNS Settings	the phone method works too
PlayStation 4 and 5	Settings › Network › Settings › Set Up Internet Connection › your network › Advanced Settings › DNS Settings	the DNS address may differ from other consoles
Xbox	Settings › General › Network settings › Advanced settings › DNS settings › Manual	the "friend" method is the simplest there

Labels change slightly from one system version to the next, but the setting always sits in the connection's advanced settings.

Find a server that welcomes consoles

Not every Bedrock server is equally good with a controller: menus, commands and interface must have been designed for it. On a server's CubeVote page, check that it accepts Bedrock, read the player reviews, and prefer servers that say so clearly. The list of servers open to Bedrock ranks them by player votes. For phones and PC, everything is in How to join a Minecraft server.