Find a name for your Minecraft server

The server's name is what players repeat to their friends, type in the game's address bar and search for on Google. A good name doesn't make a good server, but a bad name costs it players every day: those who misremembered it, misspelled it or confused it with another.

The four criteria

1. It can be said. Try giving it over the phone: if you have to spell it or say "the 4 as a digit", rework it.
2. It can be typed. No accents, no special characters, and 16 characters at most. The server address (play.name.com) can't contain accents anyway.
3. It says something about the game. A name evoking the sky for a skyblock, an era for a medieval server: the player guesses what they'll find before clicking.
4. It's available. Domain name, Discord, social networks, and above all: not already used by another server.

The server name generator suggests ideas by game mode and style, and flags those already used by a server listed on CubeVote.

The traps

• Generic suffixes: a name that's just "Craft" or "MC" stuck to a common word gets lost among thousands of others. Combine it with a root of your own.
• References to a protected work: a name taken from a film, a manga or a game attracts people at first, then exposes you to a request to change it.
• "Minecraft" in the name: Minecraft's usage rules forbid making people believe your server is official. Avoid using the word as the main name; "MC" as a suffix is common practice.
• A name that ages: "Server 1.21" won't mean anything in two years.

Check that it's available

1. Directories: search for the name on CubeVote and on Google, with "minecraft server". Two servers with the same name overshadow each other in results.
2. The domain name: at a registrar, check the .com and your country's domain. A domain costs a few euros a year; the guide Domain name and SRV explains how to connect the server to it, without a port number.
3. Discord and social networks: the username on TikTok, YouTube and X. A custom Discord address (discord.gg/name) needs a certain boost level: plan a regular invite link in the meantime.

Test it before adopting it

Give three names to five players, then ask them the next day which one they remembered, and how they spell it. The name they remembered and spelled correctly is the right one.

Once chosen

• Register the domain and accounts the same day, before talking about it.
• Draw a logo that's readable when small: it will appear at 64 × 64 in the game's server list, and on your listing.
• Write a MOTD that repeats the name and says in one line what's on the server.
• List the server under this exact name, everywhere. Changing the name later loses the reputation built up.