Minecraft plugin servers (Bukkit/Paper API)
Updated · MCJarHub
Plugin servers run Bukkit/Spigot/Paper plugins (.jar files in plugins/) without any client mods. Almost all of them are forks of Paper, which itself is a fork of Spigot; Paper is the safe default.
Every plugin server on MCJarHub (live data)
| Software | Latest release | Java | File size | Versions on MCJarHub | Download source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper | 26.3 (build 227) | Java 25 | 52.7 MB | 55 (1.7.10–26.3) | Official (PaperMC build server) |
| Purpur | 26.3 (build 2654) | Java 25 | 55.4 MB | 41 (1.14.1–26.3) | Official (PurpurMC) |
| Folia | 26.3 (build 5) | Java 25 | 53 MB | 13 (1.19.4–26.3) | Official (PaperMC build server) |
| Pufferfish | 1.21.10 (build 39) | Java 21 | 55.1 MB | 18 (1.17.1–1.21.10) | Community mirror |
| Leaf | 26.3 (build 13) | Java 25 | 79 MB | 28 (1.19.1-v1–26.3) | Official (GitHub releases (Winds-Studio/Leaf)) |
| Leaves | 1.21.11 (build 157) | Java 21 | 61.4 MB | 18 (1.19–1.21.11) | Community mirror |
| Spigot | 26.3 (build 4664) | Java 25 | 77.5 MB | 68 (1.8–26.3) | Community mirror |
| CraftBukkit | 26.2 | Java 25 | — | 51 (1.8–26.2) | Community mirror |
The family tree
- CraftBukkit — the original Bukkit API server. Built with SpigotMC's BuildTools; rarely used for production today.
- Spigot — fork of CraftBukkit and the base of the plugin API most plugins target. Only available via BuildTools.
- Paper — PaperMC's fork of Spigot with many performance and bug fixes and its own API. The default choice.
- Forks of Paper:
- Purpur — a drop-in Paper replacement focused on configurability and gameplay options.
- Pufferfish — "a highly optimized Paper fork designed for large servers" (its README), from Pufferfish Host.
- Leaf — Winds Studio's performance-oriented Paper fork; its README asks you to take backups before switching.
- Leaves — restores vanilla mechanics that Paper changes, for technical players.
- Folia — PaperMC's fork with regionised multithreading: no single main thread, each region ticks on its own. Needs Folia-supported plugins.
What plugin servers have in common
- Players join with an unmodified Java Edition client — nothing to install.
- Plugins are
.jarfiles in theplugins/folder; a plugin built for Spigot generally runs on every server below it in the tree, a Paper plugin runs on Paper and its forks. - They need the Java version of their Minecraft release (see the table above and the Java table) and you accept Mojang's EULA in
eula.txton first start. - For several servers behind one address, put a proxy such as Velocity in front.
Deciding between the big three? Read Paper vs Spigot vs Purpur.