Minecraft MOTD colours, hex codes and gradients

Where the MOTD is set

Which file you edit depends on what answers the server list ping:

On a network, players see the proxy's MOTD. The server.properties of the backend servers behind it is not shown in the list.

The 16 classic colour codes

Every Minecraft version understands these codes. In server.properties they start with the section sign §, in most plugin configs with &.

Formats: §l bold, §o italic, §n underlined, §m strikethrough, §k obfuscated and §r reset. Put the colour first and the format after it, because a new colour code resets the formatting.

Step by step: a two-line MOTD in server.properties

1. Stop the server and open server.properties in the main folder.
2. Find the line starting with motd=. The default is A Minecraft Server.
3. Replace it with your text. \n starts the second line, and every § is written as \u00A7.
4. Save the file and start the server again. The file is read on start, so a reload is not enough.

motd=\u00A7a\u00A7lPixel Realm \u00A77| \u00A7fSurvival\n\u00A7eNew season every month!

server.properties is a Java properties file, and in that format \n means a line break and \u00A7 is the § character written as a Unicode escape. The escape works whatever encoding your editor or host panel uses. Since Minecraft 1.20 the file is read as UTF-8 with Latin-1 as fallback; on older versions a raw § saved as UTF-8 turns into §.

The Minecraft Wiki warns that a MOTD longer than 59 characters may make the server list report a communication error. If you see that error, shorten the text.

Hex colours and gradients

Since Java Edition 1.16 the server list can show any RGB colour. Vanilla server.properties still only knows the 16 classic codes, so a hex colour there is not possible. For real hex and gradients you need something that sends them: a Velocity proxy or a MOTD plugin.

Velocity reads the MOTD as MiniMessage only. Its default is <#09add3>A Velocity Server. A gradient over the server name with a second line looks like this:

motd = "<gradient:#55ff55:#00aaff><bold>Pixel Realm</bold></gradient><newline><yellow>New season every month!"

• <#55ff55> or <color:#55ff55> sets one hex colour.
• <gradient:#55ff55:#00aaff>…</gradient> blends from the first to the last colour, letter by letter. More colours are allowed.
• <rainbow> runs through the rainbow.
• <bold>, <italic> and <reset> work like the classic formats. <newline> (or <br>) starts the second line.

Many MOTD plugins read MiniMessage too, others expect hex in another notation. The MOTD Generator exports MiniMessage and a hex code variant (&x&r&r&g&g&b&b), so check which one your plugin documents.

Centring and line width

Minecraft has no centre setting. A centred MOTD is padded with spaces in front of the text. Because letters have different widths (an i is narrow, a W is wide, bold adds a pixel per letter), counting characters does not work. You have to count pixels.

Lines that are too wide are cut off at the end. The MOTD Generator measures each line in font pixels, marks the limit at about 270 pixels and works out the right number of spaces when you tick "Center line 1" or "Center line 2".

Small caps like ᴘɪxᴇʟ ʀᴇᴀʟᴍ are separate Unicode letters, not a font, so they also work in server.properties. Save the file as UTF-8 if you paste them in directly.

Common MOTD errors and fixes

Your MOTD shares the row with the server icon. If that icon is missing, see server icon not showing. For server lists and websites, an animated server banner carries the same colours further.