Download Paper Server JAR
Paper is a drop-in replacement for Spigot and Vanilla that runs dramatically faster, fixes countless bugs, and supports every Spigot and Bukkit plugin without changes.
What is Paper?
Paper is an open-source fork of Spigot that rewrites large parts of Minecraft's internal logic to run faster — often 2x to 3x the tick rate of Vanilla under load. It stays fully plugin-compatible with the Bukkit and Spigot APIs, so every plugin you find on SpigotMC or Modrinth works unchanged. Paper is maintained by the PaperMC team, builds are published continuously (dozens per week during active development), and the project is widely considered the de-facto standard for any Minecraft server running plugins. If you want plugins, pick Paper — there is no serious reason to run Spigot or CraftBukkit in 2026.
When should I use Paper?
Pick Paper if you want to run plugins — economy, protections, minigames, chat, admin tools — while keeping the best possible performance. Paper is NOT for mods (Fabric or Forge handle those). Paper is the right default for 90% of people running a public Minecraft server with plugins.
Setup
Required Java
Java 21 (MC 1.20.5+) · Java 17 (MC 1.17–1.20.4) · Java 11 (MC 1.16 and older)
Recommended RAM
2–4 GB for <20 players, 6–8 GB for 20–50, 10+ GB for bigger servers
Start script (Linux/macOS)
java -Xms4G -Xmx4G --add-modules=jdk.incubator.vector -XX:+UseG1GC -jar paper.jar noguiStart script (Windows)
java -Xms4G -Xmx4G --add-modules=jdk.incubator.vector -XX:+UseG1GC -jar paper.jar --nogui
pauseAll Paper versions
Every Paper build we have ever seen, grouped by Minecraft major version. Click any version to open its dedicated download page.