How to use the MOTD generator
Type your two lines, or start from a template. Select some text and tap a color or a style, or tap one with nothing selected to change what you type next.
The preview above the editor draws your entry like the multiplayer list does: icon, name, MOTD, player count and ping. The bars under it show how much room each line has left.
When it looks right, pick the tab for where it goes and copy it. Want to edit an old MOTD? Paste it into the import box in any format and it loads straight into the editor.
Where the MOTD goes
Vanilla, Fabric, Forge, Paper and Spigot servers read the motd= line in server.properties, in the server’s main folder. Restart the server after you change it.
Velocity proxies set the MOTD in velocity.toml with MiniMessage tags. On Paper, MOTD plugins such as MiniMOTD also use MiniMessage, and older plugins use & codes. The JSON tab is the raw text component the server sends, for tools that ask for JSON.
Paper also reads hex colors in server.properties when they are written as §x codes. Turn on “Keep hex colors” in the server.properties tab to get that line. Vanilla servers would show those parts in the wrong color.
How the preview measures your MOTD
The list gives the MOTD 267 game pixels per row. Our pixel font is drawn for this tool, but every letter has the same width as in the game: most letters take 6 pixels, i and dots take 2, a space takes 4 and bold adds 1.
Like the game, the preview wraps a long line at its last space, starts a new row for line 2, and drops everything after the second row. Letters outside basic ASCII, like emoji or accents, are estimates, so check those in game.
Tips for a MOTD that gets clicks
Lead with your server name or the one thing that makes it different, and keep line 1 short so it never wraps.
Use two or three colors that go together, and save bold for the important words. Dark blue and dark gray are hard to read on the dark list.
Scrambled text catches the eye but cannot be read, so use it for a few decoration characters, never for real words.