How to Add a Server Icon to Your Minecraft Server

Q: What size is a Minecraft server icon?

Exactly 64×64 pixels, saved as a PNG named server-icon.png. Other sizes are not rendered by the game.

Q: Where do I put server-icon.png?

In the server’s main folder, the same one that holds server.properties and the server jar. Then restart the server.

Q: Why is my Minecraft server icon not showing?

Usually the image is not exactly 64×64, the name is not server-icon.png in lowercase, it is a renamed JPG, or the server was not restarted. Fix it, restart and refresh the server list.

Q: Can a Bedrock server have an icon?

Not with server-icon.png: that file is a Java Edition feature and Bedrock Dedicated Server does not use it.

A Minecraft server icon is a 64×64 pixel PNG named server-icon.png placed in the server’s main folder, next to server.properties. Upload it, restart the server and refresh the multiplayer list, and your logo replaces the gray default picture.

The icon is the small square to the left of your server name and MOTD. It is the first thing people see when they scroll their server list, so it is worth five minutes. Here is the exact recipe, how to make a good one and what to check when it does not appear.

The three rules for a Minecraft server icon

Rule	Value	If you get it wrong
Size	Exactly 64 × 64 pixels	The client does not render it
Format and name	PNG, named `server-icon.png` in lowercase	The server does not find it
Location	The server’s working directory, the folder with the server jar and `server.properties`	The server does not find it

These rules come from the Minecraft Wiki: the server list shows the icon at 64×64, it is read from server-icon.png in the server’s working directory, and when there is none you see a grayscale default. The server list ping documentation adds that the image must be exactly 64×64, or the game will not render it.

How to make the icon

Start from a square image. Your logo, a block, a mob face, the first letter of your server name. Crop it to a square.
Resize it to 64 × 64 pixels. Any image editor does it. For pixel art, use “nearest neighbor” scaling so the edges stay sharp.
Export it as PNG. Do not rename a JPG to .png: export it from the editor.
Name it server-icon.png. On Windows, turn on file extensions in File Explorer so you do not end up with server-icon.png.png.

Design tips: at 64 pixels, text with more than two or three letters becomes unreadable. Use one bold shape, strong contrast, and colors that match your MOTD. Look at it next to other servers in your own list before you decide.

Keep the original large file too. If you later want a banner for your website or Discord, you will want the high-resolution version, not the 64-pixel one, and you can export a new icon from it whenever you change your look for a new season.

How to add a Minecraft server icon step by step

Open the server’s main folder, the one that has server.properties and the server jar. Not the world folder or plugins.
Upload server-icon.png there. If a file with that name already exists, replace it.
Restart the server with stop and start it again, so it loads the new image.
Refresh the list in Minecraft: Multiplayer, then Refresh.

Code

server-root/
├── server.properties
├── server-icon.png      <-- here
├── world/
└── plugins/

If you also want to change the text next to the icon, that is the MOTD: see how to change your Minecraft server MOTD. For the full branding set (name, MOTD, icon and a domain), our guide on changing your Minecraft server name puts it all together.

Server icon not showing? Check this

Wrong size. 63×64, 128×128 or 512×512 will not do. Open the file and check its dimensions are exactly 64×64.
Wrong name. Server-Icon.png, server_icon.png or server-icon.png.png are ignored. Server file systems care about capital letters.
Not a real PNG. A JPG or WebP renamed to .png fails. Export it again as PNG.
Wrong folder. It must sit next to server.properties.
No restart, or old list. Restart the server, then refresh the list or remove and re-add the server.
You use a proxy. On a network behind a proxy, players see whatever the proxy answers, so the icon has to be configured on the proxy.
A plugin sets it. Some MOTD plugins also set the icon from their own config.

The server-icon.png file is a Java Edition feature. Bedrock Dedicated Server does not use it, so Bedrock players and players joining through Geyser will not see this icon.

Add the icon on TheGameHosting

Open Files; you start in the server’s main folder, next to server.properties.
Upload server-icon.png there, or copy it over sFTP (see how to use SFTP on a Minecraft server).
Restart from Console and refresh the multiplayer list.

No FTP setup on your PC is needed for one small file, and your server stays online 24/7 for everyone who sees that new icon. A Minecraft server from TheGameHosting runs on AMD 9950X/7950X3D with DDR5 and NVMe in Dallas or Amsterdam, with DDoS protection, and you can pick an address in the panel’s Subdomain section to go with your new logo. Check the plans and pricing and use code FULL2026 for 15% off for life.

FAQ

What size is a Minecraft server icon?

Exactly 64×64 pixels, saved as a PNG named server-icon.png. Other sizes are not rendered by the game.

Where do I put server-icon.png?

In the server’s main folder, the same one that holds server.properties and the server jar. Then restart the server.

Why is my Minecraft server icon not showing?

Usually the image is not exactly 64×64, the name is not server-icon.png in lowercase, it is a renamed JPG, or the server was not restarted. Fix it, restart and refresh the server list.

Can a Bedrock server have an icon?

Not with server-icon.png: that file is a Java Edition feature and Bedrock Dedicated Server does not use it.

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Written by TheGameHosting Team, the people who run our servers in Dallas and Amsterdam and answer your tickets.

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