Geyser cross-play setup: get Bedrock and phone friends onto a Java server
Java and Bedrock Minecraft normally can't play together. Geyser is the bridge that lets Bedrock players (phones, consoles, Windows 10/11) join a Java server. Here's the real setup and the honest caveats.
Cross-play is a mainstream expectation now, not a niche request: half a friend group is on Java, the other half is on a phone or a console, and by default the two editions can't even see each other's servers.
Two pieces fix that. Geyser translates Bedrock players onto a Java server, and Floodgate lets them join without needing a separate Java account. Here's how to set both up and what still differs on the Bedrock side.
In this guide
Which one should you pick?
- Everyone on phones, tablets, or consoles → don't bridge anything. A Bedrock Realm or a Bedrock server is simpler than a Java server with a translator bolted on, and nobody gives up mods they weren't going to run.
- Split between PC and phones, mostly vanilla → this is what Geyser is for. One Java server holds both halves of the group, and vanilla and plugin gameplay translates well.
- The point is a big modpack → cross-play won't save this. Geyser doesn't translate modded content, so pick modded-and-Java or cross-play-and-vanilla, not both.
1Know what Geyser and Floodgate do
Geyser is a proxy that translates between Bedrock and Java, so a Bedrock client can connect to a Java server at all. It's the reason "Geyser lets Bedrock players join Java servers" gets repeated so often.
Floodgate is its companion: it lets those Bedrock players join without owning a paid Java account. Without it, every Bedrock friend would need their own Java account. Together, they put your Bedrock friends on your Java world.
Both are free and open source, run by the GeyserMC project. Nobody sells you cross-play. What a host can sell you is not having to set it up.
2Install Geyser and Floodgate (or use a host that ships them)
The manual route: GeyserMC publishes official builds for Paper and Spigot, for the Velocity and BungeeCord proxies, and for Fabric and NeoForge, plus a standalone build that runs in front of anything. Drop Geyser and Floodgate into the plugins or mods folder, restart, and a Bedrock-facing port opens up.
On Voxi there's nothing to install: it's a switch in Players called "Let Bedrock players join". It shows up once your world has booted the first time, and it needs a full stop and start to take. It's off by default, and it currently does nothing on Fabric, Quilt, Forge or NeoForge. Being precise about what that is worth: cross-play is not something only we have: it's free software anyone can add, and what differs is whether it's one switch or a job you do yourself. And the Geyser we run is the same Geyser you'd install: a switch saves you an evening, it doesn't buy you a better bridge.
The catch
Geyser needs somewhere to live. On a plugin server it's a plugin, on Fabric or NeoForge it's a mod, and a plain vanilla server can't host it at all. There you'd run the standalone proxy in front instead. Note that there is no Forge build. And if the point of the server is a modpack, installing it isn't the problem: see the decision aid above, because what your Bedrock friends get on that server is the vanilla game.
4Bedrock friends join
On a phone, tablet, or Windows 10/11, open Servers, scroll past the featured list to Add Server, enter the address and the Bedrock port, 19132, and join.
With Floodgate in place there's no extra account step: they connect straight into the same world as the Java players, under their Bedrock name.
The catch
Consoles are the exception, and it's a real one. Xbox, PlayStation and Switch only show Minecraft's featured servers, so a console player can't add your address the way a phone player can. The usual workaround is changing the console's DNS settings to a third-party service, which is fiddly, outside Minecraft, and not something we'd tell you is supported.
5Know the honest limits
Best for: A mostly-vanilla world where the group is split across PCs and phones.Not for: A modded server, or a group who are all on Bedrock already: for them a Bedrock Realm is simpler and cheaper than anything we'd sell you.Cross-play is a bridge, not a perfect mirror. Vanilla and most plugin gameplay works well across both editions, but the two games genuinely differ underneath: combat timing, some redstone behaviour, and UI-heavy features are where a Bedrock player notices they're on the other side of a translation.
Modded Java content is the hard limit rather than a rough edge: Geyser translates the vanilla game, so a Bedrock player on a modded server doesn't get the mods. We'd rather say that plainly than let a group build a modpack world around a friend who was never going to see it.
FAQ
Can phone and console players join a Java server?
Yes. Geyser bridges them in, and Floodgate lets them join without a separate Java account. On Voxi it's a switch in Players called "Let Bedrock players join": off until you turn it on, and your world needs a full stop and start for it to take.
Do Bedrock players need a Java account?
Not with Floodgate installed. Without it, each Bedrock player would need their own Java account to connect to a Java server.
Does everything work the same on Bedrock?
Most vanilla and plugin gameplay does. Combat timing, some redstone, and UI-heavy features differ, and Java mods don't translate at all: cross-play is a bridge, not a perfect copy.
Can Geyser get my Bedrock friends onto a modded server?
It gets them onto the server, but not into the mods: Geyser translates the vanilla game. On a modpack world a Bedrock player is missing the content the world is built around, so pick modded-and-Java or cross-play-and-vanilla.
Can console players join through Geyser?
Not by typing your address in. Xbox, PlayStation and Switch only list Minecraft's featured servers; the usual workaround is a console DNS change, which is fiddly and not something we support. Phones, tablets and Windows are straightforward.
Read next: how your friends join your Minecraft server.
Comparing hosts? See how Voxi compares to Aternos, Minehut, Exaroton and the paid hosts.
If your group is genuinely split
Start a free server on Voxi, turn on "Let Bedrock players join" in Players, and it's one address with phone and PC friends in the same world. If everyone's on Bedrock, don't: a Bedrock Realm is simpler and you don't need us for it.