Formatting codes

This page describes deprecated content that could be removed from Minecraft.

 

This feature has been deprecated in the most recent versions of Minecraft, but still remains available in the game.
Reason: See MC-190605, and Ore UI does not support them.

Formatting codes (also known as color codes) add color and modifications to text in-game.

Text in Minecraft can be formatted with the section sign (§). In Bedrock Edition, the section sign can be used in signs, book and quills, anvils and cartography tables (to rename items and maps), the chat input field (including in commands such as /say and /title), and text in resource packs displayed in-game. In Java Edition, section signs may be used in server.properties, pack.mcmeta, splashes.txt, language files, world titles, commands (such as /tellraw and /title) in data packs, and server names. External programs can be used to insert it in other locations.

Text can be formatted using the section sign (§) followed by a character. A § symbol followed by a hex digit in the message tells the client to switch colors while displaying text. In Bedrock Edition, the § symbol can be used in any text input and resource pack texts, while in Java Edition, it may be used in server.properties, pack.mcmeta, splashes.txt, language files, world titles, commands (such as /tellraw and /title) in datapacks, and server names.

If a color code is used after a formatting code, the formatting code is disabled beyond the color code point. For example, §cX§nY displays as XY, whereas §nX§cY displays as XY. Therefore, when using a color code in tandem with a formatting code, ensure the color code is used first and reuse the formatting code when changing colors. Also, you could put §r§f in an anvil to rename an item as non-italic.

Ore UI does not support color codes.^[1][2][3]

Formatting codes persist after a color code. Furthermore, if an obfuscated code is used and a reset code is not used before the end of the line in server names, the client GUI continues to obfuscate text past the MOTD and into the version number display.

Messages sent from the server to the client can contain color codes, which allow the coloring of text for various purposes.

The random characters placed after §k are always the same width as the original characters. For example, any random character cycled through in place of the letter "m" would be a wide character while any random character in place of the letter "i" would be a narrow character.

§r resets the styles of following characters; e.g., §nXXX§rYYY displays as XXXYYY, which can be used to remove the default italics formatting when renaming an item in an Anvil.

• To enter "§" on Windows with most US/UK English keyboards type ⌥ Alt + NUMPAD2NUMPAD1 (alt code on cp437) or ⌥ Alt + NUMPAD7NUMPAD8NUMPAD9. For any other keyboard, the Windows ANSI version ⌥ Alt + NUMPAD0NUMPAD1NUMPAD6NUMPAD7 often works.
• If EnableHexNumpad is enabled in the Windows registry, ⌥ Alt + NUMPAD+ANUMPAD7 (using the main keyboard for "A") works for any language due to it being Unicode.
• On a Mac with a US keyboard, type ⌥ Option + 6 (or ⌥ Option + 5 for US Extended). For any other keyboard, type ⌥ Option + 00a7.
• On Linux with the compose key activated, type ⎄ Composeso. The symbol can also be typed by using Unicode shortcuts: ⎈ Control + ⇧ Shift + ua7⏎ Return.
• For various Android keyboards:
  • Google Keyboard (GBoard): The "§" is in the More Symbols section the symbols. To access it, press the Numbers and Symbols button (?123), then press the More Symbols button (=\<). Note that on previous versions of GBoard, it was behind the Paragraph Symbol "¶" in the same position, but they were recently swapped so that now "¶" is behind "§".
  • Samsung Keyboard: The "§" is under the "s" key. To access, hold down on the "s" and then slide over to the "§" mark.
• For iOS:
  • On the iPad the "§" is under the percent sign. To access, tap the number/symbol button and then swipe down on the percent sign.
  • On the iPhone the "§" is under the ampersand "&". To access, tap the number/symbol button then hold down the ampersand key and slide over to the "§" mark.
• For Xbox:
  • On the Xbox One the "§" is under the paragraph mark "¶". To access, use , hold down while on ¶ until other options pop up. Move the cursor over to the "§" mark and use to select.
  • One can also highlight the S key on the standard alphanumeric keyboard, then press and hold to reveal several "alternate" characters, including "§". This method also works on the Windows 10 version.
• For Nintendo Switch:
  • In the bottom left corner of the keyboard is a language button. Tapping it or pressing on it will open a list of keyboard languages. Scroll down to the bottom and select the "Symbol" keyboard. The "§" character is located on page 2.

When part of JSON text, the symbol can be written as \u00A7 or \u00a7.

Alternatively in Bedrock Edition, the character can be copied from this page (§) and pasted into virtually any text field by pressing ⎈ Control + V (Windows) or ⌘ Command + V (macOS). If pasting does not work it may be necessary to use the JSON format or another method.

While in chat in Java Edition, usage of this character disconnects the user, even in 'offline' single player mode, and thus cannot be used directly in commands such as /say.

The following text can be pasted into a Book and Quill in Java Edition to produce what is shown in the picture. Strikethrough and underlined text appears colored instead in Bedrock Edition.

§nMinecraft Formatting§r §00 §11 §22 §33 §44 §55 §66 §77 §88 §99 §aa §bb §cc §dd §ee §ff §rk §kMinecraft §rl §lMinecraft §rm §mMinecraft §rn §nMinecraft §ro §oMinecraft §rr §rMinecraft

This tool converts input text into plain text with formatting codes.

Note: The dice icon highlights text, which, in the real game, will appear as obfuscated text.

Formatting codes can be used to color names and description in language files by using § then any of the numbers/letters displayed above. This is also used in end.txt and credits.txt. An example of this is §dDiamond to make the name of a diamond appear as Diamond.

§r cannot be used to remove italics from custom translation tags within language files. For example, if the translation tag "item.example.test": "§rTest Item" is applied to the Name display data of a custom item ({display:{Name:'{translate:"item.example.test"}'}), it still appears as Test Item rather than simply Test Item. This is not true of any other formatting options.

In Java Edition, with the help of external tools, such as NBTExplorer, world names can have custom colors and formatting codes. To modify the name, choose the LevelName tag in the world's level.dat. For example, the LevelName tag can be set to §1R§2e§3d§4s§5t§6o§7n§8e §9C§ar§be§ca§dt§ei§fo§1n§2s to make the world name a colorful one.

Additionally, the player can rename the world's folder to contain the codes. Then, in the world selection menu, the specified colors or effects will appear.

The player can also use a resource pack with § character(s) already present in the world name, and in this case, when creating a new world, all the player has to do is to change the color codes after the § characters.

In Bedrock Edition, the player is allowed to use a § inside of the world name when creating the world. This allows for using custom colors and formatting codes inside of the world name without having to modify the game. However, because most menu screens displaying world names use Ore UI, it is rarely visible in-game. Exceptions include the storage settings, in-game Realms settings, the Editor, and some world selection menus.

With the use of a third party tool such as NBTExplorer, server names can have custom colors. To utilize this functionality, select the Name attribute in the servers.dat file inside the .minecraft directory using a third party tool. In the following example, the Name tag is set to §4§lMinecraft §6§lServer:

This section needs cleanup to comply with the style guide.

 ^[discuss]

Please help improve this section. The talk page may contain suggestions.

This section is missing information about: Old text said obfuscated text was "followed by @~ in older versions" - was this ever the case and when did it change?

 

Please expand the section to include this information. Further details may exist on the talk page.

This section is missing information about: When was §g added?

 

Please expand the section to include this information. Further details may exist on the talk page.

• The first 16 color codes almost exactly match, in order, the 16 colors available using a Color Graphics Adapter (CGA), as released in 1981. Only color 6 differs; the value for color 6 in Minecraft –
   #FFAA00 – differs from that made for CGA –
   #AA5500.
• Obfuscated format (§k) displays as dots in Bedrock Edition if any font except Mojangles is used.