Colors and text formatting
Choose the right format
Formatting support depends on the command, text field, and your permissions. Legacy codes use an ampersand, such as &aHello. MiniMessage uses tags, such as <green>Hello</green>. Use the format accepted by the feature you are editing; these are two different syntaxes. If codes appear literally, check the format and your access before trying a longer message.
Legacy colors
Place a code before the text to color everything after it. For example, &6Gold &fWhite changes from gold to white. Type a single ampersand before each code.
| Code | Color | MiniMessage name |
|---|---|---|
&0 | Black | black |
&1 | Dark blue | dark_blue |
&2 | Dark green | dark_green |
&3 | Dark aqua | dark_aqua |
&4 | Dark red | dark_red |
&5 | Dark purple | dark_purple |
&6 | Gold | gold |
&7 | Gray | gray |
&8 | Dark gray | dark_gray |
&9 | Blue | blue |
&a | Green | green |
&b | Aqua | aqua |
&c | Red | red |
&d | Light purple | light_purple |
&e | Yellow | yellow |
&f | White | white |
Legacy formatting
| Code | Effect | Example |
|---|---|---|
&k | Obfuscated / magic text | &kSecret&r |
&l | Bold | &lBold&r |
&m | Strikethrough | &mOld text&r |
&n | Underline | &nUnderlined&r |
&o | Italic | &oItalic&r |
&r | Reset color and formatting | &cRed&r Normal |
Put color before formatting: &6&lGolden title&r. Legacy color changes can clear existing decoration, so repeat the decoration after changing color if needed. Reset after styled text to keep later words plain.
Hex colors
Hex colors use six digits in RRGGBB order: red, green, then blue. Each pair ranges from 00 to ff. For fields that accept legacy hex, use 7ffffHello; MiniMessage uses <#55ffff>Hello</#55ffff>. Hex syntax varies between plugins, so a field accepting ordinary legacy codes may still reject hex.
MiniMessage
You can also use MiniMessage, which is a much easier way to do colors and formatting, surround text with opening and closing tags:
- Color:
<gold>Hello</gold>or<#55ffff>Hello</#55ffff>. - Bold:
<bold>Hello</bold>. - Italic:
<italic>Hello</italic>. - Underline:
<underlined>Hello</underlined>. - Strikethrough:
<strikethrough>Hello</strikethrough>. - Magic text:
<obfuscated>Hello</obfuscated>.
Nest styles as <gold><bold>Golden title</bold></gold>, closing the inner tag first. Explicit closing tags keep later text outside the style. <reset> clears open styles in the usual non-strict mode; strict MiniMessage requires matching closing tags and does not allow reset.
Gradients and previews
A gradient changes color across the letters. For example, <gradient:#ff8800:#ff55ff>Sunset</gradient> blends orange into pink. <rainbow>Hello</rainbow> applies a rainbow in fields that allow that tag.
Use the Birdflop RGB generator to choose colors, enter your text, and generate a gradient. Select an output format matching the destination field before copying the result. Use the MiniMessage viewer to preview MiniMessage; a preview does not grant permission to use a style in game.
The official MiniMessage format reference explains supported tags and nesting. Plugins may enable only a subset of tags. For item labels, see item names.