If you’ve ever wanted to build a sprawling fantasy castle with your friend who plays on Switch while you’re logged in on PC, you’ve probably asked can PC and Switch play Minecraft together. The short answer is yes, but there are a few small hoops to jump through depending on which versions of the game you own, what servers you’re trying to join, and how you have your accounts set up. I’ve spent dozens of hours testing crossplay setups between my own PC and my little brother’s Switch, so I’m going to walk you through exactly what works, what doesn’t, and how to avoid the most frustrating mistakes most players run into.
Can PC and Switch Play Minecraft Together? Version Compatibility Breakdown
The biggest thing to understand before you try to connect is that Minecraft has two separate main editions, and they are not compatible with each other. Switch only runs the Bedrock Edition of Minecraft, while PC players can choose between Bedrock Edition and the older Java Edition. You both need to be running Minecraft Bedrock Edition to crossplay between PC and Switch, no exceptions.
If you only own Java Edition on PC, you won’t be able to connect to any Switch players, even if you have your accounts linked properly. The good news is that Bedrock Edition is included for free with PC Game Pass, and it’s available as a separate purchase if you don’t have a subscription. I made this mistake the first time I tried to play with my brother, I was booting up Java Edition and couldn’t figure out why his Switch invite wasn’t showing up for 20 whole minutes.
You also don’t need to own both editions to crossplay, just make sure whoever is on PC has Bedrock installed and logged into the same account they use for Microsoft services. When you’re setting up to test can PC and Switch play Minecraft together for the first time, double check your game version before you waste time troubleshooting other issues.
Step-by-Step Setup for Crossplay Between PC and Switch
Once you confirm both players have Bedrock Edition, the setup process only takes a few minutes. You don’t need any special software or paid extra services to make it work, just a valid Microsoft account for both players. Follow these core requirements first to avoid connection errors:
- Confirm both players own Minecraft Bedrock Edition (PC players can purchase it separately or access it via PC Game Pass)
- Link a valid Microsoft account to both your Minecraft PC profile and your Minecraft Switch profile
- Add each other as friends on your Microsoft accounts, not just your Switch or Steam friends lists
- Ensure both players have the latest version of Minecraft installed to avoid version mismatch errors
Once you have those steps done, you can connect in a few different ways. The easiest is to have one player send a game invite from their friends tab inside Minecraft. Invites can take up to 30 seconds to appear, so don’t panic if you don’t see it right away. If you don’t get the invite, you can also go to the friends tab manually and join the other player’s active game directly from their profile.
If you want a persistent world that stays online even when neither player is active, you can sign up for a Minecraft Realm, which is a hosted server that supports up to 10 players at a time. Realms are very low effort, you don’t have to mess with port forwarding or router settings to let other players join.
Common Crossplay Issues and How to Fix Them
Even if you follow all the setup steps correctly, you might run into a few common issues that stop you from connecting. Most of these are easy to fix with a few quick adjustments, no technical expertise required. Version mismatch is the most common cause of crossplay connection failures, so always check that both players have installed the latest Minecraft update first when you run into a problem.
If you get a “unable to connect to world” error, the issue is usually related to NAT type or firewall settings. For PC players, make sure Minecraft Bedrock is allowed through your Windows firewall, you can check this in your Windows security settings. For Switch players, if you have a strict NAT type, you can adjust this in your router settings to open the ports Minecraft uses for online play. Most modern routers have a setting for “gaming mode” that will fix this automatically.
You don’t need a Nintendo Switch Online subscription to play Minecraft crossplay with PC players, which is a common myth that trips a lot of people up. Minecraft on Switch uses Microsoft’s online services instead of Nintendo’s, so you only need a Microsoft account to play online. If you get an error about your account, log out of your Microsoft account on both devices, restart your game, and log back in to fix any syncing issues.
If you’re trying to join a third-party public server, make sure the server explicitly supports Bedrock Edition crossplay. Most popular public Bedrock servers do support crossplay, but some smaller private servers may be locked to specific platforms to reduce lag or enforce specific rules.
Best Ways to Play Together Once Crossplay Is Set Up
Once you have your crossplay connection working smoothly, there are tons of different ways to play together, no matter what kind of Minecraft content you enjoy. If you like survival play, you can create a shared custom world hosted on one player’s device, or pay for a Realm so you can both build and explore even when the host isn’t online. My friends and I have a shared Realm where we’ve been building a fantasy city for 6 months now, half of us play on PC and half on Switch, and we rarely run into any issues as long as we all update at the same time when a new patch drops.
If you prefer minigames, there are dozens of popular public Bedrock servers that support crossplay, including The Hive, CubeCraft, and Mineplex. You can play bedwars, skywars, build battles, and dozens of other minigames together without having to set up your own world. Most of these servers have dedicated crossplay lobbies that balance input methods so controller players on Switch don’t get matched against mouse and keyboard PC players in competitive modes, if that’s a concern for you.
If you want to play with mods, you can absolutely add mods to your crossplay world, but there’s one important rule to remember. If you plan to add mods to your crossplay world, all players will need to install the same Bedrock-compatible mods to avoid crashes or missing content. Stick to mods from official, trusted sources to avoid malware or compatibility issues, and make sure all mods are updated to match the latest version of Minecraft before you load up your world.
At the end of the day, can PC and Switch play Minecraft together is a question with a very satisfying yes, as long as you stick to Bedrock Edition and take a few minutes to set up your accounts properly. You don’t need any fancy hardware or paid subscriptions beyond the game itself to join your friends for building, exploring, or surviving together across both platforms. The next time you want to team up for a new Minecraft world, don’t let different devices stop you from having fun with the people you want to play with. If you run into issues you can’t fix, try restarting both your game and your router first, that fixes 90% of the connection problems I’ve run into over the years.