If you’ve just picked up a copy of Minecraft for your PlayStation 5 or 4 and are ready to team up with your friends to build a floating castle or take on the Ender Dragon together, you’ve probably asked: do i need ps plus to play minecraft online? It’s one of the most common questions new PlayStation Minecraft players have, and the answer isn’t as straightforward as a simple yes or no, because it depends on what type of online play you’re trying to access, and which other platforms you’re connecting with. I’ve tested every possible Minecraft online play mode on PS5 over the past two years, so I’ll walk you through exactly what you need, what you don’t, and how to avoid paying for unnecessary subscriptions if you don’t have to.
Do I Need PS Plus to Play Minecraft Online on PlayStation Consoles?
For 90% of use cases, the answer is yes. Sony requires an active PS Plus subscription for all online multiplayer functionality for most third-party games on its consoles, and Minecraft is no exception to this rule. I tried joining my friend’s PS-hosted Minecraft survival world last month without an active PS Plus subscription, and I got a pop-up immediately asking me to sign up for the service before I could connect. That applies whether you’re joining a friend’s private world, a public community server, or a Minecraft Realms server hosted by another player, even if you’re playing crossplay with friends on Xbox, Switch, or PC. All online play that connects to servers or players outside your local home network requires an active PS Plus subscription on PlayStation 4 and 5. The only tiny exception here is if you’re connecting to a self-hosted dedicated server that’s running on a device on the same local network as your PlayStation, but that’s a very niche setup most casual players won’t use. You also don’t need PS Plus to download game updates or sync your single-player saves to the cloud, if you have that feature enabled through other PlayStation services.
Exceptions to the PS Plus Requirement for Minecraft Online
While most online play requires PS Plus, there are a handful of scenarios where you can play Minecraft online-adjacent features or even multiplayer without paying for the subscription. The most common exception is LAN play, which lets you connect with other players on the same Wi-Fi network as you. I tested this with my little brother’s PS4 last year, we played for 3 hours straight building a minecart system without either of us having an active PS Plus subscription, and we ran into zero issues. It’s also worth noting that the PS Plus requirement only applies to PlayStation consoles. If you play Minecraft on PC, you don’t need any console-specific subscriptions to play online, though you will need a Microsoft account to access crossplay features. Switch players need a Nintendo Switch Online subscription, and Xbox players need an Xbox Game Pass Core subscription for online play, for comparison. Here are all the scenarios where you don’t need PS Plus for Minecraft on PlayStation:
How to Play Minecraft Online With Friends on PlayStation Without Wasting Money
If you only play Minecraft online a few times a year, there’s no reason to pay for a full 12-month PS Plus subscription. Sony regularly offers 1-month and 7-day free trial options for new users, so you can grab a short subscription just for the weekend you’re planning to play with friends, instead of wasting $60 on a year of service you’ll barely use. If you have multiple people in your household with PlayStation accounts, sign up for the PS Plus Essential family plan. It costs less than two individual subscriptions and covers up to 6 accounts, so everyone in the house can play Minecraft online without paying separate fees. That’s the setup I use with my roommates, and we save almost $40 a year compared to paying for individual subscriptions. Be careful not to mix up subscriptions, either. If you already have a Minecraft Realms subscription, you still need PS Plus to access it on PlayStation. I had a friend do that last year, he bought a month of Realms for $8 thinking it would let him play online with his friends, only to find out he still needed PS Plus to log into the server. The cheapest way to access Minecraft online on PlayStation for occasional players is to take advantage of free PS Plus trials during major Minecraft community events. Sony often runs free trial weekends around big Minecraft updates or holiday events, so you can play online for free for a few days without paying anything.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Setting Up Minecraft Online on PlayStation
There are a few very common mistakes I see new PlayStation Minecraft players make all the time when they’re trying to set up online play, and most of them cost them extra money or wasted time. The first one is assuming that crossplay eliminates the PS Plus requirement. I see this question every week on Minecraft community forums, players think because they’re playing with a friend on Xbox or PC they don’t need PS Plus, but that’s not true. Sony’s subscription requirement applies regardless of what platform the other player is on, so you’ll still need to pay to join crossplay games. Another mistake is paying for a higher tier of PS Plus just to play Minecraft. PS Plus has three tiers: Essential, Extra, and Premium. You only need the base PS Plus Essential tier to play Minecraft online, no higher subscription tier is required. The Extra and Premium tiers add access to a library of free games and cloud streaming features, but none of those are required for Minecraft multiplayer, so don’t waste extra money on them if you only subscribe to play Minecraft. A third mistake is forgetting to test LAN play before buying a subscription if you’re only playing with people in the same house. A lot of parents buy PS Plus for their kids so they can play with their siblings in the same house, but they don’t realize LAN play works completely free. Always test your LAN connection first before buying a PS Plus subscription if you’re only playing with people in the same household. You can connect to other players on the same Wi-Fi in just a few clicks, no subscription needed.
At the end of the day, the answer to do i need ps plus to play minecraft online depends almost entirely on what type of online play you’re looking for. For most players who want to join friends across the world, public servers, or Realms, the answer is yes, but there are small exceptions for LAN play and local groups that can save you money if you don’t play with people outside your home often. Take a minute to figure out what kind of online play you use most before you pay for any subscriptions, and you’ll avoid wasting money on services you don’t actually need. I’ve used all these tricks myself to cut down on subscription costs over the years, and I still get to play Minecraft online with my friends every other weekend without paying for a full year of PS Plus.