MineGameTools
Reference

Minecraft Color Codes

Every chat color and formatting code with hex values, a live preview, and one-click copy in &, § or MOTD format. Works for Java and Bedrock.

Color codes

ColorCodeName (JSON)Hex
Black &0 black #000000
Dark Blue &1 dark_blue #0000AA
Dark Green &2 dark_green #00AA00
Dark Aqua &3 dark_aqua #00AAAA
Dark Red &4 dark_red #AA0000
Dark Purple &5 dark_purple #AA00AA
Gold &6 gold #FFAA00
Gray &7 gray #AAAAAA
Dark Gray &8 dark_gray #555555
Blue &9 blue #5555FF
Green &a green #55FF55
Aqua &b aqua #55FFFF
Red &c red #FF5555
Light Purple &d light_purple #FF55FF
Yellow &e yellow #FFFF55
White &f white #FFFFFF
Minecoin Gold (Bedrock) &g minecoin_gold #DDD605

Formatting codes

EffectCodeResult
Obfuscated &k Scrambling characters
Bold &l Bold text
Strikethrough &m Struck-through text
Underline &n Underlined text
Italic &o Italic text
Reset &r Clears all colors and formatting
Order matters: a color code clears earlier formatting, so write &b&l for bold aqua — never &l&b.

Where Minecraft color codes work

These codes color chat on servers, sign text, book titles, item names on anvils where plugins allow it, scoreboard entries, and the server MOTD. Java commands and datapacks increasingly use JSON text with the color names from the table instead of the two-character codes — that is what the Name column is for. Bedrock supports the same codes plus Minecoin Gold, which does not exist on Java.

The live preview above renders exactly how the game applies codes, including the reset behaviour and the obfuscated scramble, so you can test a MOTD or a rank prefix before touching a config file.

FAQ

How do I type the section sign for Minecraft color codes?

In Java chat you normally cannot type the section sign directly; color codes there are mainly for server configs, MOTDs and plugins that accept them. On signs and books with commands, or on Bedrock, paste the section sign from this page or use the copy buttons, which give you the code ready to use.

Why do my colors reset when I add bold or italic?

A color code also clears any formatting that came before it, so the order matters: put the color first, then the formatting. Aqua bold text is written as the aqua code followed by the bold code, not the other way round.

What is the & version of a color code for?

Server software such as Spigot and Paper plus most plugins let you write codes with an ampersand in config files, and translate them to the section sign automatically. Use the toggle above the table to copy codes in ampersand, section-sign or MOTD format.

What is the MOTD format?

The server.properties MOTD line cannot hold a raw section sign, so it uses the escaped form instead, like \u00A7 written as a Unicode escape. Switch the copy format to MOTD and every code copies pre-escaped, ready to paste into server.properties.