You've built a single-player world in Minecraft Java and now want to keep playing it with friends on the server? Here's how.

1. Find the world on your PC

Press Windows key + R, enter %appdata%\.minecraft\saves and press Enter. Each folder inside is a world. The folder name isn't always the same as the name in the game – the right folder contains a level.dat.

Alternatively, in Minecraft: Singleplayer → select the world → Edit → Open World Folder.

2. Pack it as a ZIP

Quit Minecraft or leave the world so everything is saved.
Right-click the world folder → Send to → Compressed (zipped) folder.

Put only one world into the archive – we import the first world we find in it.

3. Prepare the server

Check the version: the server must run the same or a newer Minecraft version than your world. Older servers can't load newer worlds. You change the version in the Installer tab – see Changing the server version.
Nether and End: if the Files tab contains the folders world_nether and world_the_end, delete them first (download them beforehand if needed). Otherwise the server keeps the Nether and End of the previous world instead of taking them from your single-player world.

4. Upload it to the server

Server page → Manage card → Import save.
Under Upload archive, choose the ZIP file and click Upload and set up. Keep the window open until 100 % is reached.
Under History you can follow the progress. The page refreshes itself.

We stop the server, create a backup “Vor Spielstand-Übernahme” if a backup slot is free, put your world in place under the world name from server.properties (level-name, usually world) and start the server again.

Good to know

The previous server world is replaced. If you want to keep it, download it first under Files or create a backup – see Creating and restoring backups.
Your inventory: in single-player, Minecraft stores your player differently than on a server. You may start at spawn with an empty inventory on the server. Put important items into a chest beforehand – the world itself, with all buildings and chests, is fully there.
Mods: if you played with mods (e.g. Fabric or Forge), the server needs the same mods – see Installing plugins, mods and modpacks.
Game mode, difficulty and player count are set by the server via server.properties – see Minecraft: connect to and set up your server.
There must be enough free storage on the server (about twice the ZIP size). Otherwise book more storage first under Book more power.
On a trial server, Import save only appears once you keep the server.
Bedrock world from your phone or tablet? See Minecraft Bedrock: uploading your own world.

No server yet?

You can test any server free for 24 hours – Rent a Minecraft server.

Minecraft Java: Uploading your single-player world to the server