How to Join a Minecraft Bedrock Server on Xbox, PS5 and Switch (2026)

On Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch, the Minecraft Servers tab only lists the featured partner servers. There is no Add Server button, so you cannot type in an IP and port like you can on Windows, iPhone or Android. Console players can still play on any Bedrock server. You change one network setting once, and from then on a featured server opens a menu where you join yours.

Short answer

1. In your console's network settings, set Primary DNS to 23.254.128.180 and Secondary DNS to 8.8.8.8.
2. Open Minecraft, go to the Servers tab and join The Hive. The GamezServers menu opens instead.
3. Choose Join with a code or IP. For a GamezServers server, type its 6 letter join code. For any other server, type its IP and port.
4. The server is saved in that menu, so next time you open The Hive and pick it.

Windows, iPhone, iPad and Android players do not need any of this: they use Add Server in the Servers tab.

Before trying anything, make sure the console's Minecraft is up to date. A console on a newer version than the server gets "Outdated server" whatever you do, see how to fix Minecraft Bedrock outdated server.

Why consoles cannot add servers

Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo only allow featured servers on consoles, so the console editions of Minecraft do not show the Add Server option. It is a platform rule, not a problem with your server. Once connected, console players play exactly like everyone else, with full crossplay.

The DNS change works around it. Your console asks our DNS where The Hive is, and we send it to the GamezServers menu instead. Every other website and game still works as normal through your secondary DNS.

Step 1: Change your console's DNS

You only do this once. The same address works on every console.

Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

1. Press the Xbox button and open Profile & system, then Settings.
2. Go to General, Network settings, Advanced settings, DNS settings.
3. Choose Manual and enter the primary and secondary DNS.

PS4 and PS5

1. On PS5 open Settings, Network, Settings, Set Up Internet Connection, highlight your network, press Options and choose Advanced Settings. On PS4 open Settings, Network, Set Up Internet Connection and choose Custom.
2. Set DNS Settings to Manual and enter the primary and secondary DNS.
3. Leave everything else as it is and save.

Nintendo Switch

1. Open System Settings, then Internet, Internet Settings.
2. Pick your network and choose Change Settings.
3. Set DNS Settings to Manual and enter the primary and secondary DNS, then Save.
4. Restart the Switch so Minecraft picks up the change.

Step 2: Join in Minecraft

1. Fully close and reopen Minecraft, then open the Servers tab.
2. Join The Hive. Instead of The Hive, the GamezServers menu opens.
3. Choose Join with a code or IP.
4. GamezServers server: type the 6 letter join code in the first box (the owner finds it in their dashboard, and it is on the invite page they send you). Leave the port as it is and press Submit.
5. Any other server: type the IP in the first box and the port in the second, turn on Save to my list and press Submit.

You are in. Next time, open The Hive and pick the server from your list.

If the menu says the server is starting, it was asleep and your code just woke it. Give it a minute, then pick it from your list.

Playing the real featured servers again

While your DNS points at us, The Hive and the other featured servers open the GamezServers menu. To play them, set DNS back to Automatic in the same place. Switch it back to 23.254.128.180 when you want your server again.

Other ways: show the server as a LAN game

Consoles also list LAN games and joinable friends, so a helper app can show a remote server that way:

• BedrockTogether (iPhone and Android): shows the server in the Friends tab for Xbox and PlayStation players on the same Wi-Fi. It does not help on Switch.
• Phantom (Windows, Mac and Linux): run it on a PC with the server address and consoles on the same Wi-Fi see it as a LAN game.

The phone or PC has to be running and on the same network every time you play, which is why the DNS change is easier.

Things that stop console players joining

• The real Hive opens. The DNS change has not taken. Check Primary DNS reads 23.254.128.180, then fully close Minecraft. On Switch, restart the console.
• Different versions. Consoles auto update. After a Minecraft release, the server owner clicks Update game in their dashboard.
• Allowlist. "You are not invited to this server" means the allowlist is on and your Gamertag is missing. The owner adds it with allowlist add "Gamertag".
• Wrong port. For a server you add by IP, use its exact port, not the default 19132, unless the server really uses 19132. Join codes fill in the port for you.
• Multiplayer permissions. Console players need their platform's online membership for online play (a Game Pass tier with online multiplayer on Xbox, PlayStation Plus, Nintendo Switch Online). On Xbox, child accounts also need the "You can join multiplayer games" privacy setting allowed.
• Java server. Consoles only run Bedrock. They can only join a Java server if it runs Geyser.

Hosting a server your console friends can join

A Minecraft Bedrock server from GamezServers runs Mojang's official Bedrock Dedicated Server and comes with a 6 letter join code, so console friends type six letters instead of an IP and port. It also has an allowlist button and one click updates after every Minecraft release. Setting one up takes about a minute, see how to host a Minecraft Bedrock server.

FAQ

Can you add servers on Minecraft Xbox?

Not directly. The Xbox edition has no Add Server button, so change the DNS to 23.254.128.180, open The Hive and join from the menu that opens.

Is this safe?

Our DNS only answers for the featured server names Minecraft looks up and refuses everything else, so the rest of your console's traffic goes through your secondary DNS (8.8.8.8, Google) as normal. The menu runs on BedrockConnect, a free open source project. Set DNS back to Automatic any time.

Do I have to redo this every time?

No. Once the DNS is set and the server is in your list, you open The Hive and pick it.

Does it work for servers not hosted with GamezServers?

Yes. Choose Join with a code or IP and type the server's IP and port. Join codes only work for GamezServers servers.

Does it work on PS4, PS5 and Switch too?

Yes, the same DNS address works on Xbox, PlayStation and Switch.