Here’s How To Play Minecraft for Free in 2023 (Java & Bedrock)

Minecraft is one of the most popular games today. As of 2023, it still has 173,508,871 Average Monthly Players, and new generations of Minecrafters are joining the virtual blocky world every day. Despite the accessibility of the game on numerous platforms, we have to admit that it is a bit pricey. Especially if you’ve purchased the game in the past and lost access to it for whatever reason. Due to this, we decided to analyze whether there are ways to play Minecraft for free, and here’s what we came up with!

Editor’s Note: This guide was updated in November 2023 and includes all the ways to play Minecraft for free.

You can play a trial version of Minecraft for free

In recent years, the prices of games have ballooned along with the prices of everything else pretty much. When it comes to Minecraft, it’s still relatively cheap when compared to some other triple-A titles. The base version of the game, both Java and Bedrock included, stands at $29.99, while the Deluxe Version of the game, with additional minecoins, maps, items, skin packs, etc., stands at $39.99.

It’s easily worth the money (the base version) because Minecraft is open-ended and receives updates regularly; every year or so, tons of functionalities are added, and you basically expand an already vast world that offers hundreds of hours of gameplay.

The price of the game goes up; however, if you’re playing Bedrock Edition strictly and want to be additional add-ons, expansions, etc., the costs quickly add up until it’s no longer worth it to own everything in the game.

For players that simply want to try out the game to see whether it’s up to their liking, you don’t have to buy the game outright, as Microsoft allows the free trial versions of both Minecraft Java and Bedrock.

You can download the free trial version of the game by following this link, and you are ready to play.

There are a few caveats, however. While playing the free trial of the game, you will not be able to play multiplayer via servers (however, you can play via LAN with your friends). You are also limited to only 100 minutes of in-game time or five in-game days, to put it in more concrete terms.

In any case, 100 minutes is plenty of time to try the game, explore as much as possible, and get a good idea of whether the game is worth it or not.

Play Minecraft Classic for free in your browser

Minecraft Classic is one of the first versions of the game that was available to the public, even before Microsoft purchased the whole franchise. It’s a humble version of the game with much worse graphics (yes, it’s possible) and only 32 blocks to build with.

There are no villagers in the game, no elaborate mechanics, Redstone mechanisms, intelligent resource spawning, etc. There are only you and a couple of blocks.

But if you really want to try out the game or you’re feeling nostalgic, you can always give it a chance. Minecraft Classic can be played on any browser, and it’s completely free for as long as you want it to be. An additional bonus is the fact that you can play online with up to 9 friends.

You can access Minecraft Classic on this link.

Play Minecraft for free via Game Pass

Game Pass is like a streaming service for games, a massive library of titles that can be played with a single monthly subscription. Why would anybody want to buy a single game ever again right?

Well, it seems that a lot of people followed the same train of thought, especially considering that some massive titles got a Game Pass release on day one, meaning that you don’t have to shell out $70 or $90 to play the hottest titles.

It just so happens that Minecraft is on Game Pass as well, meaning that you can access it without any extra costs whatsoever. You will only have to pay for Game Pass itself.

For newcomers, you can access Game Pass for $1 for the first 14 days. The basic package stands at around $9.99 per month, but it does have its limitations. The Ultimate package stands at $16.99 per month, and it has no limitations, meaning that you can access Game Pass on both your consoles and PC and you can play multiplayer on consoles absolutely free of charge. It’s a pretty good deal if you ask me.

Is TLauncher legal?

If you’ve done some previous research, you’re probably aware of the fact that there are some third-party launchers for Minecraft that give you access to the full game completely free, and you’re wondering whether those launchers are legit and legal in the first place.

Well, the issue is complicated: TLauncher and any kind of third-party launchers are not illegal as long as you have a purchased copy of Minecraft game. However, if you’re using a third-party launcher to access the game for free, in that case, you’re pirating the game and breaching TOS.

Developers are okay with modding the game, as long as you buy it and you’re not trying to profit off those mods by using their assets; the same goes for Launchers; you can do whatever you want with the game as long as you bought it in the first place. Hope that cleared it up!

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments below!

Liked this article? Join us on Reddit for the latest Marvel & DC news!