How to Install Minecraft Data Packs (Singleplayer and Server)

What is a Minecraft data pack?

A data pack is a folder or .zip file with a pack.mcmeta file inside that changes or adds game content in Minecraft Java Edition – recipes, loot tables, advancements, functions, structures, biomes and more. It uses the game's own data system, so it works on the official game without Fabric, Forge or any mod loader.

What data packs can do:

• New or changed recipes – for example crafting saddles or turning rotten flesh into leather.
• Loot tables – what mobs drop, what's in chests, what fishing gives.
• Functions – lists of commands that run automatically, which is how gameplay packs add features like vein mining or player heads on death.
• World generation – new biomes, terrain shapes and structures, for example Terralith or Tectonic.
• Advancements, enchantments, tags and much more.

Data packs are a Java Edition feature. Bedrock Edition uses behavior packs and add-ons instead, which work differently.

Data packs vs mods vs resource packs

Data packs change game rules and content using only what the game can already do; mods add new code; resource packs change how things look and sound.

That last row matters for servers: data packs run on every Java server type – Vanilla, Paper, Purpur, Fabric, Forge and NeoForge – and players join without installing anything. Some packs come with a resource pack for custom textures; that part has to be installed by players or sent by the server, see how to install texture packs.

How to install a data pack in a new world

In "Create New World" open the "More" tab, click "Data Packs", drag the .zip into the window, move it to the "Selected" side and create the world.

1. Download the data pack as a .zip. Don't unzip it – Minecraft reads the zip directly.
2. In Minecraft, click Singleplayer → Create New World.
3. Open the More tab and click Data Packs.
4. Drag the .zip file from your file explorer into the Data Packs window (or click Open Pack Folder and copy the file there).
5. The pack appears on the Available side. Click it to move it to Selected.
6. Click Done and create the world.

This is the only correct way to add world generation packs (new biomes and terrain) to a singleplayer world – they need to be there when the world is generated.

How to add a data pack to an existing world

Put the .zip into the datapacks folder inside your world's save folder, then reopen the world or type /reload.

1. In Singleplayer, select your world and click Edit → Open World Folder. (Or go to .minecraft/saves/<world name> yourself – on Windows %appdata%\.minecraft\saves.)
2. Open the datapacks folder inside it. If it doesn't exist, create a folder called exactly datapacks.
3. Copy the data pack .zip into it.
4. Load the world, or if it's already open, type /reload (needs cheats/commands allowed).
5. Check that it's active with /datapack list.

/reload reloads recipes, loot tables, advancements, functions, tags and structure templates. Changes to registries such as biomes, dimensions or new enchantments only apply after you close and reopen the world (on a server: restart).

How to install a data pack on a Minecraft server

Upload the .zip into the datapacks folder inside the server's world folder (usually world/datapacks), then restart the server or run reload in the console. Players don't need to install anything.

1. Find the world folder. It's the folder named in level-name in server.properties – world by default.
2. Upload the data pack into world/datapacks (create the datapacks folder if it's missing). Keep it as a .zip.
3. Restart the server, or type reload in the console for packs that only change recipes, loot, functions or advancements.
4. Check with datapack list in the console.

Common mistakes on servers:

• Wrong folder. A datapacks folder in the main server folder (next to server.properties) does nothing on its own. It must be inside the world folder.
• Only the main world. On Paper and Purpur, the Nether and the End have separate folders (world_nether, world_the_end), but data packs go only into the main world's datapacks – they apply to all dimensions.
• Unzipped twice. If you unzip a pack and end up with world/datapacks/MyPack/MyPack/pack.mcmeta, the game can't find it. pack.mcmeta must be directly inside the pack's folder or zip.

Data pack commands: /datapack and /reload

/datapack list shows which packs are enabled and available, /datapack enable and /datapack disable switch them, and /reload reloads them after changes.

Packs from the datapacks folder are named file/<file name>; press Tab while typing the command to let the game fill in the exact name. New packs found in the folder are usually enabled automatically when the world loads.

Load order matters. When two packs change the same file, the one loaded later wins. If two packs conflict, change the order with first, last, before or after.

World generation data packs (Terralith, Tectonic and others)

Worldgen data packs only change chunks that haven't been generated yet – add them before the world is created, or the areas you've already explored stay the same. Mixing old and new terrain creates visible borders where the generation changes.

The best ways to use them:

• Singleplayer: add the pack in Create New World → More → Data Packs (see above).
• Server: put the pack into world/datapacks before the world is generated – for example create a new world with a new world name and put the pack into <new name>/datapacks before starting, or reset the world.
• Existing world, new areas only: it works, but only far away from where players have been. Players will see the old terrain near spawn and the new one beyond.

Worldgen packs always need a restart (not /reload), and they make world generation heavier, so pre-generating the world helps on a server.

Popular world generation packs: Terralith (almost 100 new Overworld biomes using only vanilla blocks), Tectonic (bigger, more varied terrain), Incendium (Nether biomes and structures), Dungeons and Taverns and Towns and Towers (new structures and villages). Many of them are also published as mods for Fabric, Forge and NeoForge.

Where to download data packs

Download data packs from Modrinth, Planet Minecraft, CurseForge or Vanilla Tweaks, and always pick the file for your Minecraft version.

• Modrinth has a separate "Data Packs" category with filters by game version. The most downloaded data packs there (November 2026) include VeinMiner, Terralith, Dungeons and Taverns, Towns and Towers and Tectonic.
• Vanilla Tweaks lets you build your own pack from small vanilla-style tweaks (for example more mob heads, double shulker shells, coordinates HUD) and download it as one zip.
• Planet Minecraft and CurseForge have thousands of community packs.

Only download from trusted sites. A data pack can't run programs on your PC, but it can run any in-game command in your world, so a bad pack can break a world – keep a backup.

Why is my data pack not working?

Check the version first, then the folder, then whether the pack needs a restart or a new world.

About versions: every data pack has a pack format number in pack.mcmeta that tells the game which versions it was made for. If it doesn't match, the game warns you. Since Minecraft 1.21.9 the file uses min_format and max_format instead of the older single pack_format. You don't need to edit these numbers – download the pack version made for your game version instead. Forcing an old pack onto a new version often leaves parts of it broken, because the file formats inside packs change between updates.

How to install data packs on a Spot.gg server

On Spot.gg you upload the .zip to your world's datapacks folder in the "Files" tab, restart the server and check it with datapack list in "Console". No FTP client needed.

1. Check your world name in "Configuration" → "Most popular" → "World" → "World name" (by default world).
2. Open "Files", go into that world folder and open datapacks. If it isn't there, click "Create directory" and name it datapacks.
3. Drag the .zip onto the page or click "Click to upload".
4. Restart the server with the button at the top of the panel.
5. In "Console" type datapack list (no slash in the console) to see that it's enabled.

For world generation packs on Spot.gg there are two clean ways:

• Wipe: put the pack into world/datapacks, then use "Information" → "Modify" → "Wipe". Wipe creates a new world from scratch and keeps your plugins, mods and configuration – and it keeps the datapacks folder of the world, so the new world generates with your pack. It deletes the world and player progress, so only do this on a fresh server or after a backup.
• New world name: in "Files" create a folder with a new name, put datapacks with your pack inside it, then enter that name as "World name" in "Configuration". The old world stays and you can go back to it by entering its name again. You can also set a "Seed" there – it's used only when a new world is created.

On a modded server (Fabric, Forge, NeoForge) many worldgen packs are also available as mods in "Addons" → "Available to install" – for example Terralith, Tectonic, Incendium or Dungeons and Taverns. The panel installs the right file for your version. On Paper and Purpur, the data pack version is the one to use; some packs also exist as plugins, for example VeinMiner.

The "Addons" tab doesn't list data packs as a separate type – those you upload in "Files" as described above. You can try data packs on a free server for 24 hours; paid servers start from $3.90 per month.

FAQ

Where do I put data packs?

In the datapacks folder inside the world folder: .minecraft/saves/<world>/datapacks in singleplayer, world/datapacks on a server.

Do I need to unzip a data pack?

No. Keep it as a .zip. If you do unzip it, make sure pack.mcmeta is directly inside the pack folder, not in a second folder inside.

Do players need to install data packs to join a server?

No. Data packs run on the server. Players only need to install something if the pack comes with a resource pack and the server doesn't send it.

Do data packs work on Paper servers?

Yes. Data packs work on Vanilla, Paper, Purpur, Fabric, Forge and NeoForge. Put them in the main world's datapacks folder.

Why doesn't /reload apply my data pack?

/reload only reloads recipes, loot tables, advancements, functions, tags and structure templates. Packs that change biomes, dimensions or other registries need a restart, and worldgen packs only affect new chunks.

Can I add Terralith to an existing world?

Yes, but only chunks generated after you add it get the new biomes. For the full effect, start a new world with the pack.

Do data packs work on Bedrock Edition?

No. Data packs are a Java Edition feature. Bedrock uses behavior packs and add-ons.

Can data packs harm my computer?

A data pack can't run programs outside the game, but it can run any in-game command in your world. Download from trusted sites and keep a backup of your world.