How to Fix ”Unable to Connect to World” Error in Minecraft

Minecraft comes into its own when you have friends to play with, but nothing beats the fun when you’re trying to connect to a friend’s world and you’re getting the Minecraft Unable to Connect to World Error.

There are a variety of reasons why this happens, and we’re going to walk you through the most likely issues so you can get back to mining and crafting like real gamers.

1. Check your connection

First eliminate the possibility of network problems before opening Minecraft. Go to How to fix an intermittent internet connection in Windows 10 or 8 Easy Ways to Troubleshoot Network Connections to fix a bad internet connection.

The quickest way to spot check a connection is to switch to a different network. If you don’t have another network available, try using your phone as a portable hotspot. If Minecraft works correctly on a different internet connection, that’s an indication that your ISP or local network could be the problem.

2. Restart Minecraft (and your computer).

Classic troubleshooting advice is always relevant. Some things may have changed while your Minecraft session was running, or there was a bug in your PC’s network driver. Even if you’re playing Minecraft on a console, there’s no harm in turning the machine off and on again to see if that helps.

3. Check for updates

In general, you need the same version of Minecraft as the world you want to connect to. Therefore, both the world’s host and anyone trying to connect to that world should have the latest version.

4. Check for Windows updates

While making sure Minecraft is properly updated, you should also check for pending Windows updates. If you haven’t updated Windows in a while, your copy of Minecraft may be too new to work with older components of Windows, or there may be a known bug that was later fixed.

5. Reload your private world

We haven’t used this fix ourselves, but players on forums seem to be having some luck with it. For some reason, reloading one of your private worlds allows you to connect to a friend’s world. It’s unclear why this might work, but one explanation is that loading one of your worlds overwrites a shared configuration file that may have become corrupt or contain the wrong values. Either way, there’s no harm in trying:

1. Start Minecraft and log in with your Microsoft account.
2. Choose To play.

3. Go to worlds tab and start one of your own worlds (create one if you don’t have one).

4. Open the game menu and select Save & exit.

5. You should now be back at the main menu. Select the friends Tab and try joining their world again.

If that was the problem, you should be able to connect without any problems.

6. Change your firewall settings

A firewall is a hardware or software system that controls which applications can send or receive data over the Internet. The first time you run an app in Windows that asks you to send or receive data, you’ll get a popup asking if you want to let the program through Windows Defender Firewall.

If you accidentally said no or were never prompted to approve a firewall exception, you can either disable Windows Firewall (not recommended) or create an exception for Minecraft. For detailed instructions, see How to customize Microsoft Windows 10 firewall rules and settings.

If not Windows Firewall, another firewall may be blocking Minecraft. Your router most likely has a firewall solution, but you’ll need to consult the manual as the exact details of how to add exceptions vary by make and model. If someone else manages the network, you’ll need to ask permission to let Minecraft’s traffic through. Minecraft is used extensively in education, so it shouldn’t be a problem as long as you have a valid reason.

You can disable Windows Firewall completely to ensure that the problem is not caused by a firewall rule. However, if you don’t have another firewall solution (e.g. in your route), you should re-enable it immediately after the test is complete. You may also have a firewall as part of your antivirus software, so make sure that is disabled or add an exception for Minecraft.

7. Remove and re-add your friend

In some cases it seems that Minecraft’s friends list can get corrupted for some reason. To fix the problem, you need to remove your friends from the list and then add them back.

Before you do that, you can test whether friend list corruption is the problem by trying to join a stranger’s world. If that’s successful, you’re probably dealing with a corrupt friends list. On the other hand, if the issue is only affecting people on your friends list to join, remove that person and send them a new invite.

8. Update the drivers for your network card

Network problems can be traced to outdated drivers, so it’s a good idea to check if new drivers are available for your network interface. One way to check adapter problems is to switch to a different one. For example, switch to Ethernet if you are using Wi-Fi and see if the problem is resolved. If this is the case, visit the website of the company that makes the problematic adapter or visit your motherboard’s driver page to get the latest driver.

9. Use a VPN

If the issue is related to the specific Minecraft server or the routing path to that server, use a VPN. By changing the location of the VPN server you use, you can change the path your data takes across the network and bypass the roadblock preventing you from connecting to the server.

10. Stop using a VPN

If you were already using a VPN or proxy server while getting this error, you should do the opposite of above and stop using the VPN. At least temporarily, to see if that’s part of the problem. If you’re trying to play Minecraft on a network that blocks it (such as a work or school network), try switching to a different VPN, proxy server, or service.

11. Enable multiplayer

If you’re using the version of Minecraft you bought from the Microsoft Store (also the PC Game Pass version), your Xbox profile affects your online experience. You must ensure that multiplayer settings are enabled for this account or Minecraft will not be able to connect.

1. Open a web browser and go to the Xbox Live official website.

2. Sign in with your Microsoft/Xbox credentials.

3. Select the tab that says Xbox One/Windows 10 Online Security.

4. Under You can participate in multiplayer gamesmaking sure To allow is selected.

5. Choose Submitand then close the webpage.

Make sure you restart Minecraft before trying to connect again.

12. Install the Java version of Minecraft

Today, gamers use the Bedrock Edition of the game that they bought from the Microsoft Store. This modern port of Minecraft is based on the mobile Pocket Edition of the game. It is a complete rewrite of Minecraft and the version that spans all different platforms from iOS to Android to Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, PC and everything in between.

The original game made by Mojang (before Microsoft bought it) was written in Java. Incredibly, the Java Edition of Minecraft is maintained and played to this day. If you can’t get the Bedrock Edition to work, try the Java Edition on your PC.

There are key differences between these versions that affect how they look, feel and play. However, if you and your friends can’t get Bedrock to work, the Java version is better than no Minecraft at all. If you’re using Xbox Game Pass for PC, you can access both versions of the game from the Xbox app in Windows.

Change your Minecraft platform

If you can’t fix Minecraft on PC, you should play it on another platform. Minecraft games are available on every central console and mobile device. You can even use a controller when playing Minecraft on an iPhone or iPad. If you’re sticking with a PC and have one of the latest graphics cards, you might want to spice things up even more by enabling ray tracing in Minecraft.