How To Install a Snapshot Version of Minecraft

Play a new version before its even released!
Britt Britt (157)
5 minutes

Did you know that Minecraft actually lets you play pre-release versions of the game? That’s right! You can explore and discover new features coming to Minecraft before the official version is released. This ability is available to anyone who wishes to try!

These versions are generally unstable, so it’s best to not try to use them with existing worlds. Instead, create new worlds that you can mess around in!

It’s actually incredibly easy to download, install, and play a snapshot version of Minecraft. Follow the steps below to learn how!

Posted in these interests:
Minecraft
h/minecraft91 guides
h/gaming266 guides

Be sure to save this zip to a location on your computer that you can easily access later. You can download the latest snapshot from Minecraft’s website or by clicking this link.

unzip

To unzip, you’ll need a program like WinZip to do so. You’ll want to export this file into your .minecraft/versions folder.

To find your .minecraft folder:

  • Windows: Press Win+R and type %appdata%\.minecraft and press "Ok"
  • Mac OS X: Ijn the Go menu in Finder, select “Go to Folder” and enter ~/Library/Application Support/minecraft
  • Linux: ~/.minecraft or /home/<your username>/.minecraft/
minecraft launcher

Once the launcher is open, navigate to the “Installations” tab.

new installations

Make sure the box for “Modded” is ticked, then click the New Installations button, as shown above.

new installation

In the new window that appears:

  1. Name it whatever you want.
  2. Click the version that matches the name of the file you downloaded and extracted.
  3. Click Create when ready.
play snapshot version

You should now see the created new installation listed in the Installations tab. Press Play to start up Minecraft!

Learn about the first 1.19 experimental snapshot, featuring the Deep Dark Biome!

Some maps require a specific Minecraft version to run. Luckily, changing this is easy!
Odin Odin (181)
2 minutes

Minecraft will automatically set itself to the current version for ease of use, but sometimes you need to revert, especially if your favorite map was created with an earlier version.