How to change your Minecraft skin on Java and Bedrock

On Java, you change your skin in the Minecraft Launcher: choose Minecraft: Java Edition, open the Skins tab, click New Skin, pick your PNG file and click Save & Use. On Bedrock, you do it inside the game, in the Dressing Room.

Below you’ll find how it works in each edition, what kind of file you need and why your friends sometimes can’t see your new skin. Launcher buttons are given as they appear in Mojang’s own instructions.

What file do you need?

A skin is a PNG image of your character’s outside, unfolded like a cardboard model. There are two models: Classic, called Wide in the launcher, with 4-pixel arms like Steve, and Slim with 3-pixel arms like Alex. Every skin has two layers. The outer one sits just above the inner one and is there for hats, glasses or jackets. On Java, the inner layer is always fully opaque.

Changing your skin on Java

In the Minecraft Launcher

1. Open the Minecraft Launcher and choose Minecraft: Java Edition.
2. Click the Skins tab, then New Skin.
3. Name your skin and choose Wide or Slim.
4. Click Browse and pick your PNG file.
5. Click Save & Use.

The skin stays in your launcher library afterwards, so switching back later takes one click.

On minecraft.net

No launcher to hand? Sign in at minecraft.net, open the page for changing your skin in your profile and choose Classic or Slim. Scroll to Upload Custom Skin, click Select File, choose your file and click Upload.

Capes and the outer layer

Got an official cape, from a promotion for example? You pick it on the Skins tab as well. Create a new skin or choose Duplicate on an existing one, open the menu with the three dots, choose Edit, select your cape and click Save & Use. In the game, Options and then Skin Customisation let you choose which parts of the outer layer show, such as Hat, Jacket and the sleeves, and if your cape shows. That’s also where you set your Main Hand.

Changing your skin on Bedrock

Bedrock has two kinds of skin. The Character Creator lets you build your character piece by piece. Classic Skins are complete skins in a single image, from the Marketplace or your own PNG.

1. Choose Dressing Room on the main menu.
2. Pick a character slot, or an empty one, and click Edit Character.
3. Open Classic Skins on the left.
4. Pick a skin and click Equip. To add your own, go to Owned Skins, Import Skin and Choose New Skin.
5. Choose the right model type for your own skin: Classic or Slim.

Importing your own PNG works on Windows, phones and tablets. Mojang says it has no plans to bring custom skin imports to consoles. An imported skin doesn’t follow you to your other devices, and you can’t add Character Creator items to a Classic Skin. Bear in mind that players with Only Allow Trusted Skins switched on won’t see your custom skin.

Make or edit your own skin

There are three ways to make your own skin:

• With Mojang’s template. Minecraft’s help page has a template for Classic and one for Slim. Download one, paint over it in an image editor and make the outer layer transparent wherever you don’t want a hat or jacket.
• With an online skin editor. A skin maker or skin editor such as NovaSkin runs in your browser: you draw your skin and download it as a PNG. Pick one that gives you a 64 by 64 PNG, as that works on both Java and Bedrock. You can open and edit an existing skin in it too.
• With the Character Creator on Bedrock. It lets you build your own character without drawing. It’s free to use, though some items are earned or bought.

Choosing a skin site or editor? Read the tips below first.

Where to find skins, and staying safe

There are thousands of player-made skins online, and on Bedrock you can buy skin packs in the Marketplace. All you need for a skin is the PNG file. You apply it to your account yourself, through the launcher, minecraft.net or the Dressing Room. If a skin site asks you to sign in with your Microsoft account, give it a miss. Protect your Microsoft account with two-step verification too; Minecraft’s help pages explain how.

Keep it tidy, too. Skins fall under Minecraft’s Community Standards. If a skin gets banned, you play with a default skin until you pick a new one. Those default skins are always there: Steve, Alex, Ari, Efe, Kai, Makena, Noor, Sunny and Zuri.

Your skin on a server

You can only pick your own skin if you’ve bought Minecraft. On a Java server, your skin comes from Minecraft’s services, just like your account. In the demo or on a server in offline mode that doesn’t work, and you play with a random default skin. Still not seeing your new skin? Reconnect to the server.

Playing with friends across Java and Bedrock through Geyser and Floodgate? Then Java players can see Bedrock players’ skins too. You can set that up with Install Geyser and Java and Bedrock together. Not sure which edition you have or need? Read Minecraft Java vs Bedrock, and if Java isn’t on your PC yet, How to download Minecraft Java shows the official way.