How to use Minecraft schematics with Litematica and WorldEdit

A schematic is a file holding a copy of a build, which you can put back in another world or on a server. With the Litematica mod you see the build as a see-through preview in your world and rebuild it block by block; with WorldEdit you paste a .schem file in one go using //schem load and //paste.

Below you’ll find which files exist, how to use them with Litematica and WorldEdit and how it works on a server. As of 7 October 2026, with Minecraft Java 26.3.

What kinds of schematics are there?

Besides its own .litematic, Litematica reads .schem, .schematic and .nbt files, and can convert them to .litematic. The other way round, it exports to the old .schematic format and to .nbt, but not to .schem.

Rebuilding with Litematica

Litematica is a Fabric mod that only runs on your own computer, and it needs the MaLiLib mod alongside it. As of early October, the version for Minecraft 26.3 is on Modrinth but not yet on CurseForge. You can read how to install Fabric and mods in How to install Minecraft mods, and where to download mods safely in CurseForge vs Modrinth.

Always use the latest version. In July 2026 the developer fixed a serious hole in Litematica for 1.21 and later that let a server put malware on your computer, so old copies from download sites are risky.

1. Get the file ready. Copy the schematic into the schematics folder inside your .minecraft folder.
2. Open the menu. Press M in the game and choose Load Schematics.
3. Load the schematic. The build appears as a see-through preview, a sort of ghost building, where you’re standing.
4. Put it in place. Schematic Placements (M + P) lets you move and rotate the preview.
5. Rebuild it block by block. The Material List (M + L) shows which blocks you need, and the Schematic Verifier (M + V) shows what’s still wrong.

You can make your own schematics too: select an area and save it. Stop any running redstone first, or you’ll save contraptions mid-movement. The tool is a stick by default: left-click sets the first corner, right-click the second. If you can’t see the preview properly, switch off your shaders, as Litematica’s rendering doesn’t get on with them.

Pasting with WorldEdit

WorldEdit works with .schem files and pastes a whole build in one go. On a Paper server it’s a plugin, and there’s a mod for Fabric and NeoForge. As of early October, WorldEdit supports Minecraft 26.3 only in beta version 7.4.6; the stable 7.4.5 goes up to 26.2. There’s no WorldEdit for Bedrock.

1. Put the file in the schematics folder. On a Paper server that’s plugins/WorldEdit/schematics; with Fabric or NeoForge it’s config/worldedit/schematics. If the folder isn’t there yet, create it yourself.
2. See what’s available with //schem list.
3. Load your schematic with //schem load and the file name.
4. Stand in the right spot and type //paste. WorldEdit pastes relative to where you stood when the build was copied. //paste -a skips the air, so nothing around it gets wiped.
5. Got it wrong? //undo takes it back.

Saving a build of your own works like this: select it with //wand, copy it with //copy and save it with //schem save and a name. Our knowledge base covers the WorldEdit basics: How to use WorldEdit.

Schematics on your own server

• WorldEdit as a plugin. Install WorldEdit on your Paper server (see install plugins), upload your .schem through the file manager or over SFTP to plugins/WorldEdit/schematics and paste it in the game. You need operator rights or the WorldEdit permission.
• Big jobs. FastAsyncWorldEdit (FAWE) is a faster variant for Paper and Spigot, and has supported 26.3 since 4 October. For really big builds, work in sections and pick a quiet moment.
• Litematica on a server. Litematica runs on your side, so rebuilding from the preview works on any server, even one without mods. Pasting in one go only works in Creative and if you’re allowed to use /setblock and /fill. The Easy Place feature, which puts the right block down for you, can get you banned on some servers, so ask first. With the Syncmatica mod on both the server and the players’ side, you can share placements with each other.
• Always back up first. One wrong paste can overwrite a chunk of your world. Here’s how to create and restore a backup.

Without mods: the structure block

Minecraft has its own way to save builds: the structure block. You can only get one with a command, such as /give @s structure_block, so in a world with cheats on. On Java it saves builds of up to 48 by 48 by 48 blocks as .nbt files in your world’s generated folder. On Bedrock it goes up to 64 by 384 by 64 blocks and exports .mcstructure files on Windows, and there’s also the /structure command.

Where to find schematics

On community sites such as Planet Minecraft, players share thousands of builds as schematics. When you download one, check two things: the format (is it for Litematica or WorldEdit?) and the Minecraft version the build was made for. Blocks that don’t exist in your version won’t come across.