Minecraft 26.1 RC1 is Here – Here's What You Need to Know

The RC1 Drop

Minecraft 26.1 Release Candidate 1 just landed, and it's time to dust off your testing worlds. This is the final checkpoint before the full release, which means Mojang is hunting down those last-minute bugs and polish issues. If you're running a server, this is your signal to start prepping for the upgrade.

What's Actually Changing?

While Mojang hasn't dropped a massive feature list, RC1 builds typically focus on stability fixes and balance tweaks rather than flashy new content. You can expect bug fixes from the recent snapshots, potential exploit patches, and under-the-hood improvements that'll make your server run smoother. Nothing too wild, but definitely important.

What This Means for Server Owners

Now's the time to act. If you're hosting a PaperChunk server, spin up a test instance with this RC1 build and check your plugins. Most well-maintained plugins should be fine, but it's always smart to verify before pushing it live. Check your Paper/Spigot compatibility too—server software maintainers usually get updates out quickly after RCs drop.

Make sure your players know an update is coming, and consider scheduling a brief maintenance window once the full release drops. That said, RC1 is pretty stable, so you don't need to panic—just be prepared.

Ready to Test?

Grab the RC1 from the Minecraft launcher and give it a shot. Found a bug? Report it to Mojang. The more testing happens now, the smoother 26.1's launch day will be for everyone.