If you’ve looked into running a Minecraft server, you’ve probably seen “Paper” mentioned everywhere. Server guides recommend it. Hosting providers default to it. Plugin developers build for it. But if you’re new to the server ecosystem, it’s not immediately obvious what Paper actually is or why it matters.
Paper is server software for Minecraft: Java Edition. It replaces the vanilla server jar that Mojang provides, adding plugin support, performance improvements, and configuration options that the stock server doesn’t have. Across the Minecraft hosting landscape, it’s become the default choice for servers that run plugins - and for good reason.
Where Paper Comes From
To understand Paper, you need a quick history of Minecraft server software. The family tree matters because it explains why Paper can do what it does.
CraftBukkit was the original modified server. Back in the early 2010s, if you wanted to run plugins on a Minecraft server, CraftBukkit was your only option. It defined the Bukkit plugin API that thousands of plugins were built against.
Spigot forked CraftBukkit and added performance optimizations. It became the standard for years - running a plugin server meant running Spigot.
Paper forked Spigot and pushed things further. It started as a performance project but grew into a full replacement that includes everything Spigot has, plus its own improvements on top. This lineage is why Paper supports the entire Bukkit/Spigot plugin ecosystem without compatibility issues.
Each layer builds on the last. Paper doesn’t throw away what came before it - it extends it.
What You Get Over Vanilla
The vanilla Minecraft server that Mojang distributes works, but it’s limited. No plugin support, no performance tuning, and whatever settings Mojang exposes in server.properties is all you get.
Paper changes that in a few significant ways.
Plugin support. This is the big one. Plugins let you add permissions, economy systems, anti-cheat, teleportation commands, world management, minigames - pretty much anything server-side. Paper runs the full catalog of Bukkit and Spigot plugins, plus plugins written specifically for Paper’s extended API.
Better performance under load. Paper handles chunk loading asynchronously, processes entities more efficiently, and optimizes redstone calculations. On a vanilla server with 10+ players spread across the world, you’ll often see TPS (ticks per second) start dropping. Paper handles the same scenario with headroom to spare. We see this consistently in support tickets - servers that struggled on vanilla run fine after switching to Paper on the same hardware.
Exploit and bug patches. Paper fixes issues that Mojang hasn’t addressed, some of which have been open bugs for years. Item duplication, chunk loading exploits, and various other problems that can destabilize a server or break an in-game economy are patched by default.
Configuration depth. Paper exposes hundreds of configuration options through its own config files (paper-global.yml and paper-world-defaults.yml). You can tune entity activation ranges, adjust mob spawning behavior, control chunk loading distances, and much more. The vanilla server gives you maybe two dozen settings. Paper gives you granular control.
Why Paper Overtook Spigot
If Paper is built on Spigot, why not just use Spigot? This is a fair question, and a few years ago it was a genuine debate. It’s not anymore.
Paper’s development pace outstripped Spigot’s. When new Minecraft versions release, Paper typically has stable builds available quickly. The contributor base is larger and more active. The Paper API extends what Spigot offers, which means plugin developers increasingly target Paper-specific features.
Performance is the most visible difference. Paper’s optimizations to chunk loading, entity processing, and memory management are measurable. A server running Paper will generally maintain higher TPS under the same load compared to Spigot - especially as player count grows or the world ages.
Paper also ships with Spark built in (since 1.21), a profiler that lets you diagnose exactly what’s eating your server’s tick time. Instead of guessing whether lag comes from a plugin, a mob farm, or chunk generation, you get a detailed breakdown.
For a deeper comparison, we wrote a full breakdown in our Paper vs Spigot article. The short version: Paper does everything Spigot does, then adds more. For new servers in 2026, there’s no practical reason to choose Spigot over Paper unless you have a very specific compatibility edge case.
Plugin Compatibility
One concern people have before switching: will my plugins work?
The answer is yes, with very few exceptions. Paper maintains full backward compatibility with the Bukkit and Spigot plugin APIs. Any plugin built for Bukkit or Spigot will run on Paper. That includes major plugins like EssentialsX, WorldGuard, LuckPerms, Vault, Dynmap, and thousands of others.
On top of that, Paper has its own extended API. Some newer plugins take advantage of Paper-specific features that aren’t available on plain Spigot. Using Paper means you have access to a larger plugin ecosystem, not a smaller one.
The rare exceptions are plugins that rely on behavior Paper intentionally changed - usually an exploit or bug that the plugin was leveraging. If you run into this, check if the plugin has been updated or if there’s an alternative. The ecosystem has matured enough that replacements exist for most things.
Checking Plugin Compatibility
If a plugin page on SpigotMC or Modrinth lists “Paper” or “Bukkit” as a supported platform, it works on Paper. If it only lists “Spigot,” it still almost certainly works - the APIs are compatible. The only time to be cautious is with very old, unmaintained plugins.
When Paper Is Not the Right Choice
Paper handles plugins. It does not handle mods. This distinction matters.
Plugins are server-side only. They add functionality without changing the Minecraft client. Players connect with a normal Minecraft client and don’t need to install anything extra.
Mods modify the game itself - adding new blocks, items, dimensions, and mechanics. They require both the server and the client to have matching installations. Mods run on completely different server software.
If you want to run mods or modpacks (Forge, NeoForge, or Fabric), Paper isn’t what you need. The mod ecosystem and the plugin ecosystem are separate worlds with different server software, different APIs, and different installation processes.
| What you want | Server software to use |
|---|---|
| Plugins only (commands, permissions, economy) | Paper |
| Mods only (new blocks, items, dimensions) | Forge, NeoForge, or Fabric |
| Both plugins and mods | Hybrid solutions exist but come with trade-offs |
Our help center has a full server software types guide that breaks down every option if you’re not sure which category your server falls into.
There’s one other edge case. If you’re running a technical Minecraft server where players rely on mechanics like TNT duplication or certain bedrock-breaking methods, Paper patches these by default. You can re-enable most of them in configuration, but it’s worth knowing about upfront.
Installing Paper on WinterNode
If you’re hosting with WinterNode, installing Paper takes about 30 seconds. The control panel has an Edition Installer that handles the download and setup for you.
- Go to Configuration in your server panel
- Open the Edition Installer
- Select Paper and your target Minecraft version
- Click install
The installer downloads the correct Paper build and configures your server to use it. If you’re switching from vanilla or Spigot, your existing world and configurations carry over automatically. Your first startup after switching might take slightly longer than normal as Paper optimizes some data structures - this is a one-time thing.
Check our Edition Installer guide for detailed steps with screenshots.
Switching from Vanilla?
If you’re moving from a vanilla server to Paper, your world transfers directly. Paper reads the same world format. The main difference is that Paper generates its own configuration files on first run, giving you access to all those extra settings.
The Bottom Line
Paper is the standard server software for plugin-based Minecraft servers. It’s faster than vanilla, more capable than Spigot, and runs the entire Bukkit/Spigot plugin library. For anyone setting up a new server that needs plugins, it’s the right starting point.
The only scenarios where Paper doesn’t fit are mod-based servers (use Forge, NeoForge, or Fabric instead) and very specific technical servers that need unpatched vanilla behavior. For everyone else, Paper is the answer to “what server software should I use?”
We’re obviously biased, but WinterNode exists because we wanted hosting that didn’t nickel-and-dime people. All our Game Servers are priced at $1.99/GB of RAM - we don’t charge extra for CPU usage, storage space, or basic features that other hosts mark up.
If you want to test the waters, we offer a 48-hour free trial on Minecraft servers. No credit card required. Our Edition Installer makes it easy to get Paper running in under a minute.
Got questions? Our support team responds to tickets with actual humans, and we’re active on Discord if you prefer chatting there. We also have a Minecraft Java setup guide in our help center if you want to get into the details.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Paper is open-source and completely free. You can download it from papermc.io. Most hosting providers, including WinterNode, offer one-click installation through their control panels.
Almost always. Paper is built on top of Spigot, which is built on CraftBukkit, so it supports the full Bukkit/Spigot plugin API. The vast majority of plugins work without any changes.
Paper patches certain exploits by default, like TNT duplication and some bedrock-breaking methods. Most of these can be re-enabled through Paper's configuration files if your players rely on them.
Yes. Your world, player data, and plugin configurations all carry over. Paper reads the same world format and config files. Take a backup first as a precaution, but the switch is usually a simple jar swap.