Privacy policy

Last updated 23 October 2026. This explains what Best Minecraft Servers (best-minecraftservers.net) collects, why, and what you can do about it. Questions? Contact us.

The short version

• You can browse, search and use the free tools without an account, and without giving us anything.
• No advertising, no analytics, no tracking cookies. The only cookie is the one that keeps you signed in.
• We keep an IP address only as a one-way scramble, and only for 48 hours, to stop the same person voting twice in a day.
• You can delete your account yourself, any time, from My servers.

What we collect, and why

When you create an account

Your email address, and a password that we keep only as a salted hash (we cannot read it). We also keep a name (taken from your email until you change it), when you signed up and last logged in, and whether you confirmed your email. We use this to run your account, to email you a confirmation or reset link, and to keep the site secure. Basis: it is needed to provide the account you asked for.

When you add or claim a server

The server's name, address, description, game modes, links and banner, which are shown publicly on the site. If you connect voting, we also keep the Votifier address, port and token or key, encrypted, so we can send votes to your server. They are never shown again.

When you vote

The Minecraft username you type, the server you voted for and the time, which count towards that server's ranking. To enforce one vote per player per server every 24 hours we also keep a keyed one-way hash of your IP address for 48 hours, then delete it. We pass your username on to the server's Votifier so it can give you its reward. We do not send your IP address to anyone: the vote carries the placeholder address 0.0.0.0.

When you write to us

Your name, email address and message, so we can answer you. We keep it as long as it takes to deal with it, and delete it when it is no longer needed.

Technical data

Our web server does not keep access logs of the pages you view. The service that runs the site may write short error messages, which can include technical details of a failed request.

Server status

Every minute we ask each listed Minecraft server for the public status it shows to every player (players online, version). That is information about servers, not about you.

Cookies and storage in your browser

• Sign-in cookie. One cookie, set when you log in, that keeps you signed in for up to 30 days (it is removed when you log out). It is strictly necessary and is not used for tracking.
• Preferences. Your browser's own storage remembers your light or dark theme and whether you paused animated banners. These stay on your device and are not sent to us.
• RGB generator. Presets you save in the RGB text generator are stored only in your browser.

Services that help us run the site

• Human check (Google reCAPTCHA). On sign-up, voting and the contact form we ask a visitor to pass a check that tells people from bots. Your browser then connects to Google, which receives your IP address, cookies and some browser and device details to decide. See Google's privacy policy and terms. Pages without the check make no connection to Google.
• Email delivery. Confirmation and reset emails go out through an email service provider, which handles your address to deliver them.
• Hosting. The site runs on a server we rent. Fonts and images are served from the site itself, so reading it does not contact other companies.

We do not sell personal data, and we do not share it for advertising.

How long we keep things

• Account: until you delete it. Deleting it removes your email, password hash and the servers you created. Servers you only claimed go back to unclaimed.
• Sign-in sessions: 30 days, or until you log out.
• Vote IP hash: 48 hours. Votes (username, server, time): kept, because they are the ranking, but with no IP address attached.
• Confirmation and reset links: 48 hours and 1 hour.

Listings we created

Some servers on the site were added by us from the public status and address each server publishes. Those listings are unclaimed. The owner can claim and edit a listing at any time, or ask us to remove it.

Your rights

You can ask to see the data we hold about you, to have it corrected, or to have it deleted. Deleting your account does most of this at once, and the rest we do when you write to us. If you are in the UK or EU you can also complain to your data protection authority. We use your data only for the reasons above: to provide the account and listings you asked for, and (as our legitimate interest) to keep the site safe from abuse.

Children

The site is not meant for children under 13, and accounts are for people 13 or older (older where the law of your country says so). If you think a child has made an account, tell us and we will delete it.

Security

Passwords are hashed with a slow, salted method. Votifier tokens are encrypted. Connections use HTTPS. No system is perfectly safe, so if something affecting you goes wrong we will tell you.

Changes

If this policy changes in a way that matters, we will update the date above and, for account holders, say so by email or on the site.