Updated 25 October 2026. Facts on this page come from minecraft.wiki, minecraft.net and the live Artemis PvP server; sources are listed at the bottom.
Minecraft Permission Levels and Player Permissions
Java servers give operators a permission level from 1 to 4: 1 lets them build in spawn protection, 2 unlocks cheat commands and command blocks, 3 adds player management like /kick and /ban, and 4 allows everything including /stop. Bedrock uses player permissions instead: Visitor, Member, Operator or Custom, set per player in the game menu.
What can each Java level do?
| Level | Name | Can do |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Any player | No cheat commands; an op at level 0 can also see the TPS graph and command block output |
| 1 | Moderator | Build inside spawn protection |
| 2 | Gamemaster | Cheat commands such as /gamemode, /give, /tp and command blocks |
| 3 | Admin | Player management: /kick, /ban, /op |
| 4 | Owner | Everything, including /stop and /save-all |
The level given by /op comes from op-permission-level in server.properties (4 by default), and is saved in ops.json.
What are Bedrock player permissions?
- Visitor: can look around and trade, but not build, mine or open containers.
- Member: builds, mines, uses doors and switches, opens containers and attacks; the usual default.
- Operator: everything, including commands, world settings and teleporting.
- Custom: pick individual permissions; not on Realms.
- The host sets the default for new players in the world settings.
How do Realms handle permissions?
The Realm owner is always an operator and cannot change their own role. Realm admins can set each member's role in Manage Members or on the minecraft.net Realm settings, even when offline. See Realms. On Bedrock, making a player an operator turns achievements off for that world; see Bedrock achievements.
How do you give someone op?
Run /op
Frequently asked questions
What permission level do you need for /gamemode?
Level 2 on Java.
Sources
Every fact on this page was checked against these pages; the wording is ours.