The most downloaded NeoForge mods on Modrinth are Sodium, Iris Shaders and Entity Culling, and the top twelve are mostly performance, rendering and map mods plus three config or API libraries. Sodium is the largest by a wide margin, Iris is the shader loader that needs it, and Cloth Config API is the most downloaded library. This is a count, not a verdict. Every Java mod we list with a NeoForge build is on our full mods listing.
How we picked these NeoForge mods
We chose from 368 Java mod pages that carry a NeoForge build. Of those, 343 come from Modrinth and have a download count, read on 6 October 2026. The other 25 come from another source, have no Modrinth count and are not ranked here. We took the 12 highest counts and kept the order. Library mods are included because they sit among the most downloaded. We did not benchmark or play-test any of them. Downloads favour older projects, and a count is not a score. All 12 have a NeoForge build for 26.3, and each card shows that loader's full range.
| Project | Downloads on Modrinth | Last update on Modrinth | Licence | Side on Modrinth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sodium | 237,883,966 | 2026-09-20 | PolyForm Shield 1.0.0 | Client required, server unsupported |
| Iris Shaders | 185,032,409 | 2026-09-30 | LGPL-3.0 | Client required, server unsupported |
| Entity Culling | 175,808,589 | 2026-09-21 | tr7zw Protective License | Client required, server unsupported |
| Cloth Config API | 174,869,884 | 2026-09-23 | LGPL-3.0 | Client optional, server optional |
| FerriteCore | 156,502,175 | 2026-03-24 | MIT | Client optional, server optional |
| Lithium | 132,911,027 | 2026-09-28 | LGPL-3.0 | Client optional, server optional |
| ImmediatelyFast | 128,583,009 | 2026-09-17 | LGPL-3.0 | Client required, server unsupported |
| YetAnotherConfigLib (YACL) | 127,577,777 | 2026-09-29 | LGPL-3.0 | Client optional, server optional |
| Xaero's Minimap | 114,620,990 | 2026-10-05 | All rights reserved, no source repository | Client required, server optional |
| Entity Texture Features (ETF) | 104,690,279 | 2026-10-04 | LGPL-3.0 | Client required, server unsupported |
| Architectury API | 102,872,302 | 2026-10-06 | LGPL-3.0 | Client required, server required |
| Xaero's World Map | 100,223,938 | 2026-10-05 | All rights reserved, no source repository | Client required, server optional |
The 12 most downloaded NeoForge mods
Sodium
Sodium
@CaffeineMC · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
Pick Sodium if you want the rendering engine that other mods here build on, since Iris asks for it. Its Modrinth page calls it a high-performance rendering engine replacement, and says it only optimizes Minecraft's rendering code. The trade-off is stability: the newest NeoForge build is flagged alpha, and the project's own README says the Fabric loader is more lightweight and stable for the time being. It is client only, and the licence is PolyForm Shield 1.0.0, not LGPL like most of this list.
Iris Shaders
Iris Shaders
@coderbot · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
Iris is for players who want to load shader packs, and its page says it aims to be compatible with existing OptiFine shader packs. The trade-off is a hard dependency: the newest NeoForge build requires Sodium, so you install both. Its licence folder also carries a note that glsl-transformer is under the AGPL, which may affect redistribution, so modpack authors should read it. Our shader install guide covers the pack side.
Entity Culling
Entity Culling
@tr7zw · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
Entity Culling suits players in busy areas with many mobs or block entities. According to its page, it uses spare CPU threads to work out what is hidden behind walls and skips drawing it, without touching mob behaviour or farms. The NeoForge build needs no other mod. The limit is that client-side entities, often used for animations by magic mods, may misbehave until you whitelist them in its config. Its page also warns the gain shrinks on a CPU that is already maxed out.
Cloth Config API
Cloth Config API
@shedaniel · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
Cloth Config API is a config screen library, so you install it only because another mod asks for it. It is optional on both client and server, and the newest NeoForge build needs nothing else. The trade-off is loader coverage on older versions: its Forge builds stopped at 17.0.144 in December 2024, so a Forge pack cannot take the newest releases. NeoForge and Fabric builds continue.
FerriteCore
FerriteCore
@malte0811 · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
FerriteCore is for players and pack makers who want lower memory use. Its page describes memory usage optimizations and cites its own measurement in All Of Fabric 3, where heap use fell from 1,792 MB to 984 MB. We did not repeat that test. Its FAQ says to install it on both client and server, since some changes matter on the server. It is MIT licensed, but it has the oldest update in this list (March 2026), and its Forge builds stopped at 1.20.1.
Lithium
Lithium
@jellysquid3 · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
Lithium targets game logic such as physics, mob AI and block ticking, and its page says it aims not to change any vanilla mechanics. That makes it the pick here for servers as well as single-player, and its page says clients do not need it when the server has it. The trade-off is configuration: its page describes a system that lets you disable individual patches, which is the route it gives for removing mod incompatibilities the mod introduces. See Sodium vs Embeddium for the NeoForge rendering choice.
ImmediatelyFast
ImmediatelyFast
@RaphiMC · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
ImmediatelyFast speeds up immediate mode rendering, which covers text, the HUD, maps, entities and particles. Its page publishes FPS tables from a Ryzen 5 1600 and GTX 1060 on 1.19.3, and says it only helps when the CPU is the bottleneck. We did not reproduce those numbers. It is client only, and its page lists OptiFine and closed-source clients such as LunarClient and LabyMod as known incompatibilities.
YetAnotherConfigLib (YACL)
YetAnotherConfigLib (YACL)
@isxander · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
YACL is another config library, and it matters when a mod you want lists it as a requirement. Its page says it was written because Cloth Config is stale and other options were poor fits, which is the creator's view, not ours. The newest NeoForge build needs nothing, but builds for 1.20.4 to 1.21.4 require Fabric API, so check the dependency list for the exact version you run. Its Forge builds have stopped.
Xaero's Minimap
Xaero's Minimap
@thexaero · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
Choose Xaero's Minimap if you want waypoints and a corner map that keeps a vanilla look, as its page puts it. It pairs with the World Map below, and the newest NeoForge build lists Open Parties and Claims as optional. The limit is licensing: Modrinth lists All Rights Reserved and we found no source repository. Its page also tells players not to use XaeroPlus with it. Server owners can restrict its features through permission-based configs.
Entity Texture Features (ETF)
Entity Texture Features (ETF)
@Traben · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
ETF is for resource pack users who want custom, random or emissive entity textures. Its page says it primarily supports the OptiFine format and works with Entity Model Features, Sodium and Iris, though shader support varies. The trade-off is that modded mobs only get its features if the mod author uses vanilla rendering code for them. It is client only, and the newest NeoForge build needs no extra mod.
Architectury API
Architectury API
@MaxNeedsSnacks · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
Architectury API is a library for mod authors who ship one project on several loaders, and players meet it as a required dependency. It is the only pick here marked required on both client and server on Modrinth, so a server with a mod that needs it must carry it too. The newest NeoForge build needs nothing else, while its Fabric build needs Fabric API. Its Forge and Quilt builds have stopped.
Xaero's World Map
Xaero's World Map
@thexaero · Java Mod
Checked Source and install notes
Xaero's World Map adds a self-writing fullscreen map, opened with M, and works in singleplayer, multiplayer and Realms according to its page. It is split from the minimap to keep that one light, and the two share map data. The trade-off matches the minimap: All Rights Reserved on Modrinth and no source repository. Its page also advises optimizing singleplayer worlds first, since unoptimized saves take much longer to map.
What the download counts do not tell you
A count rewards age and dependency chains. Libraries rank high because other mods pull them in, not because players chose them. Modrinth counts are also not comparable with CurseForge counts, and the 25 pages without a count could rank anywhere. Sodium, Lithium and ImmediatelyFast overlap in purpose only loosely, so a lower count here is no reason to skip one. For the opposite loader, see popular Fabric mods grouped by use. For how the loaders differ, see Fabric vs Forge vs NeoForge.
How to choose between them
Start with the side. If you only play on your own client, the rendering trio (Sodium, Entity Culling, ImmediatelyFast) and the map pair are the choices. If you run a server, Lithium's page says it works on the server without clients needing it, and FerriteCore's page says to install it on both sides. Add the libraries only when a mod you want names them. For setup, see how to install Forge and NeoForge and how to install mods on Java. Everything we left out is on the Java mods listing.