Searching how to add mods to Minecraft Bedrock almost always means one thing: installing add-ons. Bedrock has no Fabric or Forge, so what people call Minecraft Bedrock mods are really add-ons, a behavior pack, a resource pack, or both, packaged as one .mcpack or .mcaddon file. See Java vs Bedrock if you are not sure which edition you are running. This guide covers getting that file onto Windows, Android, and iOS, then turning the pack on for a world. Console works differently and has its own guide, linked further down.
Minecraft Bedrock behavior packs and resource packs
A Bedrock add-on is built from two possible halves. A behavior pack changes how the game plays, mob stats, loot tables, crafting recipes, or entirely new mechanics through the scripting API. A resource pack changes what the game looks and sounds like, textures, models, sounds, and UI. Most add-ons ship both halves in a single .mcaddon file, because a new mob or block usually needs a new model as much as it needs new behavior. A pack with only new textures or only new mob AI ships alone as a single .mcpack instead.
Bedrock groups both under Add-Ons in the world settings, with separate Behavior Packs and Resource Packs tabs so each half can be seen, ordered, and turned on separately. If you only want new textures and no new mechanics, installing texture packs on Minecraft PE covers the resource-pack-only version of these same steps.
Where to find an add-on
Start with a page dedicated to the add-on itself, like an MCPEDL listing or a CurseForge Bedrock addon page, rather than a generic download aggregator. Both name the creator and list the Minecraft Bedrock versions the pack targets, which a plain download link usually does not. Browse our own list of Bedrock add-ons, including Better Foliage and Better Backpacks, to see what a finished add-on page looks like before you go looking elsewhere.
How to install mods on Minecraft Bedrock PC
On Windows, most .mcpack and .mcaddon downloads import with one click. Manual copying is the fallback for a file that will not open, or for organizing packs by hand.
Open the file directly
- 1.Download the .mcpack or .mcaddon file from the add-on's page.
- 2.If the file downloaded as a .zip, rename the extension to .mcpack or .mcaddon before opening it.
- 3.Double-click the file. Minecraft launches and shows an import notification.
- 4.Open a world's settings and check the Behavior Packs or Resource Packs tab to confirm the pack imported.
Copy the pack in manually
The manual route drops the pack straight into Minecraft's data folder. Press Win+R, paste %appdata%\Minecraft Bedrock\users\shared\games\com.mojang into the Run box, and press enter. The Minecraft mods folder guide covers this same folder across every install type.
- 1.Extract the .mcpack or .mcaddon, both are zip archives, into a folder.
- 2.Move a behavior pack folder into behavior_packs, and a resource pack folder into resource_packs.
- 3.Restart Minecraft so it picks up the new folders.
How to install add-ons on Minecraft PE, Android and iOS
Android
Download the .mcpack or .mcaddon file, then open it from your device's file manager or notification shade. Tap the file and choose to open it with Minecraft, and the game launches and confirms the import the same way it does on Windows.
iOS
iOS handles the file the same way in principle: tap it and open it with Minecraft.
Turning an add-on on for your world
Importing a pack only makes it available. Nothing changes in a world until you turn it on there.
- 1.Create a new world, or open an existing one's settings.
- 2.Open the Resource Packs tab and move the pack from My Packs to Active.
- 3.Open the Behavior Packs tab and do the same for the matching behavior pack.
- 4.Check the add-on's page for a required Experimental toggle, such as Beta APIs or Custom Biomes, and turn it on under Experiments if listed.
- 5.Save and load the world.
Add-ons on console
Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch cannot import a downloaded pack file at all, since none of them expose a file system to write into. The only way an add-on reaches a console is through a world that already has it turned on, shared over Realms or a local game. See how to get Minecraft add-ons on Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation for the full walkthrough.
If an add-on will not activate
A pack that imports but never shows up as active is almost always a missing dependency, a skipped Experimental toggle, or a resource pack applied without its matching behavior pack. See fix add-ons not working in Minecraft Bedrock for the full troubleshooting steps.
Frequently asked questions
Are Bedrock add-ons the same as mods?
Not in the Java sense. Java mods run through a loader like Fabric or Forge and can rewrite large parts of the game's code. A Bedrock add-on is a behavior pack, a resource pack, or both, built from the data-driven format Mojang exposes to everyone. It changes what the game already allows rather than the game's underlying code, which is why an add-on cannot do everything a Java mod can.
Why does my add-on say it needs experimental features?
Some add-ons use capabilities Mojang has not finished testing, like Beta APIs, custom biomes, or newer creator camera features, so those stay behind an Experimental toggle in a world's settings. Turn on the exact toggle the add-on's page names, for a new world or an existing one, before its behavior pack will do anything. Worlds with experiments on cannot be uploaded to Minecraft Realms, and any custom behavior pack disables achievements for that world regardless.
Do add-ons work in Realms and multiplayer?
In regular multiplayer, where you invite friends into a world you host, add-ons work the same as single-player. On Minecraft Realms, the behavior pack, resource pack, and any Experimental toggles need to already be turned on for the world before it goes up, since Realms does not let you add a new pack or flip on an experiment from inside a world that is already hosted there.
Can I use the same add-on on Windows, Android, and iOS?
Yes. A Bedrock add-on is not tied to one device the way a Java mod is tied to a specific loader version. The same .mcpack or .mcaddon file imports the same way on Windows, Android, and iOS, since all three run the same Bedrock codebase. Console is the exception, and works through a shared world instead of a direct file import.
