Mods in a click
Create Fabric, Quilt, NeoForge or Forge instances, search Modrinth and install mods with their dependencies, or a whole modpack in one click. Each instance keeps its own version, mods, worlds and Java settings.
Minecraft: Java Edition · Windows & Linux
Minecraft,
minus the weight.
A fast, open-source launcher written in Rust. Every release with performance mods built in, a restyled client, Modrinth mods, free skins and capes, and playing with friends, all in one small native app.
Windows & Linux · x64 · Free & open source · Linux download
ArcticLAUNCHER
Default⌄
- Play
- Accounts
- Instances
- Skins
- Play together
- Logs
- Settings
- About
SteveMicrosoft
Play
Vanilla Minecraft, ready when you are.
VanillaDefault instance
SteveVERSION
1.8.9 Installed ⌄
PLAY
Ready to play.
- file
- 1file
A single native .exe. Nothing to install.
- webviews
- 0webviews
Rust + egui, no Electron. Almost no CPU while you play.
- sec
- ~20sec
A complete fresh install on a fast connection.
- 3.0
- GPL3.0
Open source, free forever.
What's inside
Everything you need to play. Nothing you don’t.
Every release, the right Java
Pick any Minecraft release (or a snapshot) and press Play. Arctic downloads the game and the exact Java it needs.
Play together
Invite friends into your world with a code. No server, no port forwarding: a direct link, or an encrypted relay when that isn't possible.
Any skin, any cape, free
Pick a skin from your library or copy a player's by name, choose a cape or use your own image (animated ones too), and every Arctic player sees it, on any account. Preview it all on a 3D model, and change your real Minecraft skin from the same place.
Fast, and faster in game
Downloads run in parallel over dozens of connections, so a complete fresh install takes about 20 seconds on a fast connection and relaunching is instant. In game, one switch adds Sodium, Lithium, FerriteCore, ImmediatelyFast and EntityCulling for much higher FPS.
Skin gallery
Browse skins other players shared, search by name or creator, wear one in a click, and share your own.
Every account, side by side
Sign in with Microsoft in your browser or with a short code, or add offline accounts for singleplayer and LAN. Switch in one click.
Profiles for everyone at the desk
Fully separate profiles on one PC, each with its own accounts, settings, instances and worlds. Game files are shared, so switching never re-downloads anything.
Bring your worlds
Import worlds from the Minecraft Launcher, Prism Launcher, other instances or a .zip, back any world up in one click, and restore deleted ones from the trash. Moving over from another launcher takes a minute.
Logs you can read
Live game output as readable lines, plus the launcher's own log. Filter by warnings or errors, search, copy.
Tuned your way
RAM, resolution, Java and JVM arguments per instance, Discord status, and Aurora, Dark or Light themes over an animated arctic night.
Updates that verify themselves
Stable and beta channels. New versions are hash-checked, then swapped in place in seconds, so you're always on the latest without reinstalling.
Arctic Client
Vanilla, with everything you'd install a client for.
Restyled menus, a dozen HUD widgets, Zoom, Freelook and PvP tools, built into Minecraft by Arctic. On by default for 1.21.6 and newer, in Fabric and Quilt instances too, and one switch to turn it off.
A dozen HUD widgets
- FPS
- CPS
- Ping
- Keystrokes
- Coordinates & facing
- Speed
- Biome & day
- Armor durability
- Effects
- Target health
- Reach & combo
- Memory & server
They line up on their own and snap into place when you drag them, with a HUD editor for size and background.
PvP & movement
- Toggle Sprint
- Toggle Sneak
- Crosshair editor
- Reach display
- Combo counter
Cross, dot or circle crosshairs with size, gap, thickness, color and outline, previewed live.
View
- Zoom
- Freelook
- Fullbright
- Smooth font
- Chat timestamps
- Low fire
- Clear weather
Hold C to zoom, Left Alt to look around; keys are rebindable.
Looks
- Arctic, Aurora or Classic menus
- Everyone's Arctic skins and capes
- Animated capes
Press Right Shift in game for the Arctic menu.
Make it yours
Give every instance its own snowflake.
Six snowflake styles and any colour you like, the same picker the launcher uses for instance icons. Try it.
The little things
Details you'll notice.
The small touches that make it feel finished.
- Portable mode
- Drop a portable.txt next to the launcher and it keeps everything in a folder beside it. Perfect for a USB stick.
- Several games at once
- Run more than one instance side by side, see what's running, open its log or force close it.
- Snapshots and old versions
- Every release by default, plus snapshots and the old alphas and betas when you want them.
- Favorite versions
- Pin the versions you actually play to the top of the list.
- World trash and backups
- Deleted worlds go to a trash you can restore from, and any world backs up in one click.
- SOCKS5 proxy
- Route the launcher and the game through a proxy, with sign-in support and a test button.
- One window, or the tray
- Opening Arctic again brings back the window you have, never a second copy. On Windows it can wait in the system tray when you close it.
- One-minute setup
- The first launch walks you through theme, account, memory and your first instance. Run it again any time.
- Quick actions by Play
- Open the game folder or the last game log right next to the Play button.
- Your window, your way
- Resolution presets, fullscreen, and whether the launcher stays open or gets out of the way when the game starts.
- Every language's text
- Chinese, Japanese, Korean and other scripts render properly with your system's fonts.
- Pretty, never in the way
- The animated arctic night pauses while you play. Prefer calm? Turn off the background animation or the intro.
PowerShell · arctic.exe
>arctic versions -n 226.3 2026-09-15 installed latest26.2 2026-06-16>arctic instances create "Fabric" --version 26.3 --loader fabric>arctic mods install sodium --instance fabric>arctic launch --instance fabric --memory 6G# started detached; the game keeps running after arctic exits>arctic launch 1.21.4 --account Steve --json{"event":"progress","stage":"Downloading game files",…}{"event":"launched","version":"1.21.4","pid":12345,…}>arctic open --launch 1.20.1 --no-intro>
Command line
Prefer a terminal? arctic has you covered.
A headless companion to the launcher. Create instances, install mods, manage accounts and profiles, and start the game from a terminal, a script or a remote session.
- Same data as the app
- Accounts, instances, mods and downloads are shared, so nothing is fetched twice.
- Works over SSH
- Device-code sign-in and detached launches, no window needed.
- Built for scripts
- --json streams one event per line, with exit codes you can rely on.
- One-click shortcuts
- arctic open --launch 1.20.1 starts the launcher straight into a version.
Local by design
Your accounts stay on your PC.
No telemetry and no analytics. Sign-in tokens stay on your PC and only go to Microsoft and Mojang. Arctic’s looks service never sees your password or tokens: it checks who you are the way a Minecraft server does. Everything else sits in one folder you can open, back up or delete.
data folder
%LOCALAPPDATA%ArcticLauncher ├─ profiles.json your profiles ├─ profilesdefault│ ├─ settings.json your preferences │ ├─ accounts.json tokens · never leaves this PC │ ├─ instances worlds, mods, configs │ └─ logs game output ├─ shared versions, libraries, assets ├─ runtimes managed Java └─ logs launcher log
Community
Come hang out on Discord.
Get help from people who use Arctic every day, try new builds first, and tell us what to build next.
- Support that reads your logs. Post in the support forum and attach your logs. The Arctic bot checks them for known problems straight away.
- Betas first. Grab the Beta tester role to see pre-releases and give feedback before everyone else.
- Shape what's next. Suggest features and vote on ideas in the suggestions forum.
FAQ
Questions, answered.
Is it free?+
Yes. Arctic Launcher is free and open-source under the GPL-3.0-or-later license. No ads, no premium tier.
Do I need to install Java?+
No. The launcher downloads the exact Java runtime each Minecraft version expects, straight from Mojang, and keeps it in its own folder.
Is my Microsoft login safe?+
Sign-in happens on Microsoft's own page in your browser (or with a short code). The launcher never sees your password, and the tokens stay on your PC and only go to Microsoft, Xbox and Mojang. Arctic's looks service never receives them: it checks who you are the same way a Minecraft server does.
Can I play without a Microsoft account?+
Yes. Add an offline account for singleplayer and LAN, and it gets Arctic skins and capes like any other account. Online servers that check accounts still need a Microsoft account that owns Minecraft: Java Edition.
Mods?+
Yes. Create a Fabric, Quilt, NeoForge or Forge instance under Instances, then browse Modrinth for mods (dependencies included) or install a whole modpack in one click. You can also drop .jar files into the instance's mods folder.
How do skins and capes work?+
Pick any skin or cape in the Skins tab, even your own image, or browse the community gallery for skins other players shared. Every Arctic player sees your look in game through Arctic Client, including animated capes. You can also change your real Minecraft skin from there.
What is Arctic Client?+
Arctic's built-in client: restyled menus (Arctic, Aurora or Classic), a dozen HUD widgets that snap into place, Zoom, Freelook, Fullbright, Toggle Sprint and Sneak, a crosshair editor, a smooth font and everyone's Arctic looks. Press Right Shift in game for its menu. It's on by default for Minecraft 1.21.6 and newer, works in Fabric and Quilt instances, and you can turn it off per instance.
Will it run faster than the official launcher?+
The game itself usually does: the Performance switch adds Sodium, Lithium, FerriteCore, ImmediatelyFast and EntityCulling to Vanilla, fetched from Modrinth for your version. It's on by default wherever Fabric supports the version, and you can turn it off.
Do my friends need Arctic to play together?+
Yes: both of you need Arctic Launcher, the same Minecraft version and the same mods. Open your world to LAN, share the code, and Arctic connects you directly, or through an encrypted relay when a direct link isn't possible.
Windows says it protected my PC. Why?+
SmartScreen warns about new executables that haven't built up a download reputation yet. Click “More info” → “Run anyway”, or check the SHA-256 on the download page first.
Can I use it from the command line?+
Yes. The arctic CLI shares the launcher's data: launch versions and instances, install mods, manage accounts and profiles, with JSON output for scripts. See the command line guide at docs.arcticlauncher.com.
Which systems does it support?+
Windows and Linux (x64). Linux needs an X11 or Wayland desktop with OpenGL. macOS isn't supported yet.
Where does it keep my files?+
Windows: %LOCALAPPDATA%\ArcticLauncher. Linux: ~/.local/share/ArcticLauncher. Each profile has its own folder inside, and arctic paths prints them all. Drop a portable.txt next to the launcher and it uses a data folder beside it instead, handy for USB sticks.
Where can I get help?+
Join the Discord at arcticlauncher.com/discord: post in the support forum and attach your logs, and the bot checks them for known problems right away. Bugs can also go straight to GitHub issues.
Is this an official Minecraft launcher?+
No. It's an independent project, not affiliated with Mojang Studios or Microsoft. It downloads the game from Mojang's official servers.