How to Change Your Gamemode in Minecraft

Last Updated: May 30, 2022

Ever wanted to survive in a map you built in Creative? Or wanted to "cheat" in your Survival world to upgrade your house? Whatever the reason, this wikiHow will teach you how to change game modes in the Console Edition and Java Edition of Minecraft.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Console Edition

1
Open the world you want your gamemode changed in. This can be your own world or a LAN world.^{[1]
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- To get to a LAN world, tap or click on the Friends tab and then click on the world you wish to open.
2
Choose your gamemode. There are three game modes in Console Edition: Survival, Creative, and Adventure.^{[2]
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- Survival is a gamemode where you have to mine, get food, and fight mobs to survive. It is easier to die with threats like zombies, lava, and other players. This is the gamemode for a little bit of challenge in the game.
- Creative is the second gamemode. You don't have to worry about health, hunger, and mobs in this mode. You have unlimited resources and items, and you can break any block (including bedrock) fast with no tools. This is the gamemode if you want to build for hours on end.
- Adventure mode is like Survival - except you can't break or place blocks without tools and commands. This gamemode is generally not very useful for regular Minecraft play with the exception of custom maps.
- Note that Spectator Mode is only available in the Java Edition.
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3
Enter the command. You will need to first press the chat button (the little speech bubble on the top of your screen). Then you will need to enter /gamemode 0 to go to Survival mode, /gamemode 1 to go to Creative, and /gamemode 2 to go to Adventure.
- You can also change another player's gamemode by putting their name in front of the command. For example, to change Bob's gamemode to survival mode, you would type in /gamemode 0 Bob.
- You will need to have cheats enabled when you were creating your world for this to work.
- If you are playing on a LAN world, you need to be set to Operator by the world's owner for this to work.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Java Edition

1
Open the world you want your gamemode changed in. This can be your own world or a LAN world.^{[3]
X
Research source}
- To get to a LAN world, click on Multiplayer upon launching the game. Scroll down past the servers (if you have any) and click on the world you wish to open.
2
Choose your gamemode. There are four game modes in Console Edition: Survival, Creative, Adventure, and Spectator.^{[4]
X
Research source}
- Survival is a gamemode where you have to mine, get food, and fight mobs to survive. It is easier to die with threats like zombies, lava, and other players. This is the gamemode for a little bit of challenge in the game.
- Creative is the second gamemode. You don't have to worry about health, hunger, and mobs in this mode. You have unlimited resources and items, and you can break any block (including bedrock) fast with no tools. This is the gamemode if you want to build for hours on end.
- Adventure mode is like Survival - except you can't break or place blocks without tools and commands. This gamemode is generally not very useful for regular Minecraft play with the exception of custom maps.
- Spectator mode is also a fun gamemode. Being in Spectator mode is kind of like being a Minecraft ghost: you can go anywhere in your world, even through walls, without you and your nametag being seen or heard. You can even go underground and view all the cave systems, mineshafts, dungeons, and (if you're lucky) strongholds - all without the fear of suffocating.
3
Enter the command. You will need to first press T and then enter /gamemode survival to go to Survival mode, /gamemode creative to go to Creative, /gamemode adventure to go to Adventure, and /gamemode spectator to go to Spectator mode.^{[5]
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- If you get an error message saying "You do not have permission to do that", then press esc, then Open to LAN, click Allow Cheats, and then the Save or Export to LAN. Then try again.
- By opening your world to LAN, other players on the same WiFi as you can join your world.
- You can also change another player's gamemode by putting their name in front of the command. For example, to change Bob's gamemode to survival mode, you would type in /gamemode survival Bob.

Community Q&A

Question

It says "incorrect argument". What can I do?

Christopher Lewis

Community Answer

In 1.13+, it's no longer possible to use /gamemode 0. You must use "/gamemode survival" instead of 0.
Question

For me, gamemode is an unknown command. Any advice?

Verin

Top Answerer

It’s most likely that you don’t have Operator status in that world. On Bedrock, if you own the world, fixing it is as simplest going into settings and changing your permissions from Member or Visitor, to Operator, giving you access to all commands.
Question

How to get ghost blocks?

Verin

Top Answerer

By “ghost blocks” I’m assuming you mean Barrier Blocks, and you can get them by typing /give @s minecraft:barrier or /give @s barrier, in the chatbox.