Xaero's World Map | See Your Whole World

You surface from a three-hour caving trip with full pockets and no sense of direction. Your paper maps stopped at the edge of the last ocean, and night is falling. Xaero's World Map ends that particular kind of panic. Press M and the whole screen becomes a map that has been quietly drawing itself since you first created the world, every chunk you have ever visited rendered in full color. With roughly 92 million downloads, it sits among the most popular map mods ever made for the game.

A map that draws itself while you play

Vanilla paper maps are crafted one at a time and filled in by hand. This mod records every chunk you visit automatically, and the fullscreen result is a live atlas of your entire world. You are not stuck with a single map either. You can create multiple maps on the same server address and switch between them manually, or let the mod handle the switching on its own. It works in singleplayer, on multiplayer servers, and on Realms.

The rendering is yours to shape. A vanilla maps mode makes the world map look like an old-fashioned paper map if that suits your world. Terrain shading is customizable. A footsteps feature traces your most recent path across the map, which is a lifesaver when you backtrack through a maze of ravines. You can also export the whole map as a PNG image file, though maps that stretch millions of blocks may not export cleanly. Resource packs are supported too, and swapping packs regenerates the map so its colors match the packs you actually play with.

Waypoints and Xaero's Minimap integration

The mod is built to pair with Xaero's Minimap, and the two mods talk to each other in both directions. The world map displays your waypoints from the minimap, while the minimap displays chunks provided by the world map. From the map screen you can create, edit, and teleport to waypoints without ever closing the interface.

There is also a dedicated waypoint menu on the map itself. Click the icon in the bottom right corner of the map screen and you get a list of all your waypoints from the rendered sets. You can interact with them using the mouse cursor, filter them by name in a text field, toggle the visibility of disabled waypoints, turn rendering on or off for all sets, and change the current waypoint set. Hovering over a waypoint in the menu highlights it on the map, so the usual right-click and hover controls work there too. The integration also extends to the Better PVP mod.

Server configs, cave mode, and chunk claims

Server admins get real control here. The mod ships server-sided configs with an in-game UI screen that let you adjust, in real time, how players on your server can use the map. You can base the rules on ranks or permissions, with support for FTB Ranks, Odyssey Roles, LuckPerms, and general permission APIs through the xaero.world_map.enforced_server_profile option. To gate the map through gameplay instead, use the xaeroworldmap:no_world_map potion effect, and appending _harmful to the effect ID makes it harmful. You can even bind map access to an item. Adding mapItemId:minecraft:compass to the config means the map only works while a compass sits in your hotbar or is equipped.

Cave dimensions are supported, so the Nether gets proper map treatment. On servers, optional automatic world detection can tell your maps apart when one address hosts multiple worlds. If your server runs the Open Parties and Claims mod, the map displays chunk claims and ally players, and you can claim or forceload chunks directly from the map screen.

How to install Xaero's World Map

1. Install a mod loader first. The mod runs on Fabric, Forge, NeoForge, and Quilt. New to loaders? Our guide to installing Minecraft mods covers the whole process.
2. Download the Xaero's World Map file from the official project page.
3. Drop the file into your mods folder. Fabric players can follow our Fabric installation guide for the exact folder layout.
4. Launch the game and press M to open the map. Drag it with your mouse and zoom with the scroll wheel, much like Google Maps.
5. Add Xaero's Minimap as well if you want the waypoint integration described above.
6. Optionally install the mod on your server too. It is not required, but it unlocks extra features like world identification.
7. Playing singleplayer? Run Optimize World (Singleplayer, Edit, Optimize World) after every game update. Generating maps from unoptimized saves takes far longer.

Xaero's World Map FAQ

Is Xaero's World Map client-side or server-side?

Mostly client-sided. The mod must be installed on your client, but a server-side install is optional and only adds features like world identification.

Does Xaero's World Map affect performance?

In most cases it performs great by default. There are settings that help improve performance when you need them, and the mod is kept separate from Xaero's Minimap specifically so the minimap stays lightweight.

Does Xaero's World Map work on servers and Realms?

Yes. It works in singleplayer, multiplayer, and on Realms. On servers you can keep multiple maps on the same address, switch between them manually or automatically, and enable optional automatic world detection.

Can I use it with Xaero's Minimap and other map mods?

Xaero's Minimap is the intended companion and the integration runs deep on both sides. One clear warning from the developer: do not use XaeroPlus alongside this mod. It is not affiliated with Xaero, causes critical untrackable bugs and crashes, and is allegedly tied to a server griefing group, which can put your server builds at risk.

The mod is still in active development, with its latest update released in August 2026, so report any bugs you find. If you are starting a fresh world to chart, our top Minecraft seeds for September 2026 and the Wild Lands biome overhaul will hand you plenty of new terrain to fill in.

Screenshots: thexaero · via Modrinth