Quick answer: For most servers: Paper (or Purpur for 50+ players). Spigot only as fallback. Vanilla only for small worlds without plugins.
If you landed here: You want to pick the best server type or your server lags on Spigot/vanilla.
Comparison
| Type | TPS | Plugins | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vanilla | Medium | No | Small servers only |
| Spigot | Medium | Yes | Legacy / compatibility |
| Paper | High | Yes (Spigot-compatible) | Default choice |
| Purpur | Very high | Yes | Large communities |
Related
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Paper or Spigot for Minecraft server?
Paper is recommended – better TPS, more optimization options and compatible with most Spigot plugins.
Is Paper faster than Spigot?
Yes, Paper has significant performance optimizations and typically runs 20 TPS with more players and plugins.