If you sell a Minecraft plugin, sooner or later you'll want a license check: something that stops one purchase from turning into fifty servers. There are more options than there used to be, and they work in quite different ways.
This guide covers the main ones as of October 2026: what each is, how it's hosted, what it costs and who it suits. Yes, MC License is one of them, and yes, we make it. We've stuck to facts each project publishes about itself, and we'll point out where another option is the better fit.
First: three ways licensing systems work
Before comparing names, it helps to know the three broad designs:
- Hosted license checks. Your plugin asks a server "is this key valid?" when it starts, and the server signs its answer so it can't be faked. The provider runs the server; you add a library or some code to your plugin. Examples: MC License, Lukittu, LicenseGate (hosted).
- Self-hosted license servers. The same idea, but you run the server yourself on your own VPS. More control, more upkeep. Examples: SunLicense, LicenseGate (self-hosted), Keygen CE.
- Loaders and remote classloaders. The buyer installs a small loader, and your real plugin is downloaded and run in memory, so there's no complete jar on disk to crack. The strongest model against tampering, but it depends on the network every time the server starts. Examples: ObsidianLicense, Lukittu's classloader (Pro, in progress).
Whichever you choose, check the rules where you sell. SpigotMC bans licensing systems of any form in premium resources. BuiltByBit and Tebex allow them. Voxel Shop allows them if they work out of the box with no extra steps for the buyer. (More on marketplace rules.)
Quick comparison
| Type | Price | Open source | Marketplace automation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MC License | Hosted | From $4.99/mo; $99 lifetime | Client library only | BuiltByBit, Voxel Shop, Tebex |
| Lukittu | Hosted | Pro €2.90/mo | Yes (AGPL-3.0) | BuiltByBit, Polymart, Stripe |
| LicenseGate | Hosted or self-hosted | Free | Yes | Not listed |
| SunLicense | Self-hosted | One-off purchase on BuiltByBit | Source code tier available | Not listed |
| ObsidianLicense | Loader (in-memory) | Sold on BuiltByBit | No | Not listed |
| Keygen | Hosted or self-hosted (CE) | Cloud service, or free self-hosted CE | CE edition | General-purpose |
| Build your own | Self-hosted | Your time | Yours | Whatever you build |
MC License
What it is: a hosted licensing platform built only for Minecraft plugins, from the team behind LearnSpigot.
How it works: add the library (or copy one class) and call MCLicense.validateKey in onEnable(). Every response is RSA-signed and tied to a per-request nonce, so it can't be faked or replayed. Concurrent server limits and IP restrictions stop key sharing, and you can disable any key from the dashboard.
Stand-out features: automatic license delivery on BuiltByBit, Voxel Shop and Tebex (keys are injected into the download, or emailed for Tebex), a public license checker for your buyers, a Discord bot, per-plugin collaborators, and Folia support in the library.
Pricing: Basic is $4.99/mo for 3 plugins and 50 licenses each, Professional is $9.99/mo with no limits, and Lifetime is a one-off $99.
Best for: developers selling on BuiltByBit, Voxel Shop or Tebex who want licensing working in minutes and keys delivered with no manual work.
Lukittu
What it is: an open-source (AGPL-3.0), hosted licensing service for Minecraft, FiveM, Roblox and other software.
How it works: your plugin calls Lukittu's verify endpoint with an RSA 2048 challenge-response. There's no client library; you adapt an example plugin. It can limit keys by IP and by hardware ID.
Stand-out features: Stripe integration with subscriptions, BuiltByBit and Polymart automation, Discord role verification, and a remote classloader on Pro (described in its docs as a work in progress).
Pricing: Pro is €2.90/mo or €32/yr for 50 products, 500 licenses and 20 team members.
Best for: price-sensitive developers, and anyone who also sells outside Minecraft. We've written a detailed MC License vs Lukittu comparison.
LicenseGate
What it is: a free, open-source license system that you can use as a hosted service or self-host.
How it works: RSA-signed responses, license expiry and server limits, with a REST API, a Java library and a Discord bot for handing out keys.
Things to know: its SpigotMC listing shows version 1.0.0 from February 2024, so check how actively it's maintained before you depend on it. Its own listing notes it can't be used in SpigotMC premium plugins (true of every option here).
Best for: hobby developers who want something free and simple.
SunLicense
What it is: a self-hosted license management system sold as a one-off purchase on BuiltByBit.
How it works: you run it on your own server. It includes a web admin dashboard, a customer-facing dashboard with Discord login, a Discord bot, a REST API and a Java wrapper.
Things to know: self-hosting means you own uptime, backups and security updates. If your license server goes down, every customer's plugin goes with it.
Best for: developers who want to own the whole stack and are comfortable running a server.
ObsidianLicense
What it is: a loader-based protection system for Paper plugins, sold on BuiltByBit.
How it works: instead of the plugin itself, buyers install a small loader plugin. Your real plugin is delivered at runtime and runs in memory, so there's no plaintext jar on disk. It also offers server-side kill switches, per-machine binding and access logging.
Things to know: this is the strongest model against someone simply deleting your license check. The trade-off is that your plugin can't start without reaching the loader's server, and it's a heavier setup for buyers. Check marketplace rules carefully: Voxel Shop requires protection to work out of the box, and SpigotMC bans it.
Best for: high-value plugins that are frequently cracked.
Keygen
What it is: a general-purpose software licensing API, not specific to Minecraft. It runs as a cloud service, and there is also a self-hostable Community Edition.
Things to know: it's powerful and well-documented, but you'd write all the Minecraft-side code yourself: the plugin integration, key storage and marketplace delivery.
Best for: teams who sell other software too and want one licensing system for everything.
Building your own
You can absolutely build your own: a database of keys and a validation endpoint. The hard part is everything after the weekend version: signing responses, defeating replay attacks, server limits, marketplace webhooks and staying online. We've written an honest breakdown in should you build your own licensing system?
How to choose
- You sell on BuiltByBit, Voxel Shop or Tebex and want it done today: MC License.
- You want the cheapest hosted option, or open source: Lukittu.
- You want free and simple for a hobby plugin: LicenseGate.
- You want to own the server: SunLicense or Keygen CE.
- Your plugin gets cracked constantly and is worth the extra friction: a loader like ObsidianLicense.
- You only sell on SpigotMC: none of them. SpigotMC doesn't allow licensing, so rely on its download placeholders to trace leaks.
Whatever you pick, pair it with obfuscation and make sure the check doesn't freeze the server on startup.
Details are from each project's own website, documentation or marketplace listing as of October 2026. Spotted something out of date? Let us know in Discord and we'll update it.