Modrinth App Download: Install It and Play a Modpack

You found a modpack on Modrinth, and every download button points you to the Modrinth App. This guide takes you from the official download to playing the pack, adding mods, sharing it and running it on a server. All of it was checked on 31 October 2026 against Modrinth's download page, changelog and the App's source code for version 0.22.1.

Quick answer: The Modrinth App download is on modrinth.com/app. It is Modrinth's free launcher for Minecraft: Java Edition, at version 0.22.1 from 29 October 2026 and still labelled beta, with a .exe for Windows, one .dmg for Intel and Apple silicon Macs, and Flathub as Modrinth's first choice for Linux. Install it, sign in with the Microsoft account that owns Minecraft, click the compass icon (Discover content), open a modpack, click Install and then Play; the App fetches the right Java and mod loader itself. Add mods in the instance's Content tab, share with Export modpack or the Share tab, and for a server, install the same pack version with a host's modpack installer, Modrinth Hosting or mrpack-install.

Modrinth App Download: The Official Files

The Modrinth App is made by Rinth, Inc., the company behind modrinth.com, and its code is public on GitHub under the GPL-3.0 license. It is free and shows ads, which a Modrinth Plus subscription removes.

modrinth.com/app offers the file for your system. These were the 0.22.1 files on 31 October 2026:

The same files are attached to each release on Modrinth's GitHub, and Flathub lists the App as verified for Rinth, Inc. Modrinth tucks the .deb, .rpm and AppImage under "Show other packages" with the note "We don't recommend you use these unless you know what you're doing", and warns that the Linux versions "are known to have issues on certain systems and configurations". Wondering whether the App is safe? See is Modrinth safe.

How to Install the Modrinth App

Windows: run the .exe from your Downloads folder and follow the installer. Modrinth builds it in current-user mode, which installs into a folder that needs no administrator access. Then start Modrinth App from the Start menu.

Mac: open the .dmg, drag Modrinth App onto the Applications folder in the window that appears, and start it from Applications.

Linux: with Flatpak and the Flathub remote set up, install and start it with:

flatpak install flathub com.modrinth.ModrinthApp
flatpak run com.modrinth.ModrinthApp

First Start: Accounts and Importing

A Getting started checklist lists three steps: create your first instance, sign in to Minecraft and sign in to Modrinth.

• Minecraft account (needed to play). Click Sign in to Minecraft, or press Play and the App asks for it. A window with Microsoft's sign-in page opens. In the App's own words: "You need a Microsoft account that owns Minecraft before you can launch and play."
• Modrinth account (optional). Signing in to Modrinth opens your browser. You need it for shared instances, friends and Modrinth Hosting, and creators only get payout credit for in-app downloads by signed-in users.
• Coming from another launcher? Import from launcher, or the + icon and Import instance, finds instances from Prism Launcher, MultiMC, ATLauncher, GDLauncher and the CurseForge app and brings them over.

How to Use the Modrinth App to Install a Modpack

There are three ways in:

1. Inside the App. Click the compass icon in the left sidebar (Discover content), which opens on Modpacks. Search, open a pack and click Install. The App creates a new instance for it.
2. From modrinth.com. On the pack's page, click Download, then Install with Modrinth App. Your browser asks to open the App through a modrinth:// link, and the App shows an install prompt for that pack.
3. From a .mrpack file. Click the + icon (Create new instance), choose Upload a modpack and pick the file, or open the file with the App. A pack not hosted on Modrinth gets a safety warning first; only continue with files from people you trust.

When the install finishes, open the instance and click Play. The first install takes longest: the App downloads Minecraft, the mod loader, every file in the pack and the Java version that Minecraft version needs. When no matching Java is set, it fetches an Azul Zulu runtime by itself. A download manager shows each task and can pause, resume or cancel it.

New instances get a memory default based on your PC's RAM: 2 GB below 8 GB of system memory, 4 GB below 24 GB and 6 GB from 24 GB, so a 16 GB PC starts at 4 GB and a 32 GB PC at 6 GB. Big packs often ask for more. Change it for one instance with the gear icon (Instance settings) and the Java and memory tab, or for every instance without its own override in Settings, under Instance defaults.

Add Mods, Shaders and Resource Packs

Open the instance and stay on its Content tab.

• Browse content opens Discover for that instance. The game version and loader filters are locked to the instance, so you only see files that fit, and installing a mod also installs the dependencies its version lists as required.
• Upload files adds a .jar or pack from your computer. Since version 0.21.0 (14 September 2026) the Files tab is read-only for managed mods and packs, so your own files go in here.
• Shader packs and resource packs install the same way. For Iris, see our Modrinth shaders guide.

On a modpack instance, the pack's mods sit in a Modpack content card and your additions appear under Additional content. The pack decides the Minecraft version and loader. Under Instance settings, the Installation tab has Unlink, which "permanently disconnects" the instance from the pack so you can change both, but ends the pack's updates, and Re-install modpack, which resets the content and removes what you added.

For your own setup instead of a pack, click +, choose Custom setup and pick Fabric, NeoForge, Forge or Quilt with a game version, or choose Vanilla Minecraft.

Update the App, Your Mods and the Modpack

The App itself. The Windows and Mac versions check for a new version every five minutes while they run, download it in the background (not on a metered connection) and install it when you click Reload to update or close the App. The Flathub version does not update itself; run flatpak update instead.

Your mods. The Content tab marks projects with a newer version. Update all moves every outdated project to its newest compatible version, though the App's own prompt recommends updating one by one.

The modpack. When the pack gets a new version, its Modpack content card says Update available, and Switch version lets you pick the version. The App then warns that mods you added on top are kept "but may not be compatible with the new version". Back up your worlds first; our guide to updating a modpack without losing your world shows how.

Share Your Modpack With Friends

Export a .mrpack file. On the instance page, open the More actions menu next to Play, choose Export modpack, enter a name and version number, tick the files to include, such as configs, and click Export. Friends install it with + and Upload a modpack. A shared file gets no automatic updates, Modrinth's help center notes, so send a new one after each change.

Share the instance. Since version 0.16.0 (24 July 2026), instances have a Share tab, which needs a Modrinth account. Invite friends by username or with a share link; once they accept, the instance installs like a normal one. When you change something, click Push update, and friends review the changes the next time they press Play. They can add their own mods on top but cannot edit yours, and one shared instance holds up to 50 users. Shared instances "are not reviewed like published Modrinth projects", Modrinth warns, so only accept invites from people you trust. An instance installed from a .mrpack file has to be unlinked before you can share it.

Play the Modpack on a Server

The App runs Minecraft on your own PC, so your world goes offline when you close the game. To play together, run the pack on a server, with every player on the server's pack version.

A .mrpack is a launcher file, but the format can mark files as client-only or server-only and carry a server-overrides folder, which Modrinth says is there "to eliminate the need for server packs". Three ways to put the pack on a server:

• A host with a Modrinth modpack installer. On Space-Node's modded Minecraft hosting, the Pterodactyl panel's modpack installer lets you choose Modrinth as the source, search for the pack and install it; a pack that is not listed goes up over SFTP.
• Modrinth Hosting. Modrinth's own paid hosting, labelled beta on its hosting page on 31 October 2026, builds a server from a Modrinth pack, and you can buy and manage it inside the App. Our Modrinth Hosting review covers plans and limits.
• Your own machine. Modrinth's help center lists mrpack-install, an open source command line tool (v0.22.0-beta, 28 October 2026) that downloads the pack and installs the server with the loader the pack needs:

mrpack-install <pack-slug> <version> --server-dir srv --server-file mc.jar
echo 'eula=true' > srv/eula.txt
cd srv && java -Xmx6G -jar mc.jar nogui

<pack-slug> is the last part of the pack's Modrinth address and <version> the version number your players use, as listed on the pack's Versions tab. -Xmx6G gives the server 6 GB of memory; set what your pack needs. For Forge 1.17 and newer or NeoForge, start with java @user_jvm_args.txt -jar mc.jar nogui and set the memory in user_jvm_args.txt. Writing eula=true means you accept Minecraft's EULA, and the server needs the Java version its Minecraft version requires (Java versions for Minecraft). If it crashes on a mod that belongs on the client, see client-side mods on a modded server.

Joining someone else's server is shorter. The Servers tab under Discover content lists servers with a Server Project on Modrinth. Click Play on a modded one, then Install; the notice that appears when the instance is ready takes you straight into the server, and the App asks you to accept every new pack version before your next join.

Common Problems

• Microsoft sign-in fails. The App names the reason. With "doesn't have an Xbox profile set up or doesn't own Minecraft", check that this account bought the game, sign in once on minecraft.net and finish the Xbox profile setup if asked. If it finds no Java Edition profile, start Java Edition once in the official Minecraft Launcher, and after a recent purchase wait up to an hour.
• The game will not start after an install. Instance settings, Installation tab, Repair instance. It reinstalls the loader and Minecraft files without deleting your content.
• You cannot find the mods folder. Each instance has its own folder, not .minecraft: use More actions and Open folder. By default instances live in %AppData%\ModrinthApp\profiles on Windows, ~/Library/Application Support/ModrinthApp/profiles on a Mac and ~/.local/share/ModrinthApp/profiles on Linux, or ~/.var/app/com.modrinth.ModrinthApp/data/ModrinthApp/profiles for the Flathub version. Settings can move this folder, but Modrinth warns against folders that need administrator rights, such as Program Files.
• The App is unstable on Linux. Modrinth tracks these reports in one open GitHub issue and suggests Prism Launcher if the App keeps failing. See our Prism Launcher setup guide and Modrinth App vs Prism Launcher.

FAQ

Where do I download the Modrinth App? From modrinth.com/app, Modrinth's own download page. The same files are on Modrinth's GitHub releases, and on Linux Modrinth points to the verified Flathub app. Skip copies on other download sites.

Is the Modrinth launcher free? Yes. The App and everything you download from Modrinth cost nothing. The App shows ads, which a Modrinth Plus subscription removes, and you still need to own Minecraft: Java Edition to play.

How do I use Modrinth to install mods? In the App, open an instance, click Browse content on the Content tab and install what you want; the App matches the instance's version and loader. Without the App, download the file for your version and loader from the mod's Versions tab into the mods folder of a matching profile, as in our Fabric install guide.

Is the Modrinth App safe? Yes, when you download it from modrinth.com/app. Its code is public, and it warns before installing a pack from outside Modrinth. Our Is Modrinth safe? guide covers how Modrinth scans uploads.

Can the Modrinth App install CurseForge modpacks? Not from CurseForge's catalog: it searches Modrinth only, and Upload a modpack takes .mrpack files. A pack you already have in the CurseForge app comes over with Import instance. If many of your packs live on CurseForge, see Prism Launcher vs CurseForge vs Modrinth App.

Sources

All opened on 31 October 2026:

• Modrinth: Modrinth App download page, launcher update feed (version, date, file names), App changelog, Modrinth Plus, Creator Monetization Program, Modrinth Hosting
• Modrinth news: Introducing Server Projects (4 March 2026), Modrinth Hosting in the App (12 April 2026), Share instances with friends (24 July 2026), More ways to personalize your library (18 August 2026)
• Modrinth help center, read in Internet Archive copies of 15 and 16 October 2026: Modrinth Modpack Format (.mrpack), Modpacks on Modrinth, Sharing modpacks, Modrinth App storage folder location
• Modrinth App source code, release v0.22.1: tauri.conf.json, App interface strings, shared interface strings, App.vue (update checks), jre.rs (Java and default memory), launcher, dirs.rs, launcher import, Microsoft sign-in and its error messages, instance creation, Discover filters, instance header, Export modpack, Share tab, license, Linux issue #3057
• Modrinth website source: Install with Modrinth App button
• Flathub: Modrinth App and its Flatpak manifest
• Flatpak documentation: Using Flatpak, Conventions
• Tauri: configuration schema (NSIS install mode)
• mrpack-install: repository, usage for v0.22.0-beta