Which Bedrock Software is for you?

PocketMine-MP‌

Unlike the other two software PocketMine-MP is written using PHP. It was the first form of server software for the Minecraft Bedrock community and is currently one of the most used.

The Advantages of PocketMine

1. Since it is the most popular as well as the oldest, it has a lot of public plugins which you can use.

2. Compared to the other two softwares, PocketMine is not RAM heavy. This means PocketMine uses more CPU rather than RAM.

3. For newer developers, there is a great community that can help you out with your plugins.

4. Extensive API allowing you to change every aspect of how your server behaves.

‌The Disadvantages of PocketMine

1. PHP is not a widely known or easy to learn language for new developers. It would be harder to create plugins for this software opposed to other softwares.

2. Lacks most vanilla features, although there are plugins that offer some vanilla functionality, most are buggy or no longer work.​‌

Cloudburst Nukkit

Nukkit is written using Java. It was the second unique form of server software for the Minecraft Bedrock community. It isn't the most used but is rapidly growing.

The Advantages of Nukkit

1. Just like PocketMine, it also is relatively popular and has a lot of public plugins you can use; but not as many as PocketMine offers.

2. Compared to the other two softwares, Java is more RAM heavy, meaning Java uses more RAM than CPU.

3. Extensive API allowing you to change every aspect of how your server behaves.

4. Java is more widespread and more friendly for new developers, which makes it easier for new developers to start out.

The Disadvantages of Nukkit

1. Compared to PocketMine, it doesn't have as big of a developer community. It may be harder to get support for the issues you encounter.

2. While Nukkit has more vanilla feature support then PocketMine does, the way they are implemented makes them more glitchy then a vanilla server.

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Bedrock Dedicated Server (BDS)

Bedrock Dedicated Server (BDS) is written in C++. It is widely considered the official server software for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition. This software is relatively new and isn't used as much as the previous two.

The Advantages of BDS

1. One of the main and only advantage of BDS is it's ability to have every vanilla feature working properly (redstone, mobs, command blocks, etc).

The Disadvantages of BDS

1. There isn't any API so writing plugins for this software is not possible currently unless you used a modded BDS version.

2. BDS is known to be very laggy and sluggish.

Which one is best for you?

If you are looking for a normal vanilla world to play with a few friends and want to have all the vanilla features, BDS would work perfectly for you. PocketMine and Nukkit are both really good for factions, minigames, or any other game mode but if you were to choose which one it would depend on who you are and what you need. For example, if you have a background in Java, it would make sense to go with Nukkit since you could apply your knowledge to make plugins and modify the software.