How Many People Still Play Minecraft?

Minecraft really doesn't get the credit it deserves. If you were asked to name the most popular game right now, you might say Fortnite. And that's true in the sense that Fortnite is more talked about. In terms of which game is played the most, though? Epic's shooter still doesn't hold a candle to Mojang's block-busting sandbox title.

How many people still play Minecraft, you ask? The most recent numbers we were able to dig up are from March 2019, when Minecraft was added to Xbox Game Pass. At that time, Microsoft announced to the world that the game had over 91 million monthly players. That is more than the populations of California, Texas, and Florida combined, logging on at least once per month to build some things or adventure inside Minecraft. And that is remarkable.

To contrast, the last public numbers we have from Fortnite are from September 2018. Those peg Epic's battle royale title at approximately 78 million players per month. Still impressive, but not anywhere close to the number Minecraft is boasting. It's easy to get caught up in the Fortnite hype, especially in light of the game's esports scene really taking off. But Minecraft seems to be incredibly sticky to those who give it a go. It definitely gets the creative juices flowing, and some players have built some amazing works of art as a result.

Is it possible Minecraft could have more players now? We wouldn't see why not. The game being added to Xbox Game Pass might've helped usher some new players into its ecosystem. Then again, it's reasonable to think that, during the summer months, Minecraft's population could have taken a hit. We won't know for sure until Microsoft decides to announce some fresh new numbers.

And since most companies like to hold those back for a special occasion — and tend to share them only if they've gone up — we might have to wait a bit to get an update.