Build the Earth: Minecraft's 1:1 Planet and How to Join

Build the Earth (also written BuildTheEarth, or BTE) is a volunteer project rebuilding the entire planet in Minecraft Java Edition at full size, where one block equals one meter. Real terrain is generated from map data, and teams of players build the buildings, roads and landmarks on top by hand. It isn’t finished, and with a whole planet to cover, it won’t be any time soon.

It started in 2020 and grew quickly. As of late 2026, the project’s own site reports more than 17,600 builders, over a million buildings, and more than 1,100 square kilometers built.

How Build the Earth works

The trick is the terrain. A normal Minecraft world is generated randomly from a seed. Build the Earth instead generates terrain from real elevation and map data, so hills, rivers and coastlines are in the right place and at the right height, and road outlines line up with the real world.

That gives builders a base to work on. They then recreate buildings one by one, using photos, street-level imagery and maps for reference. Big builds lean heavily on tools like WorldEdit for walls, roofs and repeated details.

Because the real world is much taller than a Minecraft world allows, and much bigger, the project uses its own server setup and tools to handle height and scale. Those tools have changed over the years, so follow the current instructions on buildtheearth.net rather than an old video.

Build teams

The planet is split up by region. Each region has a build team with its own server, Discord and standards. Some teams cover a whole country, others a single city. If you want to build your own neighborhood, you find the team responsible for your area and join them.

We haven’t been able to confirm an active team for Bangladesh. If you want to build Dhaka or Chattogram, check the team list on the official site to see who covers the region.

How to visit

Visitors are welcome and it’s free. On Java Edition:

1. Go to buildtheearth.net and open the visit section.
2. Either join the central hub server, which lets you teleport between featured builds, or connect directly to a regional team’s server.
3. Explore. Visitors can look around but can’t change the builds.

If you’ve never joined a server before, how to join a Minecraft server covers adding a server address.

How to join as a builder

1. Find the build team for the region you want to work on.
2. Join their Discord and read their rules.
3. Complete their onboarding, which usually means building a trial structure to show you can match the project’s accuracy.
4. Once accepted, you get build permissions on their server.

Accuracy matters more than speed. Teams expect correct proportions, real materials where possible, and buildings that match their real-world footprints. If you’re still learning to build, practice first: our building ideas for beginners is a fine place to start.

Build the Earth vs “Earth servers”

Build the Earth is a building project. Separately, there are “Earth” servers that use a scaled-down world map for survival and politics, with nations, towns and wars. They’re a different thing entirely, covered in Earth servers explained.

For other fan projects and the official spin-offs, see the media hub.