The best Minecraft skins

The best Minecraft skins are hard to find, or they would be, were it not for handy guides like this. Your favorite skins will always come down to personal preference, but we've gathered the best ones we've seen based on the creativity and quality of the pixel art.

We've covered the basics like recognizable characters from video games, movies, and comics. Keep a lookout for some of the odder ones. Becoming a walking watermelon doesn't sound that cool at first, but what if you also had cool sunglasses?

Best Minecraft skins: here are our picks

Videogame-inspired skins

Companion Cube

Remember when shootypuzzling title Portal made us care about an inanimate hunk of metal? Ah, good times… until they weren’t, of course. But fresh from that awful incinerator, The Weighted Companion Cube is back as a Minecraft skin.

Link: Companion Cube

Ryu

Play as Street Fighter's Hadouken-happy poster boy with this skin. He’s sporting his customary red gloves and stylish bandana, as well as toting some seriously well-shaded guns. And, unlike Street Fighter, weapons are a thing in Minecraft. Ryu with a big, cheaty diamond sword? Sold.

Link: Ryu

Link and Princess Zelda

It's dangerous to mine alone, so take these two skins for a spin with a pal. Link’s carrying his Hylian shield on his back, while Zelda’s bedecked in some detailed royal bling. Top tip: install the Familiars mod to have a little Navi follow your Hero of Time around and flag up diamond ore.

Link: Link and Princess Zelda

Ezio Auditore

Parkour's one of the most popular map types in Minecraft. And who better to jump around chunky rooftops as? Videogames’ finest assassin dons a pixelated hood for your very own creeper-flavoured version of Requiescat In Pace. You’ll probably have to craft your own haystacks, though.

Link: Ezio

Isaac

Why yes, Survival mode on Hardcore difficulty does make us feel like the unfortunate protagonist of tough-as-nails roguelike The Binding of Isaac. Forgo the power trip of superhero skins and strip down to the true form of anyone confronted with an army of zombie pigmen: a bare-naked, blubbering baby.

Link: Isaac

Solaire of Astora

Praise the sun. You can finally become the most grossly incandescent being in existence; it's time to become the one true Sun Bro. Not only will this give you the form of Solaire of Astora, but if you slowly descend into madness and get taken over by a parasite, then at least it'll be in keeping with the character. 

Link: Solaire

Superhero skins

Deadpool

Quick, somebody play some DMX! Everybody’s favourite, foul-mouthed obliterator of the fourth-wall scrubs up a treat in cuboid Lycra. Now that dual-wielding’s in the game, you could even have him dual-wielding twin swords.

Link: Deadpool

Batman

Apparently, the caped crusader is the most used skin after good ol’ Steve. Bat-eared mask? Check. Iconic black Speedos? Check. Cold, dead, white eyes? Erm, check. It’s little wonder this one’s so popular—Batman versus Enderman is quite the sight to behold. Unlike that other “Batman versus” movie, but let's not get into that.

Link: Batman

Superman

Well, speak of the devil: here’s Supes in all his elegantly-coiffed glory. Along with his classic red and blue attire, the Minecraft version of the comic book icon models a flowing red cape so resplendent, it appears to have bled into his legs a little bit. All the best accessories do.

Link: Superman

Captain America

With shields a part of Minecraft’s combat since the latest update, you might be tempted to slip into this rather patriotic little number to cosplay as this helicopter-curlin’ hero. The leader of the Avengers is a great choice—although I can’t promise that this skin will make your shields indestructible.

Link: Captain America

Iron Man

Got richer tastes? Then rep Team Iron in the Minecraft world’s most expensive and well-armed suit. It could inspire you to become a better business owner (take good care of your pig farms), brush up on your engineering skills (dust off those redstone repeaters) or reprise your career as an international playboy (nope, this is Minecraft. I got nothing).

Link: Iron Man

Thanos

Look, if Deadpool is a superhero, then so is Thanos. His methods weren't ideal, but his goal was an admirable one; to try and save the universe. Could he just have snapped more resources into existence? Yes, but maybe he's really, really tired and just wants a nap. We've all been there. 

Link : Thanos

Food skins

Derpy Cake

The cake is alive! And it appears to be some sort of vanilla-frosted, candy-besprinkled chocolate affair. Also it has legs and a face. Bit off-putting, if I'm honest—but tons of fun to play as, especially if you’re using a sweets-themed texture pack and crafting a castle made entirely of Skittles, cookies and joy.

Link: Derpy Cake

Burger

Actually, can I have the goofy mug back, please? Burger’s lack of facial features is sort of strange. Who knows how many of the sesame seeds on his face are functioning eyes. His MLT (meat, lettuce and tomatoes) shirt is rather endearing, though.

Link: Burger

Zombie Taco

Somebody left this charming specimen of Mexican cuisine out a little too long: he’s gone rotten. His delicious, crispy head is all bashed in, and instead of exposed brains, we spy yummy taco-tastic filling inside.

Link: Zombie Taco

Watermelon Dude

This one’s refreshing. Not content with being a simple watermelon, this guy is accessorising with a wicked-cool pair of shades and a pip-eating grin. He’s also wearing a shirt with a picture of a watermelon on it, which is a pretty narcissistic move, if you think about it.

Link: Watermelon Dude

Soda Bottle Monstrosity

“Monstrosity” hardly seems fair. Come on, just look at his wee bottle-cap hat! The adorable cokehead wears red and white, and appears to be made entirely of glass. I'd recommend not falling down any ravines while inhabiting this form.

Link: Soda Bottle Monstrosity

Burger King

This entry could have gone on the Horror list to, let's be honest. Featuring everyone's favourite dead-eyed food mascot, the Burger King skin does exactly what it says on the tin. You too can now rule on high as the pinnacle of the burger hierarchy. Just don't let the power go to your head. 

Link: Burger King

Horror skins

Slenderman

Even in Minecraft, you can’t escape the internet’s most iconic apparation. Blank-faced, suited and booted, this skin rivals the Enderman for the game’s creepiest lanky terror. Put it on and lurk outside all your friend’s virtual hangouts if you’re feeling super-evil.

Link: Slenderman

Creepy Mickey Mouse

We’ll forever maintain that Mickey Mouse and his squeaky chuckles were unsettling enough without a gaping maw full of awful rickety teeth. Just in case the nightmares weren’t enough, here’s an extra-weird version of Disney’s darling for you to play as.

Link: Creepy Mickey Mouse

Scary Clown

Oh no. No, thanks. This Pennywise-esque abomination prompts so many questions. Are those his eyebrows or his eyeballs? Is he wearing denim dungarees or floral Spandex? Is that red stuff on his head his hair or an extended Chelsea Smile? I'm too busy running away to check.

Link: Scary Clown

Swamp Glob

Squelching his way onto our list of faves is Swamp Glob, who in comparison to all this nightmare fuel is actually oddly sweet. Nice, wide toothy torso of a smile—probably a delight on picture day. Wear it to have your whole head morph into a heavily-veined eyeball. Fun.

Link: Swamp Glob

Ju-on The Grudge Ghost

Well, somebody needs a haircut. I'm being flippant, of course, because humour is our only defense against this walking (or should that be staircase-crawling?) nopenopenope. Supernatural star of the Japanese horror movie, Kayako Saeki’s sure to freak out your fellow server-goers.

Link: Ju-on The Grudge Ghost

Pennywise

Contrary to what you might think, Pennywise is actually terrible with money. We;re just clowning around, why would an ancient shapeshifting cosmic evil even need money? They can just eat children instead, which is gross, and highly calorific. A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips. 

Link: Pennywise

Meme skins

Zoidberg

The professor’s originally from the television series Futurama, but he’s made quite the sideline out of his appearances in animated GIFs and forums (we hear it pays brilliantly). Now a meme in his own right, bring out this beauty, then run around screaming “YOUR SKIN IS BAD AND YOU SHOULD FEEL BAD!” at others.

Link: Zoidberg

Trollface

Minecraft takes a perverse pleasure in trolling its players: in fact, I'm not sure why the native creeper skins don’t have trollfaces. This skin will at least let you smirk mockingly right back at the little green griefers—and the tailoring on that suit ain’t half bad, either.

Link: Trollface

Doge

Much beautiful. Very skin. Wow. This grammatically inept shibe is pretty much a universal treasure now, so stepping into his paws for a spot of crafting can only lead to good, fluffy things. What do you mean, you need opposable thumbs to hold a pickaxe?

Link: Doge

Dat Boi

With that essential unicycle (wow, there’s a combination of words that’s probably never been written before) fused comfortably into this skin’s legs, here comes dat boi to wheel his way into Minecraft. Our only response to this, of course, is a solemn “oh s**t waddup”.

Link: Dat Boi

Damn, Daniel!

Those trademark white Vans are practically glowing in this Minecraft skin tribute to the world’s most stylish high-schooler. We would never have thought to pair a red backpack with a graphic tee. Truly the great thinker of our generation. Tell us your secrets, Daniel.

Link: Damn, Daniel!

Bob Ross

Bob Ross is famous for his incredibly chilled painting show, and the phrase 'happy little trees'. He's one of the most wholesome people to have ever existed, and if you've never watched his shows, you should do so now. Well, after you've done some mining as him. 

Link: Bob Ross

Looking for more Minecraft skins? Head on to page two for a round-up of the best Minecraft skin hosting sites.

Best sites for Minecraft skins

Minecraft Skins

The site’s clean, bright look and picture-gallery style make scrolling through skins super-easy. Categories at the top of the page provide simple shortcuts to, say, movie-related or gaming-inspired fare; the sidebar features the newest and most popular skins with lovely little floating-head previews of each. The no-hassle option if you just fancy a change.

Link: Minecraft Skins

Planet Minecraft

Planet Minecraft is undoubtedly the most comprehensive site. Plug in any search term you can dream up and you’ll most likely find a suitable skin in the huge database. With plenty of handy categories to browse, and a monthly skin creation contest producing tons of excellent new user-created content, this one’s essential.

Link: Planet Minecraft

The Skindex

Winner of all the awards I can possibly gather into my blocky little arms for “Most Inspired and Puntastic Minecraft Skin Site Name” (a somewhat esoteric accolade, admittedly) is The Skindex. You can search by skin, or even by author, if you’ve found an artist whose style you particularly enjoy. It even boasts its own rather brilliant skin editor. Come for the pun, stay for the skins.

Link: The Skindex

Minecraft Skin Search

Sometimes, however, you just want to fit in. Enter Minecraft Skin Search: it’ll let you search Minecrafter usernames and bring up the skin that your best pal or fave YouTuber is currently rockin’. Whether it’s to show your super-fan status or to go undercover to fulfill your own dastardly Minecrafting plans, you can become their doppelganger by downloading it for yourself.

Link: Minecraft skin search

Miners Need Cool Shoes

There are a good handful of custom Minecraft skin creators out there in Internetland, but this one’s our go-to. Never made your own skin before? No problem—this editor is easy to use, with a huge variety of tools to take advantage of. Beginning with someone else’s skin as a base is a simple way to start out, as is the ability to search for and use pre-made parts (hairstyles, hoodies etc.) on your custom creation.

Link: Miners Need Cool Shoes