Tellraw is a powerful command system in Minecraft used to display custom messages, game data, and dynamic text directly on screen. Learning how to use tellraw opens up advanced scoreboards, formatted team labels, and polished actionbar notifications.
Below is a quick reference table that summarizes key aspects of tellraw syntax, selectors, components, and common use cases.
| Component Type | Key Property | Example Value | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raw Text | text | "Hello World" | Plain message content |
| Selector | selector | @a | Target multiple players |
| Bold Styling | bold | true | Make text appear bold |
| Color | color | "gold" | Apply preset text colors |
| Hover Event | hoverEvent | show_text: "tooltip" | Display text on mouse hover |
| Click Event | clickEvent | run_command: "/tell @p Hello" | Trigger actions on click |
Basic Tellraw Syntax and Structure
The core command follows the structure /tellraw
For simple messages, you can start with {"text":"Your message here"} and wrap it with the command. Advanced builds combine multiple components using commas inside square brackets to create rich, layered text outputs.
Always test in a controlled environment before deploying tellraw in live worlds, because malformed JSON can cause command failures or display glitches that are hard to debug.
Targeting Players and Selectors
Selectors are essential for dynamic messaging that reacts to the game world. Using @p, @a, @r, or @e lets you choose who receives the message without naming every player manually.
You can refine selectors with key tags like
When you need stability, store target names or UUIDs in storage or scoreboard objectives and reference them in your command, reducing reliance on selectors that may change during a session.
Formatting, Colors, and Styling Options
Tellraw supports bold, italic, underlined, and strikethrough text through simple boolean flags. Setting bold to true or italic to true adjusts the visual style without external resources.
Color properties accept named values such as "aqua", "dark_purple", "gold", and "white", helping you match server themes or brand identities. You can also use click and hover events to attach tooltips and command triggers directly to styled text.
Combine these features in nested components to build sophisticated tooltips that explain complex systems, or actionbar alerts that animate via third-party plugins using incremental text updates.
Advanced Interactions with Events
Hover events and click events transform static text into interactive elements. With hoverEvent, you can show additional lore or instructions when a player holds the cursor over a message.
Click events are powerful for issuing commands, opening URLs, or cycling through message chains. However, some client modifications and servers restrict certain click behaviors for security, so always verify compatibility with your platform.
Document your tellraw patterns in a data pack or function file, including comments for each event block, so future edits remain consistent and error-free across different maps and campaigns.
Optimizing Your Tellraw Workflow
- Use scoreboard objectives to store and recall dynamic values for real-time updates.
- Validate JSON with external tools before pasting large structures into chat.
- Leverage @a selectors with distance tags for localized messaging.
- Document command blocks and function files for team collaboration and future edits.
- Test hover and click events in single-player to avoid server-side restrictions.
FAQ
Reader questions
Why does my tellraw command show nothing when I run it in multiplayer?
Check that your selector matches at least one online player, verify command permissions, and ensure the JSON structure is valid with matching quotes and braces.
Can tellraw display items or scores inside the message?
Yes, you can use selector-based text replacement and scoreboard objectives to inject dynamic numbers and item names into your formatted text.
How do I make text appear with a rainbow or gradient effect using tellraw?
Rainbow and gradient effects are typically handled externally with plugins or data packs, while tellraw handles per-segment colors and styling defined in your JSON.
Will tellraw work the same on Java and Bedrock editions?
Implementation differs between editions, with Java offering fuller JSON support and Bedrock relying on parse handles and UI text components; always test on target platforms.