How to import a minecraft skin on mobile

In many ways, Minecraft is all about customization. So you might be surprised when you launch the game and find that the cosmetics available to your protagonist are fairly limited.

But for the creatives who love the design and crafting aspects of Minecraft, don't worry: In reality, your character's cosmetic choices are virtually limitless. For Java edition users, you can find or create a skin, upload it, and enjoy. And Bedrock users have that option and more through its character creator tool.

Here's how you can get your Minecraft' character's skin in both Bedrock Edition and Java Edition.

How to make a Minecraft skin

Before you can change your skin, you'll first need to have a new skin to change to. The developers of Minecraft offer a few custom skins for free, usually created in honor of special events. You can also check out websites like The Skindex, which host user-created skins that you can download and use yourself.

If you're willing to put in the work though, you can make a skin yourself. Either edit the existing template using a program like Photoshop, or use a browser-based tool like the Minecraft Skin Editor.

How to change your skin on Minecraft Java

1. Open the Minecraft Launcher and select Skins from the top menu.

2. Click New skin to add a new skin.

3. On the "Add new skin" page, select Browse. Find and select your image, making sure it's the specified dimensions and PNG format, and click Open.

4. Name your skin if you'd like, choose the "Classic" size or "Slim" size, then click Save & Use in the bottom-right corner. When you launch the game, your character will be wearing the new skin.

How to change your skin on Minecraft Bedrock

Similar to Java Edition, you can upload a skin you got from the internet, or one you've created yourself for your Bedrock character model. With tons of creative Minecraft users eager to share their skins, you can find almost any cosmetic you can dream up.

Just note that this is only available when playing on your PC. You can't import skins on a game console.

1. Launch Bedrock Edition and click Dressing Room, below your character model on the right.

2. Scroll through the available characters and click Edit Character under one of your existing models, or select one of the blank slots and then click Create Character. If you're making a new character, it doesn't matter whether you pick Character or Classic Skin in the pop-up that appears.

3. You've now got a few different ways to change your character's skin. Using the icons in the left sidebar, you can find two menus:

• The Character Creator menu lets you finely customize each part of your character's body, as well as their clothes.
• The Classic Skins tab lets you buy a skin that someone else has made, or upload your own. If you want to upload your own, click the blank slot under Owned Skins, then click Choose New Skin on the right.

When you're done, click the Dressing Room icon in the top-left corner again. It'll save all your changes and let you start playing with your new character.

How to change your skin on Minecraft PE

1. On your mobile device, go to a third-party Minecraft skin website and download the skin that you want to use.

2. Open the Minecraft app and tap on the Dressing Room button.

3. Tap on the three horizontal bars in the top left of your screen and select Classic Skins.

4. Tap on Owned and, in the dropdown menu that appears, tap on the gray skin.

5. Select Choose new skin and select the photo that you wish to use.

Quick tip: If you tap Get more you can purchase readily available skins from the Marketplace.

How to change your skin on a game console

The directions for changing your skin in Minecraft on a game console are the same as Minecraft PE.

In place of the three horizontal bars, press whatever the illustrated shortcut button is or navigate your stick to the left until you expand the menu; on a PlayStation 4, the shortcut is Options.

The world of Minecraft is all about customization and standing out. But it isn’t easy to come up with unique ideas in such a massive and happening community. That’s why the internet has a huge collection of Minecraft skins you can download and install to personalize your in-game experience. They are one of the most common and celebrated customization options in the game. Plus, you can find skins inspired by YouTubers, superheroes, and whatnot. We even have a list of the best Minecraft skins you can use if you want to take a quick pick. As for the process, it is simple to apply downloaded skins, and the option is available in every Minecraft edition, be it PE, Java, or Bedrock. You can even use most skins interchangeably across editions. But that’s a discussion for later. For now, let’s learn how to download and install Minecraft skins.

Download and Install Skins in Minecraft (2022)

While referring to Minecraft skins, we will focus on the skin packs for our protagonist instead of the entities or mobs in the game. That means skins in Minecraft usually refer to the appearance of the main character, which you can customize in unlimited ways. To change other characters’ skins, you will need something called Minecraft resource or texture packs, and you can check out some of the best ones from the linked article. For now, make sure you have a working version of Minecraft, and let’s get started by finding a good skin for your character.

How to Download Skins for Minecraft

There are many community-based websites where you can get thousands of Minecraft skins for free. In this guide, the website we will focus on is called Skindex, and it is one of the most popular options.

1. To get started, go to the Minecraft Skindex homepage and click on any of the skins you like. We will be using the Skeleton Gamer skin for this demonstration. You can even try using the search option to look for a specific character or theme. Also, you can check our curated lists of the coolest Minecraft skins and the best Minecraft girl skins via the linked articles.

2. Once you have selected a skin, a new page with multiple options to export the skin will open up. What you want to do next is click on the “Download” button in the right menu.

3. It will immediately download a PNG file to your computer. You will find it in your Downloads folder, and it will be a low-quality PNG file.

How to Install Skins on Minecraft Bedrock Edition

In the Minecraft Bedrock edition, you get an in-game skin builder. You have the option to import and even purchase skins within the game itself. To download and install skins in Minecraft Bedrock, follow the steps below.

1. Open Minecraft on your device and click the “Profile” button below your character on the right side of the home screen.

2. You will be taken to the character selection screen, where you can choose a specific character to which you want to apply the skin. Then, click on the “Edit Character” option.

3. Now, move to the second tab on the top left to open the options of your own skins. Here, under the “Owned” section, you can click on the “Import” option, followed by “Choose New Skin”. 

4. A Windows Explorer window will now open up. Go to your Downloads folder and select the PNG skin file. Then, click on “Open” to load the skin in the game.

5. Choose either the classic or slim model type. The only difference will be in the width of the arms. Once you are done, your skin will be loaded into Minecraft, and you are ready to play the game with the same applied to your character.

How to Change Your Character’s Skin on Minecraft Java Edition

Even when you can use the same skin on any of your Minecraft versions, you will have to follow different procedures to get it installed on each of them. You can suspect different programming languages as the reason to blame, as we discussed in our Minecraft Java vs Bedrock comparison.

1. For the Java edition, go to the official Minecraft website and click on the “Log in” button at the top right corner. Then, you can use your Microsoft or Mojang account credentials to sign in into the website.

2. Now, you will see an option called “Skin” on the left menu, which on clicking will lead you to the skin uploading section. Here, you can select your model version as Slim or Classic and upload any downloaded skin. The slim model only has the character with slimmer arms and no other significant difference.

Alternatively, you can also go back to the second step of downloading skins and click on the “Upload to Minecraft” button. It is present above the “Download” button to reach this skin uploading process but quicker than before.

3. You will now be able to see the new skin on your character whenever you boot up Minecraft. The new skin might be covered by armor for some players, and you might have to remove it to properly test it out.

How to Change Your Character’s Skin using Minecraft Launcher

If your Minecraft Java edition is running offline, the website-based process might not work for you. Thankfully, you can also download and install skins using the default Minecraft launcher.

1. Make sure you have a skin downloaded using the first section of the tutorial. Then, open the Minecraft Launcher by double-clicking on its icon on your desktop or game directory. You can also search for it after pressing the Windows key.

2. Once the launcher opens, don’t click the play button as usual. Instead, move to the “Skins” tab at the top of the launcher. Then, select the “New skin” option by clicking the “+” sign.

3. Now, the launcher will ask you to load your custom skin. Here, click on the “Browse” button to select your download PNG skin file. You can use the player model as classic or slim. Once your skin is selected, you can click the “Save & Use” button to apply it immediately.

Install Skins via Minecraft Pocket Edition (MCPE) on Android and iOS

Fortunately, due to the connected Bedrock environment, the process to change or add skins in Minecraft PE for Android, Windows 10, iOS, and Fire OS is the same as installing skins on Minecraft Bedrock Edition.

You can use the Bedrock Edition tutorial earlier in this article to install new skins in the Pocket Edition of Minecraft. The major difference you will notice is that instead of the “Profile” button on the home screen, you will find a clothes hanger icon. You can click on this icon and start following the same process as the Bedrock edition of the game to change your Minecraft skin.

Make your Own Skin in Minecraft

There can be two ways to edit and make your own custom Minecraft skins. First, you can use the default skin as a model and edit it in any photo editing software like Photoshop. It will give you more customization options and allow you to add photos over it as well. Just make sure to save it as transparent PNG in the same resolution and dimensions as the base skin.

If you don’t want a deeper level of customization for your skin, use the online Minecraft Skin Editor from Skindex, the same website that we used to download skins above. Here’s how:

1. Open MinecraftSkins Skin Editor or click on the “Edit Skin” button on any skin you are browsing online on Skindex. You will also see the Editor option on the top menu bar of the site.

2. Now, you will be taken to the Skin Editor, where you can use a simple brush and coloring tool to fill the boxes to create a Minecraft Skin. The editor would feel like the most basic version of MS Paint.

3. Once you are done editing the skin, you can select the Model as Classic or Slim and click on the “Download” button. You can apply it to your character in the same manner as any other downloaded skin. Alternatively, you can also upload your skin to Skindex by clicking on the “Upload to Skindex” button. It’ll let you share your creation with other Minecraft players that use this website.

4. You can then load your self-made skin in the game and even edit it later on Skindex or just classic photo editors as per your preferences. If you want more information on how to make your own Minecraft skin, we have a detailed guide published and linked right here.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Is Skindex safe to use?

Yes, all that you are downloading from or uploading to the Skindex website are only images of skins. It’s completely safe and regularly used by thousands of Minecraft players.

Q. Can I buy Minecraft skins?

Minecraft Bedrock edition has a built-in marketplace where you can get skins from Mojang and their partners. Though, you can get similar skins and many more online for free too.

Q. Can skins get you banned?

Depending upon the rules of specific servers, wearing inappropriate skins can get you banned. Inappropriate skins are the ones that include content related to terrorism, racism, sexual appeal, etc.

Q. How to get capes with Minecraft Skins?

You can purchase skins with capes on the Bedrock edition’s marketplace. There is currently no way to obtain a cape on the Java edition, but there are several mods that you can try to achieve a similar impact.

Q. Do bedrock skins work on Java?

Technically, you can use the same PNG skin file in Bedrock or Java editions. But since Bedrock has extra geometrical layers to their skins, you might not see the expected results when you inter-use the skins. Though, using the same skins on different game editions won’t cause any serious problems.

Q. How to see my character in 3rd person in Minecraft?

You can press the “F5” key on your keyboard to change your perspective in the game. It will let you see your installed skins from different angles. You can press the button again to go back to the original view.

Q. Where can I get Minecraft skins from?

The most popular option to get skins in Minecraft is Skindex, but here are some other alternatives that you can check out:

• tynker.com
• namemc.com
• Google Play Store or Amazon App Store (Android)
• iOS App Store
• Official Minecraft Marketplace

Apply Your Own Custom Skins in Minecraft

You are now ready to download and install skins in Minecraft. There are several rare ones from Avengers to Mario that you can try looking for. If you don’t find anything you like, you can always try making your own Minecraft skin. But don’t forget to share these skins you make with the readers in the comments below. You can also share them with the massive community on some of these amazing Discord servers for Minecraft. As for those looking for a new experience beyond the skins, try these best sandbox games like Minecraft. Now, go ahead and start installing new Minecraft skins.