How to Make Your Modrinth Instance Public: A Complete Guide

If you've built a custom modpack or instance in Modrinth and want to share it with the community, making it public is the natural next step. But the process isn't always obvious, especially if you're newer to the platform. Here's exactly how it works, what affects your options, and what you need to think through before flipping that switch.

What Is a Modrinth Instance?

In the context of Modrinth's app (its dedicated launcher), an instance is a self-contained Minecraft setup — a specific version of the game bundled with a particular set of mods, resource packs, shader settings, and configurations. Think of it as a saved "loadout" for how you want to play.

Instances are different from modpacks listed on Modrinth's website. A local instance lives on your machine. A public modpack lives on Modrinth's platform and is searchable, downloadable, and usable by anyone. To make your instance available to others, you need to export and publish it — not just share a folder or a screenshot.

The Two Paths: Export vs. Publish

There's an important distinction here that trips up a lot of users:

If your goal is truly public — searchable, listed, and installable by strangers — you need the publish route, which requires a Modrinth account and going through their project submission process.

Step-by-Step: Exporting Your Instance First

Before anything goes public, you need a clean export. In the Modrinth App:

1. Open the app and locate your instance in the left sidebar or main panel.
2. Right-click the instance (or click the three-dot menu icon).
3. Select "Export" — this will package your instance as a .mrpack file.
4. Choose where to save the file on your computer.

This .mrpack file is the portable, shareable version of your instance. It includes your mod list, version data, and configuration — but typically not mods themselves (it references them by their Modrinth IDs so they can be downloaded on install).

⚠️ Important: If your instance includes mods that aren't hosted on Modrinth, those may not export cleanly. Mods from CurseForge or other sources may be excluded or cause compatibility warnings when others try to install the pack.

Step-by-Step: Publishing to Modrinth

Once you have your .mrpack file, publishing it as a public modpack involves Modrinth's standard project creation workflow:

1. Log into Modrinth.com with your account. If you don't have one, you'll need to create it first.
2. Navigate to your profile dashboard and select "Create a project".
3. Choose "Modpack" as the project type.
4. Fill in the required fields: project name, summary, description, and relevant tags (game version, mod loader like Forge or Fabric, categories).
5. Under the Versions tab, upload your .mrpack file and assign it a version number.
6. Set the visibility to "Public" when you're ready — or keep it as "Draft" while you refine it.
7. Submit for review if required, or publish directly (Modrinth's requirements can vary based on account standing and project type).

Once live, your modpack will appear in Modrinth's browse section and be installable directly through the Modrinth App by anyone.

Factors That Affect How Smoothly This Goes

Not every instance exports and publishes identically. Several variables determine how clean the process is:

Mod sources matter a lot. Modrinth works best when all mods in your instance are sourced from Modrinth itself. Mixed packs pulling from multiple platforms require extra manual steps and may limit automatic installation for end users.

Mod licensing affects publishing. Some mods have licenses that explicitly prohibit redistribution in modpacks — even as references. Before publishing, it's worth checking whether any mods in your pack restrict this. Modrinth has policies around this, and packs that include restricted content can be taken down.

Your account's project permissions may limit what you can publish immediately. New accounts sometimes face review queues or visibility restrictions until they've established some platform history.

Version and loader specifics need to be accurate. If your instance runs on Fabric 1.20.1, that needs to be correctly tagged — users on Forge or different Minecraft versions won't be able to use it otherwise, and mislabeling creates confusion in search results.

What "Public" Actually Means on Modrinth 🌐

When a modpack is set to public on Modrinth, it becomes:

• Searchable via the Modrinth website and app browse features
• Installable with one click through the Modrinth App
• Versioned — you can push updates and users can be notified
• Open to reviews and follows from the community

It also means you're taking on a degree of maintenance responsibility. Users may report issues, mods may update and break compatibility, and the community expects at least basic upkeep on active packs.

The Variables That Depend on Your Situation

How straightforward this process is — and whether your instance is truly ready to go public — depends on factors only you can evaluate: the source of your mods, how polished your configuration is, whether you've tested the pack on a clean install, and how much ongoing maintenance you're prepared to handle. A pack that works perfectly for you locally can behave differently when someone else installs it from scratch, especially if your instance has custom configs tied to your specific file paths or system setup.