Is Minecraft Education Edition free to play?

Minecraft is no stranger to spinoffs and alternate versions. From new games inspired by the universe, such as Dungeons, Earth, and Legends, to the different versions of the base game, like Bedrock and Java, there's no shortage of content. One of the lesser-known versions is Education Edition, which is aimed at making Mojang's blocky masterpiece into an educational tool.

Interestingly, there are two different versions of Education Edition, one of which is free and the other isn't. Everything players need to know about these versions can be found below.

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Minecraft Education Edition in Bedrock

A lab made in Bedrock's Education Edition (Image via Mojang)

The free version of Education Edition is found within Bedrock Edition. This version of Education Edition includes elements, compounds, and workstations to construct and combine them, as well as a plethora of new science-related items. For example, players have access to differently colored torches, hardened glass, underwater torches, TNT, and even a full camera item with displayable photos.

Enabling Education Edition within Bedrock must be done at world creation. When creating a new world, there's a toggle at the very bottom of the Minecraft cheats tab to enable it. This does require you to enable cheats, meaning achievements are not possible in Education Edition worlds.

While Education Edition must be selected at world creation, old Minecraft survival worlds can be converted. To do so, hit the pencil next to the world and scroll down until you find the Education Edition toggle. Switching it on will prompt the creation of an Education Edition copy of the world.

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Standalone Education Edition

The other version of Education Edition is totally standalone from other versions of Minecraft. This version is very closely handled by Mojang and features premade lesson plans for a wide array of categories such as math, computer science, and language arts.

It includes everything mentioned in the Bedrock version of Education Edition, such as elements, workstations, and NPCs. However, this version of Education Edition also has new features and controls specifically designed to make using the game in the classroom easier. Ultimately, this version is less of a game in the traditional sense and more of a tool.

Realistically, though, even this standalone version of Education Edition is free to use. The licensing payments will be made by the educational institution rather than the individual players.