Better TabList

A server-side Minecraft mod that fully customizes the in-game tab list with animated headers/footers, AFK detection, player sorting, and FTB Ranks integration.

Supports NeoForge, Fabric for Minecraft 1.21–1.21.11 and Forge 1.21-1.21.1.

Inspired by: Tab List on Modrinth

Overview

Showcase of the tablist

Better TabList replaces the default tab list with a fully customizable version featuring live server data, animated frames, and per-player information.

Features

Animated Header & Footer — Define multiple frames that cycle automatically with configurable speed
AFK Detection — Players go grey after a configurable timeout, with an #AFK placeholder
Player Sorting — Sort the tab list alphabetically or by rank (via FTB Ranks)
FTB Ranks Integration — Optional; uses rank permissions for custom display names and sorting
Hex Color Support — Full &#RRGGBB hex colors alongside standard & color codes
Gradient Support — Smooth color transitions with MiniMessage and TAB-style syntax
Efficient Updates — Only sends packets when content actually changes

Installation

Download the JAR for your mod loader (NeoForge, Fabric, or Forge).
Place it in your server's mods/ folder.
Start the server — a config/tablist.toml file will be generated with defaults.
Edit the config and restart or do /tablist reload to apply changes.

Configuration

All settings live in config/tablist.toml.

Placeholders

Placeholder	Description
`#N`	New line
`#SERVERNAME`	Server name (set in config)
`#TPS`	Ticks per second
`#CTPS`	TPS with automatic color (green/yellow/red)
`#MSPT`	Milliseconds per tick
`#PLAYERCOUNT`	Number of online players
`#MAXPLAYERS`	Maximum player slots
`#PLAYERNAME`	Viewing player's name
`#PING`	Player ping in ms
`#RANK`	Player rank (requires FTB Ranks)
`#AFK`	Shows "AFK" if the player is AFK, empty otherwise
`#WORLD`	Player's current dimension
`#MEMORY`	Memory usage (used / max)
`#UPTIME`	Server uptime
`#DATE`	Real date (yyyy-MM-dd)
`#TIME`	Real time (HH:mm)

Color Codes

Standard: &a (green), &c (red), &l (bold), &r (reset), etc.
Hex: &#FF5555 for any RGB color

Gradients

Gradients smoothly transition text between two or more colors. Two syntax styles are supported:

MiniMessage-style (supports 2 or more color stops):

<gradient:#FF0000:#0000FF>Red to Blue</gradient>
<gradient:#FF0000:#00FF00:#0000FF>Red to Green to Blue</gradient>

TAB-style (exactly 2 colors):

<#FF0000>Red to Blue</#0000FF>

Formatting codes go inside the gradient tags and are preserved across the text:

<gradient:#FFD700:#FF4500>&lBold gold to red</gradient>
<#00FFFF>&oItalic cyan to purple</#AA00FF>

Display Name Format

The display_name_format option controls how player names appear in the tab list. Use {name} and {rank} as placeholders:

display_name_format = "{name} &7#AFK"

Example Config

[appearance]
server_name = "My Server"
header = [
    "#N        <gradient:#FF5555:#FF9955>&l#SERVERNAME</gradient>        #N&#AAAAAA&m            &r#N",
    "#N        <gradient:#5555FF:#55FFFF>&l#SERVERNAME</gradient>        #N&#AAAAAA&m            &r#N"
]
footer = [
    "&fOnline: &e#PLAYERCOUNT&7/&e#MAXPLAYERS #N&7TPS: #CTPS &7| MSPT: &#55FFFF#MSPT #N&7Memory: &#AA55FF#MEMORY &7| Uptime: &#FFAA00#UPTIME"
]
display_name_format = "{name} &7#AFK"
update_interval = 500
animation_interval = 4

[sorting]
sort_mode = "NONE"

[ftbranks]
enable_ftbranks_formatting = true

[afk]
afk_enabled = true
afk_timeout = 300