Minecraft "Kicked for spamming" Fix (26.x Spam Settings)

Minecraft "Kicked for spamming" means the server's spam counter filled up because a player sent chat messages or commands too fast. Since Java 26.2 you control it with two server.properties keys, chat-spam-threshold-seconds and command-spam-threshold-seconds, both 10 by default. Raise one, or set it to 0 to turn that kick off.

Why does Minecraft say "Kicked for spamming"?

The vanilla server keeps a counter for each player. Every chat message or command adds 1 second to it, and the counter drops by one tick (1/20 of a second) every tick. When the counter reaches the threshold, the player is disconnected with:

Kicked for spamming

Mojang's 26.2 changelog gives examples of what trips the default threshold of 10:

Normal chat never gets near that. What usually triggers it is a macro, a client mod that sends commands in a burst, a chat bridge or bot, a command block contraption run through a player, or a plugin GUI that sends a command on every click.

How do I fix "Kicked for spamming" in server.properties?

Open server.properties, find the two spam keys and raise the one that is kicking people. These keys exist on Minecraft 26.2 and newer.

chat-spam-threshold-seconds=10
command-spam-threshold-seconds=10

Steps:

1. Stop the server.
2. Edit server.properties and set the threshold that matches the problem. If players get kicked while using commands, raise command-spam-threshold-seconds to something like 30. If a chat bot is the problem, raise chat-spam-threshold-seconds.
3. Start the server again. server.properties is only read on startup.

Before 26.2 there was one shared limit for chat and commands together, so separate control is new. Splitting them is the useful part: you can let builders spam /tp and //wand style commands freely while still kicking chat spam from a griefer.

We would not set either to 0 on a public server. A threshold of 0 disables that kick completely, which removes your protection against chat floods. On a private server for friends, 0 for commands is fine.

What is "Kicked for exceeding packet rate limit"?

That is a different kick with a similar cause. The message is:

Kicked for exceeding packet rate limit

It comes from the rate-limit key in server.properties, which caps how many packets per second a player can send. The vanilla default is 0, which means no limit, so if you see this message someone set it, or a server plugin or Paper's own packet limiter did. Raise or reset rate-limit=0 and check your plugins. Fast clicking on modded inventories and some auto clicker style mods are the usual trigger.

How to fix it on Paper and Spigot servers

Paper and Spigot add their own spam controls on top of vanilla, so check these if the server.properties change did not help:

• spigot.yml has commands.spam-exclusions, a list of commands that never count toward the spam counter. Add the commands your players spam on purpose:

commands:
  spam-exclusions:
  - /skill
  - /home

• config/paper-global.yml has a spam-limiter section for tab completion and recipe book spam, and a packet-limiter section that kicks players who send too many packets. Raise the limits in those sections only if you know which action is being kicked, since they protect against crash exploits.

Restart after editing any of these files.

Kicked for spamming by a plugin, not Minecraft

If the kick message is worded differently, for example with a plugin prefix in front, an anti spam or anti cheat plugin did it, not vanilla. Search logs/latest.log for the player's name at the time of the kick. The line before the disconnect usually names the plugin. Then adjust that plugin's config instead.

Fixing it on a GamezServers server

1. Click Stop on your dashboard.
2. Open the Files tab, edit server.properties and change command-spam-threshold-seconds or chat-spam-threshold-seconds.
3. Save and click Start.

If the keys are missing, your server runs a version older than 26.2. Update it with Update game after a Backup, or the server generates them on the next start of a 26.2 or newer version. For the other keys in the file, see Minecraft server.properties explained. For removing an actual spammer, see how to ban, kick and mute players.

FAQ

What does "Kicked for spamming" mean in Minecraft?

The server kicked you for sending chat messages or commands faster than its spam threshold allows. With default settings that means more than about 10 messages in a very short burst.

How do I turn off the spam kick on my Minecraft server?

On 26.2 or newer, set chat-spam-threshold-seconds=0 and command-spam-threshold-seconds=0 in server.properties, then restart. Older versions have no setting for it in vanilla.

Why do my players get kicked for spamming when using commands?

A mod, macro or plugin menu is sending commands in a burst. Raise command-spam-threshold-seconds, or on Spigot and Paper add those commands to spam-exclusions in spigot.yml.

Is "Kicked for exceeding packet rate limit" the same thing?

No. That one comes from the rate-limit packet cap or a server software packet limiter, not the chat and command counter.

Do I need to restart after changing the spam settings?

Yes. Minecraft reads server.properties only when the server starts.