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Head-to-head · Minecraft Permissions Plugins

GroupManager vs PermissionCore

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 3 checks side by side
Higher score GroupManager #3 in Minecraft Permissions Plugins 8.7/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 2 of 4 features Visit GroupManager
PermissionCore #8 in Minecraft Permissions Plugins 7.9/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 2 of 4 features Visit PermissionCore

GroupManager leads on 0 checks, PermissionCore on 0, and 3 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 3 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreGroupManager · 8.7/10
  • Free planboth

GroupManager scores higher on our rubric for minecraft permissions plugins: 8.7 against 7.9 out of 10; our editors rank them #3 and #8.

GroupManager is the better fit for established Bukkit and Spigot servers. PermissionCore is the better fit for free Spigot servers needing standard permissions.

  • GroupManager fits best

    Established Bukkit and Spigot servers

  • PermissionCore fits best

    Free Spigot servers needing standard permissions

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Side by side

Feature GroupManager 8.7/10 Visit ↗ PermissionCore 7.9/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 8.7 7.9
Ranking #3 in Minecraft Permissions Plugins #8 in Minecraft Permissions Plugins
Best for Established Bukkit and Spigot servers Free Spigot servers needing standard permissions
Pricing model Free Free
Starting price Free plan Free plan
Free plan ✓ ✓
Free trial — —
Deployment Self-hosted Self-hosted
Support Community, Docs Community
Integrations 1 integrations 2 integrations
Built for Small business, Mid-market Solo, Small business, Mid-market
Features GroupManager 2/4 · PermissionCore 2/4
Group inheritance ✓ ✓
Network support Not checked yet Not checked yet
Web editor Not checked yet Not checked yet
Temporary permissions ✓ ✓
Specs
Storage backends YAML, H2, MySQL, SQLite, PostgreSQL, MariaDB YAML
Supported platforms Bukkit, Spigot Spigot
Our review
Pros
  • Inherited groups with promotion, demotion, subgroups, and temporary permissions
  • YAML and SQL storage, including MySQL, SQLite, PostgreSQL, and MariaDB
  • Wildcard, negative, exception nodes, multi-world mirroring, and PlaceholderAPI support
  • Free plugin with inheritance, temporary permissions, wildcards, and negation
  • Supports caching, hot reload, chat prefixes, and suffixes
  • Integrates with Vault and PlaceholderAPI
Cons
  • Verified platform coverage centers on Bukkit and Spigot
  • Configuration spans many permission, storage, and group-management options
  • The published release is v3.2 for Minecraft 1.8 to 1.20+
  • YAML is currently the only supported storage type
  • Platform coverage is specified for Spigot
  • Management is delivered through server commands
Our verdict

GroupManager is a free, open-source permissions plugin for self-hosted Minecraft servers running Bukkit or Spigot. It is designed for administrators who need structured group-based access rather than isolated permission assignments. Groups…

Read the review →

PermissionCore is a free, self-hosted Minecraft server plugin for administrators managing players, groups, ranks, and permission nodes. It supports Minecraft 1.10 through 1.21 and is intended for survival, PvP, creative, minigame, network,…

Read the review →
  1. GroupManagerMinecraft Permissions Plugins 8.7Free plan
  2. PermissionCoreMinecraft Permissions Plugins 7.9Free plan

Strengths and trade-offs

  • GroupManager — where it wins

    • Inherited groups with promotion, demotion, subgroups, and temporary permissions
    • YAML and SQL storage, including MySQL, SQLite, PostgreSQL, and MariaDB
    • Wildcard, negative, exception nodes, multi-world mirroring, and PlaceholderAPI support

    Where it doesn't

    • Verified platform coverage centers on Bukkit and Spigot
    • Configuration spans many permission, storage, and group-management options
    • The published release is v3.2 for Minecraft 1.8 to 1.20+

  • PermissionCore — where it wins

    • Free plugin with inheritance, temporary permissions, wildcards, and negation
    • Supports caching, hot reload, chat prefixes, and suffixes
    • Integrates with Vault and PlaceholderAPI

    Where it doesn't

    • YAML is currently the only supported storage type
    • Platform coverage is specified for Spigot
    • Management is delivered through server commands

More comparisons

All minecraft permissions plugins comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update