How Much Does a Minecraft Server Cost in 2026?

How much does a Minecraft server cost? For a few friends, about $2 to $4 USD a month on a hosting plan. For most community, plugin and modded servers, about $7 to $13 USD a month, which is the 8 to 16 GB range. The server software itself costs nothing to download from Mojang, so what you really pay for is a machine that keeps your world online: either your own PC, with its electricity bill, or a hosting plan.

This guide breaks down what drives the price, gives real monthly figures by server type, works out what a home server costs in electricity with the math shown, and explains how the FULL2026 code changes the numbers.

What you actually pay for

Mojang publishes both official servers on minecraft.net. The Java Edition server page answers its own FAQ with a clear yes: the official server software for Java and Bedrock is free to download. Each player still needs their own copy of Minecraft, but the server program adds nothing to that.

The cost comes from three things the software needs to stay useful:

• A computer that runs all the time. If the machine sleeps, the world goes offline for everyone.
• Memory and a fast CPU core. The Minecraft Wiki requirements page asks for a CPU with strong single-core performance, because the server does most of its work on one core.
• A reachable network address. Friends outside your house need a public IP and an open port to connect.

Every way of running a server is a trade between paying money for those three things and paying with your own hardware, power bill and time.

What changes the price of a Minecraft server

On a hosting plan, the main variable is RAM. On TheGameHosting it is the only variable: every plan runs on the same AMD 9950X/7950X3D CPUs, DDR5 memory and Samsung NVMe storage, so a bigger plan buys memory, not a better machine. What decides how much memory you need:

1. Players online at the same time. Each player keeps an area of chunks loaded around them. More players spread out over the map means more loaded chunks.
2. View and simulation distance. The settings view-distance and simulation-distance in server.properties set how big that area is. Higher values cost more memory per player.
3. Plugins, mods or modpacks. A Paper server with a handful of plugins stays light. Fabric or Forge mods add blocks, mobs and systems, and a large modpack loads hundreds of mods at startup.
4. Java or Bedrock. Mojang’s Bedrock Dedicated Server page lists at least 1 GB of RAM for small servers. On our plans, both editions need at least 1 GB, so either one runs on the smallest plan.
5. How many servers you run. A network with a lobby, a survival world and a minigame server behind a proxy needs memory for each one.

For a detailed sizing guide with the chunk math behind it, read how much RAM a Minecraft server needs.

How much does a Minecraft server cost by type?

These are typical starting sizes and what they cost per month on TheGameHosting, with the regular price and the price after the FULL2026 code (15% off). Figures are in US dollars and rounded to the cent.

The math for the most common plan: $6.96 × 0.85 = $5.916, so the 8 GB plan comes to $5.92 a month with the code. Over a year that is about $71 instead of $83.52. The 16 GB plan drops from $12.89 to $10.96 a month. The checkout always shows the exact amount for your billing period.

Most of our Minecraft customers end up between 8 and 16 GB. That range leaves room for plugins, a modpack or a growing player list without paying for memory the server will never touch. See every plan on the plans and pricing page.

Is a Bedrock server cheaper than a Java server?

Not on our plans. The price follows the RAM, and both editions run from the 2 GB plan up. What can save money is running one server instead of two: a Java server on Paper with the Geyser and Floodgate plugins lets friends on Bedrock join the same world, and crossplay is available on every plan.

The real cost of hosting a Minecraft server on your own PC

Running the server at home looks like it costs nothing, because you already own the PC. It does cost something, and the biggest line is electricity. Here is the calculation with example numbers, so you can redo it with yours:

The wattages are examples, not measurements of a specific PC. A plug-in power meter shows your real draw. The $0.18 per kWh rate is close to the 18.2 cents per kWh that the U.S. Energy Information Administration projects as the average residential price for 2026. Your own bill shows your exact rate, and it can be much higher or lower.

Electricity is only the visible part. Hosting at home also means:

• The PC stays on 24/7. No sleep mode and no shutdowns, or the world goes offline. If you also play on that PC, the game and the server compete for the same memory and CPU.
• Opening ports in your router. Java uses TCP port 25565 by default. The Bedrock Dedicated Server uses UDP 19132 for IPv4. If your internet provider shares one public IP among many customers (carrier-grade NAT), port forwarding will not work at all, and you would need a tunnel or VPN.
• Your home IP is the server address. Everyone you give it to knows where to reach your connection.
• Upload speed and wear. Players use your upload bandwidth, and the PC runs hours it would otherwise spend switched off.
• Your time. Updates, backups, crashes and restarts are your job.

For a weekend session with two friends on your network, the home option is fine. For a world that should be there whenever someone logs in, the example desktop already costs more in electricity than an 8 GB plan with the code ($12.96 against $5.92). We compare both options step by step in host a Minecraft server on your PC or online, and explain what staying online all day involves in Minecraft server 24/7.

What about servers that cost nothing?

Some services offer Minecraft servers at no charge. They usually pay for it with limits: the server stops when nobody is online, you wait in a queue to start it, memory is small, or plugins and mods are restricted. That can work to try Minecraft multiplayer for an evening. It rarely works for a community that expects the world to be up. We go through the trade-offs in free vs paid Minecraft server.

How to keep your Minecraft server cost down

1. Start with the size the table suggests, then measure. Paper includes the spark profiler, and spark health show --memory in the console tells you how much memory the server really uses at peak time.
2. Lower simulation-distance before buying more RAM. It reduces the chunks each player keeps active.
3. Pick light server software. Paper or Purpur with plugins usually needs less memory than a large mod list. The panel’s Version Changer switches between 28+ platforms when you change your mind.
4. Use one server for Java and Bedrock with Geyser instead of paying for two.
5. Reuse the plan for other games. One plan covers every game we host, and the Game Changer in the panel switches it. If your group moves to another game for a month, you do not need a second subscription. Make a backup before you switch.
6. Apply FULL2026 on your first order. The 15% discount stays on every renewal, not just the first month.

Skip the math: run your server on TheGameHosting

If your answer to how much a Minecraft server costs needs to include a PC that never sleeps, open ports and your weekend, a hosting plan is usually the cheaper and calmer option. On TheGameHosting your server is ready about 60 seconds after payment, runs 24/7 in Dallas or Amsterdam, already has a public IP and port, and comes with unlimited slots, DDoS protection, backups, the Plugin, Mod and Modpack Installers and 24/7 support. Plans start at $1.90 USD a month and most Minecraft groups land on 8 to 16 GB. Check the Minecraft server hosting page for features, then pick your size on the plans and pricing page and use the code FULL2026 at checkout for 15% off for life.

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• Minecraft Java hostingPaper, Purpur, Fabric, Forge and more
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