How to Host a Palworld 1.0 Dedicated Server
Palworld left early access on 10 July 2026. Version 1.0 is the biggest update the game has had: over 70 new Pals, two new regions in the Sky Islands and the World Tree, water-based building, the first real story arc, and a backend overhaul for multiplayer.
It also asks a lot more of a server than early access did. This guide covers what 1.0 actually needs, how to size it honestly, and the one crossplay gotcha that catches most groups out.
What Palworld 1.0 needs from a server
Straight from Pocketpair's official server documentation:
| Resource | Official requirement |
|---|---|
| CPU | 4 cores or more |
| RAM | 16 GB minimum, 32 GB+ recommended |
| Storage | Fast SSD (slow storage risks save corruption) |
| OS | Windows or Linux, 64-bit |
| Port | UDP 8211 by default |
That RAM figure is not a typo, and it is the single most important thing to understand about hosting Palworld. The docs are explicit that 8 GB will run a server but "increases the possibility of server crashes due to out of memory."
Palworld is memory-hungry by design, and it has well-documented memory growth: usage climbs the longer the server stays up. With 1.0's larger map, that pressure went up rather than down.
How much RAM do you actually need?
The official 16 GB minimum is the safe answer. In practice, most groups land here:
| Players | RAM | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 4 to 6 friends | 8 to 12 GB | Below the official minimum. Works, but watch for OOM crashes on long sessions. |
| ~10 players | 12 to 16 GB | Comfortable for a small community. |
| Up to 32 (the cap) | 16 GB+, ideally more | The default player cap is 32 and is unchanged in 1.0. |
Two practical rules:
- Restart the server periodically. Because memory use grows over time, a restart between sessions is the cheapest fix for creeping lag. This is normal for Palworld, not a sign something is broken.
- Do not starve the storage. The docs single out slow disks as a corruption risk, not just a speed one. This is one place not to cut corners.
The honest cost problem with Palworld
Here is the thing nobody selling flat monthly plans wants to spell out: a 16 GB server is expensive, and most groups do not play 24 hours a day.
On a traditional host, you pick a 16 GB tier and pay that same bill every month, whether your group played four evenings or zero. You are renting a large, idle machine most of the time. Palworld makes this worse than most games precisely because the box has to be big.
This is the exact problem OreHost is built around. You set the CPU and RAM you want, deploy, and you are billed per minute while the server actually runs. When your group finishes for the night, you stop it and the per-minute charge pauses. A small storage fee of a few cents keeps your world safe until next time. The price is shown live before you deploy, so you size a proper 16 GB Palworld server and see exactly what an evening costs.
The stop-and-start habit has a second benefit here: it doubles as the periodic restart Palworld wants anyway.
You can size one on the Palworld server hosting page and see the price before it runs.
Crossplay, and the console gotcha
Palworld 1.0 supports full crossplay on dedicated servers across Steam, Xbox, PlayStation 5, and Mac, and it is on by default. But there is an asymmetry that trips groups up:
- PC and Mac players can join directly with your server's IP address using the "Join via IP" flow.
- Xbox and PS5 players cannot join by IP. They can only find your server through the in-game community server browser.
So if your group includes console players, handing them an IP will not work. Make sure your server is discoverable in the community browser, or those players will not be able to get in no matter how correct the address is. Check this before you promise your PS5 friend they can play tonight.
Voice chat is new in 1.0, but on a dedicated server it only works if you explicitly enable it in the world settings. It is off unless you turn it on.
Getting your group connected
- Deploy the server with at least 12 to 16 GB of RAM, more if you are pushing toward the 32-player cap.
- Open UDP 8211, or whichever port you configured. On a managed host this is handled for you.
- PC players open Multiplayer, then Join via IP, and paste the address and port.
- Console players search the community server browser.
- Enable voice chat in the world settings if you want it.
Do your early access saves still work?
Yes. The 1.0 update does not wipe existing save data, and your old world and Pals carry over. Pocketpair has still recommended starting a fresh save to get the full 1.0 experience, since a lot of the new content is woven into the world and the new story arc.
If you are running a group server, this is worth deciding together before launch night rather than halfway through.
Hosting something else too? Palworld is unusually memory-hungry. Minecraft is far lighter, and worth sizing differently rather than reusing these numbers.
Ready to size a proper Palworld 1.0 server without committing to a monthly bill? Deploy one and see the price before it runs.