Dedicated Server RAM Allocation: How Much Memory Do Different Game Servers Really Need?

One of the most common questions when setting up a game server is how much RAM you need. The answer varies significantly between games, depends on player count, mod load, and world complexity. Under-provision RAM and your server will stutter or crash; over-provision and you are paying for resources you never use. This reference guide provides real-world RAM requirements for eight popular game servers — Minecraft, ARK: Survival Evolved/Ascended, Palworld, Valheim, Enshrouded, 7 Days to Die, V Rising, and Counter-Strike 2 — including base RAM, per-player scaling, and the overhead introduced by mods and plugins.

Understanding Game Server RAM Usage

Game server RAM usage is composed of four components:

Base RAM: The minimum memory required to load the game world, assets, and server logic with zero players connected.
Per-Player RAM: Additional memory consumed for each connected player (character data, inventory, network buffers).
Mod/Plugin Overhead: Extra memory for custom content, script engines, and asset loading.
World Complexity Factor: How much the game world grows over time (saved structures, terrain modifications, dynamic entities).

All figures below are based on testing with dedicated server hardware (not VPS or shared hosting) using default configurations. Actual results may vary based on CPU architecture, storage speed, and specific mod combinations.

Comprehensive RAM Requirement Table

The following table provides a quick-reference overview. Detailed breakdowns for each game follow below.

Game	Base RAM (Idle)	Per Player	8 Players	16 Players	32+ Players	Mod Overhead
Minecraft (Vanilla)	2 GB	100-200 MB	3-4 GB	4-5 GB	6-8 GB (50+ players)	+2-8 GB
ARK: Survival Evolved	6 GB	100-150 MB	8-10 GB	10-12 GB	16-24 GB (70+ players)	+4-12 GB
ARK: Survival Ascended	8 GB	150-200 MB	10-12 GB	12-16 GB	20-32 GB (70+ players)	+4-16 GB
Palworld	4 GB	80-150 MB	5-6 GB	6-8 GB	12-16 GB (32 players)	+2-4 GB
Valheim	2 GB	50-100 MB	2.5-3 GB	3-4 GB	4-6 GB (64 players)	+1-2 GB
Enshrouded	4 GB	80-150 MB	5-6 GB	8-10 GB	16-24 GB (16 players)	N/A (no mod support)
7 Days to Die	3 GB	100-200 MB	4-5 GB	5-7 GB	8-12 GB (32 players)	+2-6 GB
V Rising	3 GB	80-120 MB	4-5 GB	5-6 GB	8-12 GB (60+ players)	+1-3 GB
Counter-Strike 2	1 GB	10-20 MB	1.5 GB	1.5-2 GB	3-4 GB (128 players)	+0.5-2 GB

Game-by-Game RAM Analysis

Minecraft (Java Edition + Bedrock)

Minecraft Java Edition is the most configurable game server in terms of RAM, but also the most prone to memory issues from poor JVM tuning.

Vanilla (no mods): 2 GB base + 100-200 MB per player. For 20 players, 6 GB is comfortable. For 50+ players, 8-10 GB.
With Paper/Spigot (optimized): Can run 30+ players on 4 GB with proper garbage collector tuning.
With mods (Forge/Fabric): Light mod packs (+20-50 mods) add 2-4 GB. Heavy packs (All the Mods 9, ATM10) need 8-12 GB base.
With plugins: Each plugin adds 50-500 MB depending on complexity. A server with 50+ plugins should budget 6-8 GB minimum.
World size: Larger explored worlds increase RAM usage. Servers with 10,000+ chunks explored can add 1-2 GB to base RAM.

Bottom line: 4 GB for a small vanilla server, 8 GB for modded/plugin-heavy servers, 12-16 GB for large modpacks with 20+ players.

ARK: Survival Evolved

ARK Survival Evolved is the most RAM-hungry survival game server on the market. The server loads every creature, structure, and item into memory for the entire map.

Vanilla (The Island): 6 GB base + 100-150 MB per player. 10 players need 8 GB, 30 players need 12 GB, 70 players need 16 GB.
With mods: Heavily modded servers with 30+ mods can use 24-32 GB for 70 players.
Cluster setups: Each map in a cluster needs its own RAM allocation. A 5-map cluster needs 40-80 GB total.
Map-specific: Aberration (+2 GB), Crystal Isles (+2 GB), Fjordur (+1 GB) due to larger or more complex maps.

Bottom line: 12 GB minimum for a small server, 16-24 GB for 30+ players, 32 GB+ for heavily modded large servers.

ARK: Survival Ascended

ASA runs on Unreal Engine 5 and has higher server-side resource demands than Evolved.

Vanilla: 8 GB base + 150-200 MB per player. 10 players need 10-12 GB, 30 players need 14-16 GB, 70 players need 20-24 GB.
With mods: ASA mods from CurseForge can add 2-8 GB depending on content.
High player count: Servers with 70+ players and mods should budget 32 GB.

Bottom line: 12-16 GB for small servers, 24-32 GB for public servers with mods.

Palworld

Palworld servers have a unique memory profile due to the large number of AI-controlled Pals that must be simulated.

Vanilla: 4 GB base + 80-150 MB per player. For 8 players, 5-6 GB. For 32 players (max), 12-16 GB.
Memory leak note: Palworld servers have known memory leak issues that increase RAM usage by 1-2 GB over 24-48 hours of uptime. Scheduled restarts (daily) are recommended.
Base complexity: Servers with many large, complex bases see 20-30% higher RAM usage.

Bottom line: 8 GB for small groups (4-8 players), 16 GB for public servers (16-32 players).

Valheim

Valheim is surprisingly efficient with RAM, but world complexity grows significantly over time.

Vanilla (new world): 2 GB base + 50-100 MB per player. 10 players need 2.5-3 GB. 64 players (max) need 4-6 GB.
Old world (500+ in-game days): Terminally explored worlds with many bases can add 1-2 GB to base RAM.
With mods: Modpacks like Valheim Plus add 1-2 GB. Heavy mod collections with 30+ mods need 6-8 GB.

Bottom line: 4 GB handles most Valheim servers comfortably. 8 GB for heavily modded or very old worlds.

Enshrouded

Enshrouded voxel-based world creates an unusual RAM profile where memory usage grows with terrain modification.

Vanilla (new world): 4 GB base + 80-150 MB per player. 4 players need 5-6 GB. 16 players (max) need 12-16 GB.
Heavily modified world: Servers where players have extensively terraformed or built large structures can see 50-100% more RAM usage.
No mod support: Currently Enshrouded does not officially support mods on dedicated servers.

Bottom line: 8 GB for 4-8 players, 16 GB for 12-16 players, 24 GB for heavily built-out worlds.

7 Days to Die

7 Days to Die servers must simulate a fully destructible voxel world with zombie AI horde logic, making RAM requirements moderate but world-dependent.

Vanilla: 3 GB base + 100-200 MB per player. 8 players need 4-5 GB. 32 players need 8-12 GB.
With mods: Darkness Falls and other overhaul mods add 2-4 GB. UI-oriented mods add less (0.5-1 GB).
World exploration: Fully explored 8K maps can add 2-3 GB over fresh worlds.
Blood Moon horde: During horde nights, RAM usage spikes 20-30% temporarily. Ensure headroom.

Bottom line: 6 GB for small groups, 12 GB for 16+ players, 16 GB for overhaul mods with 16+ players.

V Rising

V Rising servers are relatively efficient, but castle complexity and active players both contribute to RAM usage.

Vanilla: 3 GB base + 80-120 MB per player. 10 players need 4 GB. 40 players need 6-8 GB. 60+ players need 8-12 GB.
With mods: V Rising modding (using BloodyPlugins) adds 1-3 GB for a typical modset.
Castle complexity: Servers with many large, detailed castles can add 1-2 GB over baseline.

Bottom line: 4 GB for small servers, 8 GB for 40+ players, 12 GB for max player servers with mods.

Counter-Strike 2

CS2 is by far the most RAM-efficient game server on this list. It uses Source 2 engine which is well-optimized for server hosting.

Vanilla (10v10 casual): 1 GB base + 10-20 MB per player. A 20-player server needs only 1.5 GB.
Competitive (5v5): 1.2 GB is comfortable for a 10-player competitive server.
128-tick servers: Higher tick rate adds about 10-15% to CPU usage but minimal RAM overhead.
With plugins (SourceMod/Metamod): A server with 20+ plugins and custom maps may need 2-3 GB.
Large community servers (128 players): 3-4 GB is sufficient even for very large servers.

Bottom line: 2 GB is comfortable for most CS2 servers. 4 GB for plugin-heavy community servers.

General RAM Allocation Guidelines

The 80% Rule

Never run a game server at more than 80% of total RAM under peak load. The 20% headroom allows the OS to handle file caching, background processes, and memory spikes (e.g., auto-save events, horde nights). If your usage reaches 80%, upgrade to the next tier.

Memory Leak Mitigation

Several games (Palworld, ARK, Valheim) have known memory leaks that accumulate over days. Schedule daily or twice-daily server restarts during low-population times. The additional 2-4 GB of headroom can extend uptime between restarts.

RAM vs. CPU Trade-off

Games with heavy physics calculations (Enshrouded, 7 Days to Die, ARK) benefit more from CPU speed than RAM quantity once you have sufficient memory. Conversely, games with large world state (Minecraft modpacks, ARK with many mods) benefit more from RAM. Balance your budget accordingly.

Finding the Right Provider

Once you know your RAM requirements, the next step is finding a dedicated server provider that offers the right hardware configuration at a competitive price. For a comprehensive comparison of dedicated server plans from all the top providers, including RAM configurations, CPU options, and storage types, compare dedicated server providers on our comparison table.

Conclusion

Game server RAM requirements span a wide range — from just 1-2 GB for Counter-Strike 2 to 24-32 GB for a fully modded ARK: Survival Ascended server. The key is understanding three numbers: your game base RAM, the per-player scaling factor, and the mod overhead. Use the tables above to estimate your needs, apply the 80% rule to leave headroom, and plan for memory leaks with scheduled restarts. With the right RAM allocation and hosting provider, your game server will run smoothly for your community. For a full comparison of dedicated server specs and pricing, see the best server options on our comparison page.