9 Best Game Server Hosting: Rent a Server for Your MMORPGs Games

Game server hosting allows players to host and manage gaming environments with full control over resources, ensuring smooth performance for multiplayer games. For MMORPG players, having a dedicated server unlocks full control over game settings, allowing for custom mods, private environments, and a lag-free experience that public servers often fail to provide.

Whether you’re hosting for a small group of friends or a large gaming community, the quality of your server directly impacts your ability to enjoy and share the game with others. The following table highlights some of the best game server hosting providers, focusing on performance, reliability, and value for gamers.

Compare Game Server Hosting

Provider	Supported Games	Features	Pricing
Hostinger	Minecraft, ARK – support most AAA games	Affordable, special control panel, DDoS protection, choices of server location (reduce latency)	Various plans starting at around $5.99/month
HostHavoc	Minecraft, Rust, ARK, Fortnite, Counter Strike Go, Terraria, Apex Legends	Support for various games, control panel access, DDoS protection	Various plans starting at around $5.00/month
Google Cloud	Various – support most AAA games	Global network of data centers, support for various game engines, automatic scaling	Pay-as-you-go, starting at around $0.50/hour
Fozzy	Minecraft, Ark, CS:GO, Valheim, and more	Support for various games, game server ready in 10 minutes after order, DDoS protection	Various plans starting at $7.98/month
Vultr	Various – support most AAA games	Support for various games, automatic scaling, DDoS protection	Pay-as-you-go, starting at around $2.50/month
Amazon Gamelift	Various – support most AAA games	Dedicated game hosting service, support for various game engines, automatic scaling	Pay-as-you-go, starting at around $10/month
OVHcloud	Various – support most AAA games	Support for various games, control panel access, DDoS protection	Various plans starting at around $5.00/month
Streamline Servers	Minecraft, Rust, ARK	Support for various games, control panel access, DDoS protection	Various plans starting at around $2.50/month
Shockbyte	Minecraft, ARK, Conan Exile, Rust, Terraria, V Rising, Dayz	Support for various games, control panel access, DDoS protection	Various plans starting at around $2.50/month

1. Hostinger

Website: https://www.hostinger.com/game-server-hosting/

Hostinger’s game server hosting rocks as an affordable game hosting provider. Their game hosting plans run on VPS servers, so you get dedicated resources to host games like Minecraft, Counter Stike 2, Pal World. You get control over your VPS server via their advanced version of Game Panel with the Debian 10 operating system (user-friendly interface and full root access). Exercise flexibility over your game’s settings, upload customs files, and more. 

Why Hostinger Good for Game Server Hosting?

All Hostinger’s game server hosting plans come with dedicated IPv6 and IPv4 addresses (better DDoS protection and direct FTP file access). Their servers are on terabytes of SSD storage and high-clock speed industry-standard Intel Xeon Processors. Thanks to their RAID-10 technology and automated backups, you can quickly restore your games in no time via the control panel.

Hostinger provides one-click installers for specific plugins and mods via its game panels. You can also add third-party plugins and mods manually. With servers in the US, UK, Netherlands, Singapore, and Lithuania, you can choose the one nearest to your players to ensure a speedy gaming experience. 

It is easy to get onboard Hostinger’s Minecraft VPS (they claim to get things moving within ten minutes). Hostinger’s support is praiseworthy. To date, they scored a 4.6 in Trustpilot.

Learn more about Hostinger in our review.

Hostinger Plans & Pricing

Game Server Hosting plans by Hostinger start from $5.99/month to $19.99/month. If you are aiming for a small setup, the Game Panel 2 on a Vanilla server with 8 GB RAM and 2vCPU suffices for up to twenty users. However, if you need more, check the higher-tier plans. Confidently sign up, as they offer a 30-Day money-back guarantee.

Popular Games Supported at Hostinger Game Hosting

For Minecraft fans, you can also check out Hostinger’s Minecraft servers – same price, but tuned for Minecraft gaming experience.

2. HostHavoc

Website: https://hosthavoc.com/

HostHavoc is another popular choice among many. They specifically focus on hosting games, although they offer web hosting, Intel and Ryzen VPS hosting, and dedicated servers. They promise to maintain and update their game-specific custom tools and features alongside game/mod updates, so you always get the latest.

What Makes HostHavoc A Good Option for Game Server Hosting?

You can choose from 30 games (ARK: Survival Evolved, Conan Exiles, Counter-Strike: GO, 7 Days to Die, Arma 3, Atlas, Garry’s Mod, Minecraft, PixARK, and more). Most of their servers run on the latest Ryzen and Xeon E-series CPUs with speeds of up to 4.6GHz and 2x NVMe SSD to ensure speedy and powerful performance. You can install any mod on the Steam workshop, including third-party APIs and plugins.

With their strategically located 10 data centers worldwide (majority in the US), free DDoS protection, and daily backups, they promise above 99.9% uptime, which gives you stable and seamless game time. HostHavoc promises instant setup so you can get into the game fast; your new hosting service can be ready within minutes! You have complete control over your server via their user-friendly control panel and full FTP access.

HostHavoc enjoys raving customer support reviews. Their promised 24/7/365 support means you don’t have to worry when you need help. They claim that their average ticket response time is less than 10 minutes. Also, their comprehensive knowledge base helps heaps. If you’re targeting the US with Windows hosting, HostHavoc could be it for you.

HostHavoc Plan & Pricing

The pricing differs with the game. Some games charge by the number of player slots, while some, for example, Minecraft, come with unlimited slots. They offer a 3-day money-back guarantee, so feel free to play around. All major credit cards, PayPal, and a wide range of cryptocurrencies are accepted. 

3. Google Cloud

Website: https://cloud.google.com/game-servers

Ride on Google Cloud Game Servers with its dedicated game server management. Google Cloud manages and automates game servers across multiple Agones clusters and tracks their health via Terraform. Hence, you do not need to be concerned with downtime, which is essential for seamless gaming. Also, you get fast clock speeds up to 3.8 GHz.

Why Google Cloud Game Servers?

Based on the open source server management (Agones) on Kubernetes, Game Servers allow your multiplayer games to run anywhere compatible with Kubernetes. Also, integrations with other open-source projects, such as Open Match, are possible. Game Servers schedule scaling events and autoscale your game server based on customization rules set by you, a necessary trait when hosting your games. 

You can also customize your gameplay experience via the Kubernetes and Agones APIs. Test new rollouts in selected regions to preview the changes before full deployment. Utilize the provided single-control plane to manage your installations. Game Servers also afford manual management of your game server fleets. 

Google Cloud’s infrastructure is impressive (35 regions, 173 network edge locations in more than 200 countries). Hence, your players enjoy a blazing-speed gaming experience with Google Cloud’s globally distributed data centers. 

Pricing

Google Cloud manages the first Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) cluster for free, and each additional cluster costs $0.50/cluster an hour. Or you can sign up for the 90-day free trial, where you get a $300 credit. However, you will need to provide your credit card information. 

4. Fozzy Game Servers

Website: https://games.fozzy.com/

Based in Delaware, USA, Fozzy Game Servers run with various data center partners worldwide. It also throws its own data center into the ring with a facility in Amsterdam. That makes it one of the most robust solutions providers in the game server market.

What Makes Fozzy a Good Option for Game Server Hosting?

At the moment, Fozzy only offers a handful of professional games. However, it’s playing the long game and adding new monthly titles. There are already several popular titles like Minecraft, ARK: Survival Evolved, CS:GO, and ARMA 3.

Fozzy’s key hardware partner is Dell, whose 5GHz servers are entirely fielded by the brand. Their staff manages that entirely – no outsourcing nonsense to worry about. However, support is another matter, and it still needs to be determined if this portion is in-house since they field a worldwide support team.

One excellent highlight here is also that their setups are automated. You can get gaming in as little as 10 minutes once you subscribe to your chosen plan. Game server management is also simple, thanks to the Pterodactyl game panel. It’s highly intuitive yet provides enough features to satisfy the most demanding of gamers.

Fozzy Game Servers Plans & Pricing

Fozzy prices its game servers according to game titles. On the lower end of the spectrum are Minecraft servers that start at $7.98/mo for 10 slots. That cranks up to Rust servers starting at $23.98 for 20 slots. You can increase the number of slots on your plan and top up prices accordingly.

5. Vultr

Website: https://www.vultr.com

Vultr is perhaps one of the cheaper cloud game hosting providers around. The Cloud Compute plan allows you to deploy on their Vultr cloud platform and allocate your instances over the selected data center. Then, you scale your infrastructure up and down to suit your game’s usage. 

Why Vultr for Game Servers?

Whether you require a high or medium-performance infrastructure to support a multiplayer online game, Vultr cloud orchestration instantly gets you up and running. The Cloud Compute instances support CentOS, Debian, Ubuntu, Windows, and more; they run on shared AMD and Intel CPUs. You can upgrade to NVMe SSD for an additional price.

Select your preferred pre-installed application via one-click apps and use cPanel, CentOS web panel, or others. Vultr’s data centers are at 27 locations across five continents, offering minimal latency. Their SLA promises 100% network uptime and host node uptime. There’s DDoS protection against layer three and four network attacks. These are essential for maximum uptime. 

You get full root access to your files via Vultr’s easy-to-use control panel. They have a comprehensive library of documentation to help you self-manage your server. However, if you are not up to self-host, you can check out their sister site, gameservers.com. 

Pricing

Vultr’s pricing starts from as low as $2.50/month for regular performance through SSDs. However, if you require an NVMe SSD, you pay more, starting from $6.00/month. Also, DDoS Protection costs an additional $10/month, where you get an additional 10Gbps of mitigation capacity per instance.

6. Amazon Gamelift

Website: https://aws.amazon.com

Amazon GameLift is another solid choice for game server hosting with its powerful dedicated cloud servers. It manages, operates, and scales its cloud servers to cater to the varying demands of session-based multiplayer games. GameLift automatically adjusts the scale capacity based on your configured steady-state percentage target. Hence, you can meet the fluctuating needs of players with low latency.

Why Amazon GameLift A Solid Choice for Game Server Hosting?

With GameLift, you can connect up to 200 players in a session. Also, there are both Spot and on-demand instances from which you can choose 40 instance types and sizes to get the optimum configuration for your game. You can use containers or integrate with other AWS services (AWS Shield and Amazon Elastic Container Service). Additionally, GameLift’s FlexMatch feature matches players based on configured rules that you define.

GameLift supports all major game engines (Amazon Lumberyard, custom C#, C++ game engines, Unreal Engine, and Unity) and cross-platform play mode. The GameLift Real Time Servers support mobile, turn-based, and messaging games, which extend the range of supported game types. There’s a management console to help monitor the performance of your game, server capacity and health, and CPU and memory utilization.

GameLift operates on the AWS Global Cloud Infrastructure. As such, it is secure, expansive, and reliable. You get Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) protection. GameLift is available in an extensive region listing, so no worries about speeds for your global players. 

Amazon AWS Gamelift Pricing

You pay as you go when using GameLift. They charge for instances by usage duration and bandwidth by data transferred. Amazon claims that GameLift with Spot Instances and Auto Scaling can help save up to 70% on compute costs compared to servers in a colocation environment. 

You can start by signing up for a free tier account and enjoy 125 hours of on-demand instance usage per month.

7. OVHcloud

Website: https://www.ovhcloud.com

The game-dedicated servers of OVHcloud deliver top performance and resilience designed for online gaming. Running on the AMD Ryzen ZEN 2 architecture platform, they facilitate a seamless online gaming experience via efficient management of videos, images, and tasks in parallel with multiple players. They claim that these third-generation processors can help boost performance by up to 30%. 

Why OVHcloud A Good Option for Game Server?

Giving you up to 1 Gbit/s bandwidth with data centers across the globe (France, Canada, USA, Australia, Germany, Poland, the UK, and Singapore), your players enjoy a low latency when gaming. Each server has a free 500GB of independent storage space, which should suffice. Also, each server has a public IPv4 and IPv6 address; you can rent more IPv4 addresses (maximum 256/machine) if you need to.

OVHcloud emphasizes security by including robust anti-DDoS protection on all its servers. Unlike most others, it adapts to UDP traffic (for video, audio, and video games) and reviews both ingress and egress traffic. OVHCloud promises 99.90% uptime in its SLA. Recommended games are Twitch, Mumble, TeamSpeak, Rust, Minecraft, Ark, L4D2, and more. 

Take note that OVHcloud is intended more for those tech-savvy and advanced users. There has been feedback that their customer service is not up to par. Hence, be on your toes to resolve anything fast on your own. 

Read our OVHcloud review to learn more.

OVHcloud Plans & Pricing

OVHcloud’s pricing is affordable. You can get started with a package for under $100/month, and if you need more, you will have to explore the higher-tiered plans. Despite the unfavorable customer support, there’s no denying that you take the good with the bad. Hence, OVHcloud is still a solid option to help get started on a DDOS-protected and dedicated gaming server. 

8. Streamline Servers

Website: https://www.streamline-servers.com

Streamline Servers is the go-to game server hosting provider if you want support for many different types of servers. In addition to game server hosting, they offer voice, VPS, web, and dedicated hosting solutions. At times, you may want to host multiple games rather than one; this is where Streamline Servers’ dedicated hosting comes in.

Why Streamline Servers?

Their dedicated servers give lag-free and competitive gaming performance, with you exercising control over your servers. The servers primarily run on i7 processors and SSD storage. Although most of their data centers are in the US and Canada, they are widespread in Europe, South America, Africa, Oceania, and Asia, giving you good coverage. 

Streamline Servers’ network deploys Global Secure Layer (GSL) DoS and DDoS protection. In parallel, they utilize Blacklotus and Staminus for international and NSFocus mitigation appliances for domestic-based attacks. They emphasize transparency, which is why they allow you to view each node’s status in real-time. 

Streamline Servers’ control panel is flexible and helps you to configure your server. The 24/7/365 support quality is commendable with a comprehensive knowledge base makes for a quality game hosting experience. If you need quality dedicated game hosting solutions to enjoy a quality multiplayer gaming experience with a larger community, explore Streamline Servers. 

Pricing

The pricing differs by game. For example, while Counter Strike: Global Offensive is priced at $1.00/slot, 10 – 64 player slots, and is available in 22 locations, Minecraft charges $6.00/GB. 

Dedicated Game Servers are from $2.50/month, dedicated Minecraft Game Servers are from $3.00/month, dedicated Teamspeak Servers start at $2.00/month, and dedicated servers begin at $150.00/month. 

9. Shockbyte

Website: https://www.shockbyte.com

Shockbyte is another go-to game server hosting provider if you’re a hardcore Minecraft fan. Although they rent out other game servers like ARK: Survival Evolved, Rust, 7 Days to Die, and more, their specialty is Minecraft hosting, with hundreds of thousands of customers and over half a million hosted servers since 2013.

Why Shockbyte for Game Server Hosting?

They claim that onboarding is breezy almost instantly upon order completion. The modified Multicraft control panel allows you to manage your Minecraft servers easily. Most of Shockbyte’s servers run on Intel Xeon E-2236 @ Max 4.80GHz processors with NVMe SSDs in RAID 1. Hence, you won’t have to worry about speed issues while playing Minecraft. 

Shockbyte promises a 100% uptime guarantee and protection against Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks (guaranteed). That’s a mouthful of promises but much welcomed, as documented in their SLA. The Minecraft servers are in North America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. As such, they promise a low-latency hosting experience. 

Shockbyte’s Minecraft hosting plans support updated Java Edition and Bedrock Edition. They also support every Minecraft server version and all mod packs, including Feed The Beast, Technic, ATLauncher, and others. Customization is possible since you access your server files via the Multicraft control panel. Their 24/7 global support team is noteworthy, with a complete knowledge base. 

Shockbye Plans & Pricing

Shockbyte’s pricing starts from as low as $2.50/month (DIRT plan), which gives you 1 GB RAM and around eight player slots (suggested), although the plan affords you an unlimited number of player slots. They accept PayPal, Paymentwall, and Credit/Debit Cards. 

You can even create a custom IP with your server name for free. The 72-hour money-back guarantee helps. Shockbyte is a worthy Minecraft hosting provider, especially for newbies.

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Game Server Hosting Explained

What is Game Server Hosting?

Game server hosting provides dedicated environments optimized for multiplayer gameplay and allows players to interact in shared virtual worlds.

Unlike traditional hosting, game servers are designed to handle the unique demands of gaming, such as high workloads, low latency, and real-time data transmission. These servers often include features tailored for specific games, such as customizable settings, mod support, and enhanced performance.

Types of Game Server Hosting

There are several types of game server hosting, each suited for different needs and gaming scenarios. The following table gives an overview.

Hosting Type	Description	Best Use Case	Key Features	Cost	Player Capacity
Dedicated Game Servers	Full resource access, best performance and stability.	Large gaming communities, resource-heavy.	Max performance, full customization.	$$$$ (Most expensive)	Hundreds+
VPS Game Servers	Dedicated portion of server resources, balanced cost and performance.	Mid-sized gaming communities.	Scalable, isolated resources.	$$-$$$ (Moderate)	Up to hundreds
Cloud Game Servers	Distributed resources, scalable and resilient.	Games with fluctuating player counts.	On-demand scaling, fault tolerance.	$$-$$$ (Varies)	Hundreds
P2P Hosting	Player-hosted, no central server, unreliable.	Small informal sessions.	Minimal cost, prone to latency.	Free or $ (Minimal)	Limited (Device-specific)

Must-Have Features in Game Server Hosting

To ensure a smooth and competitive gaming experience, certain features are essential from a gamer’s perspective:

• High-Performance Hardware Servers with low-latency processors, ample RAM, and NVMe storage reduce lag, prevent crashes, and keep games running smoothly – even during peak loads.
• DDoS Protection Game servers are common targets of DDoS attacks. Strong DDoS protection ensures uninterrupted gameplay by safeguarding against malicious attempts to take your server offline.
• Location Flexibility With data centers in multiple regions, you can choose the closest one to most players, reducing latency and ensuring faster response times.
• Mod and Plugin Support Customizations like mods and plugins add depth and creativity to games. A game server that supports mods allows for a personalized and immersive gameplay experience.
• Scalability Options Game servers should be easy to scale up or down depending on player traffic. This is particularly useful for games with a growing community or seasonal peaks in player activity.
• Automated Backups Frequent backups safeguard progress, mods, and customizations, allowing you to restore settings easily if needed.
• 24/7 Technical Support Real-time games require minimal downtime. Round-the-clock support ensures that technical issues are resolved quickly, keeping your server running smoothly.

How to Choose the Right Game Server Host?

Choosing the best game server host depends on understanding what your game needs, your player base, and your personal preferences. Here’s a step-by-step guide that breaks it down:

1. Define Your Game Requirements

Different games have unique needs, so first, let’s clarify the basics for popular games:

• Minecraft: This sandbox game is resource-intensive, especially with mods or plugins like Forge or Bukkit. It also tends to attract larger communities. For a smooth experience, you’ll want a server (or at least, with a provider that allow you to scale up easily when necessary) with high RAM and CPU.
• ARK: Survival Evolved: ARK requires powerful servers due to its high-performance requirements and intensive graphics. This game is also popular for modding, so ensure the server supports custom mods.
• Terraria: While less demanding than Minecraft or ARK, Terraria still benefits from a mid-tier VPS server for smoother multiplayer experiences, especially if you’re hosting for many players.

2. Estimate Your Player Count

Next, think about how many players you plan to host. This will directly impact your server’s specifications:

• Small Groups (1–10 players): A lower-tier plan with modest CPU and RAM should be enough for games like Terraria or a basic Minecraft setup.
• Medium-Sized Communities (10–50 players): For a group of this size, especially in Minecraft, you’ll need at least 4GB of RAM and a multicore CPU to manage the player load without lag.
• Large Servers (50+ players): For larger communities in Minecraft or ARK, look for game servers with 8GB+ RAM and strong DDoS protection to prevent interruptions.

3. Choose a Server Location Close to Players

To ensure low ping, choose a server located close to where most of your players are based. For example, if you’re in North America with friends across the U.S., a data center in New York or Dallas works well. European or Asian players? Look for locations in London, Frankfurt, Singapore, or Tokyo.

4. Identify Essential Server Features

Based on your game, there are a few must-have features to ensure a good experience:

• Mod and Plugin Support: If you’re playing Minecraft with Forge or Spigot plugins or ARK with custom mods, ensure the server supports easy installation and management of these mods.
• Scalability Options: Games like ARK or Minecraft can grow fast in player count. Choose a provider that lets you upgrade server specs as your community expands.
• Automated Backups: Many games require frequent backups to avoid data loss from crashes or mod issues. Look for a host that offers regular, automated backups to save progress and customizations.

5. Decide on Your Customization Needs

What’s most important when you are choosing your game server is your customization needs. Some games offer extensive customization options and enable you to create a unique experience. If you’re planning to incorporate mods, plugins, or custom settings, make sure your game server host supports these features and provides an intuitive management interface.

To demonstrate our point, here’s how customization needs may vary by game:

Minecraft

This game is renowned for its modding potential and player-driven customizations. To make the most of it:

• Control Panels: Look for servers that provide access to user-friendly control panels like Hostinger’s GamePanel; or the traditional Multicraft or Pterodactyl. These interfaces let you install plugins such as Spigot or Bukkit to enhance gameplay with custom commands, mini-games, or additional server protections.
• Automated Tasks: Multicraft and similar tools allow you to automate server restarts, backups, or announcements, reducing manual management.
• Permission Management: Minecraft plugins often rely on permission systems for user roles. Choose a server with advanced permission management to safely assign roles like moderators, builders, or admins with specific controls.
• Modpack Compatibility: If you’re using popular modpacks (e.g., Feed the Beast, Tekkit), check that the server supports easy installation and configuration of these packs.

ARK: Survival Evolved

Known for its immersive and customizable survival mechanics, ARK benefits from server hosts that simplify extensive customization options:

• Custom Game Settings: ARK allows deep adjustments, such as modifying taming speed, resource harvesting rates, and player or dinosaur experience gain – which very often you’ll need to do tons of try-and-error. Pick a game server host with a user-friendly settings interface so you can change these variables quickly.
• Environment Configuration: Adjust PvP and PvE modes, difficulty levels, and day-night cycles to create unique gameplay experiences for your server’s community.
• Workshop Mods: ARK mods from the Steam Workshop, such as custom dinosaurs or structures, enhance gameplay and are highly popular among players. Ensure your server host offers easy mod installation tools or one-click mod support to handle these without complex manual setups.

Terraria

Although Terraria’s customization options are more modest, a good host can still make modding and management easier:

• tModLoader Support: Terraria mods rely on tModLoader, a popular modding framework. Look for a server host that simplifies tModLoader setup, allowing you to add popular mods or custom content quickly.
• Backup Options for World-Saving: Terraria’s game worlds grow over time, and many players enjoy building intricate landscapes. A host with automated backup options can save time and preserve progress, safeguarding against unexpected data loss.

6. Set Your Budget and Explore Pricing Plans

Game server hosting costs vary significantly, so choose a plan within your budget while allowing room for growth.

• Entry-Level Plans: Great for small groups in Terraria or lightly-modded Minecraft, with prices generally starting around $5–$10 per month.
• Mid-Range Plans: Ideal for medium-sized Minecraft servers or ARK servers, priced around $15 – $30 per month.
• Premium Plans: For larger communities and mod-heavy games, expect to pay $50+ per month. These plans offer more RAM, CPU power, and bandwidth.

7. Test Customer Support Quality

Quality support is essential for troubleshooting issues and server maintenance. Look for game server hosts with 24/7 support and game-specific knowledge.

Read user feedback to see if the support team is responsive and knowledgeable. Hosts with live chat or quick response times are invaluable for resolving urgent issues, like a lagging server or mod malfunction.

Wrapping Up

The right game server hosting can be a game-changer for any multiplayer experience. As the gaming world continues to evolve, choosing a host with flexible, future-ready features ensures you’re prepared for whatever comes next in online multiplayer gaming. Explore the options above to find the ideal game server host and create an unforgettable gaming journey.

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