How to Make a Palworld Dedicated Server

Co-op invite or a dedicated server?

If four friends always play together, co-op is enough. As soon as you want more players, or want people to play when the host is away, you need a dedicated server.

What a Palworld server needs

• RAM. Pocketpair's official requirement is 16 GB, with more recommended for bigger servers. 8 GB starts, but the official docs warn it raises the chance of out-of-memory crashes, and memory use grows with bases and Pals.
• CPU. Four cores or more.
• Storage. An SSD — Pocketpair warns that slow storage can corrupt save data.
• Port. UDP 8211 by default.
• The software. The free Palworld Dedicated Server tool on Steam (app 2394010), for Windows or Linux.

Set up a Palworld dedicated server at home

1. Install the server. In Steam, switch the Library filter to Tools and install Palworld Dedicated Server. On a machine without Steam, use SteamCMD:

   steamcmd +login anonymous +app_update 2394010 validate +quit

2. Start it once. Run PalServer.exe on Windows or ./PalServer.sh on Linux, wait for it to start, then stop it. This creates the settings folders.
3. Create your settings file. Copy DefaultPalWorldSettings.ini from the server folder into Pal/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/ (on Linux, LinuxServer) and name it PalWorldSettings.ini. Editing the default file does nothing. Set at least ServerName, ServerPassword, AdminPassword and ServerPlayerMaxNum.
4. Open the port. Forward UDP 8211 on your router to the PC and allow the server through the firewall.
5. Start it for real. For a server that console players can find, start it as a community server: tick that option when Steam asks, or add -publiclobby to the launch options.

Steam and Mac players join from Join Multiplayer Game by typing your public IP and port 8211 into the box below the server list. Since 1.0 the game remembers server passwords, so friends only type it once.

Make a Palworld server on HytHost

1. Pick a plan. On Palworld hosting the plans run from 8 GB for a small group starting out to 24 GB for big communities. For a long-running world, 16 GB is the size Pocketpair recommends, and you can upgrade later without losing the world.
2. Set the basics in the Startup tab: server name, server password, admin password and player slots. Turn on the Crossplay Community Lobby switch if Xbox or PS5 players will join.
3. Tune the world in PalWorldSettings.ini, which the file manager shows under Pal/Saved/Config/LinuxServer. Stop the server before editing and start it again afterwards.
4. Join. PC players enter the address and port from the panel; console players find the server in the community list.

Automatic backups and scheduled restarts are part of every plan, and the panel console lets you run admin commands without joining the game — see Palworld admin commands.

Crossplay with Xbox, PS5 and Mac

Palworld dedicated servers have crossplay on by default for Steam, Xbox (including the Microsoft Store and Game Pass version), PlayStation 5 and Mac. The difference is how players get in: Steam and Mac players can type an address, but Xbox and PS5 players can only join a community server from the in-game list. That is why the server must be started as a community server for them.

The details — listing, finding the server, and the "incompatible version" message after an update — are in Palworld crossplay with Xbox and PS5.

Settings, admins and your co-op world

• World settings — XP and capture rates, death penalty, PvP, base limits, voice chat: see Palworld server settings.
• Admin commands — kick, ban, teleport, save, shutdown: see Palworld admin commands.
• Bringing a co-op world to the server: see how to transfer a Palworld save to a dedicated server.

What changed for servers in Palworld 1.0

Palworld 1.0 came out on 10 July 2026. From Pocketpair's official notes, the changes that matter to server owners:

• Voice chat in the game, available when it is enabled in a dedicated server's world settings.
• Guild roles and permissions, and a longer chat history.
• Easier joining: the game saves server passwords and makes entering an IP address simpler.
• New default world settings for dedicated servers, adjusted to match single-player Normal difficulty.
• Optimised dedicated server processing, and fixes for crashes and memory leaks on dedicated servers, Xbox and PS5.
• Patch 1.0.4 added a server setting to limit how many buildings each player can place.

The admin commands did not change. Back up the world before updating a server across a major version.