Paper Minecraft Server Optimization 2026: The Settings That Actually Help

Paper is popular because it can run faster than vanilla and gives you more control. But many people copy random settings and make things worse.

This guide focuses on a safe approach.

Table of Contents

1. Why Paper helps
2. The safe way to change settings
3. The most common performance drains
4. Player experience vs performance
5. When you need more hardware
6. Starter settings to try
7. Measure first: Timings & Spark
8. Pre-generate chunks (Chunky)

1. Why Paper helps

Paper reduces some overhead and gives you tuning options.

It will not fix a server that is overloaded with entities and farms, but it helps.

2. The safe way to change settings

Change one thing at a time.

Test under real load.

Do not blindly paste settings from random posts.

3. The most common performance drains

Entities and redstone farms are the main ones.

Chunk generation is another big load.

4. Player experience vs performance

If you cut settings too aggressively, players hate it.

Aim for stable, not extreme.

5. When you need more hardware

If you have optimized and TPS still drops, you likely need better CPU.

See /minecraft.

6. Starter settings to try

Start conservatively and adjust based on your players and world:

• server.properties: Set view-distance to 6-8 (down from 10+)
• server.properties: Set simulation-distance to 6-8 for busy servers
• spigot.yml: Lower entity-activation-range modestly for animals/monsters
• spigot.yml: Increase merge-radius slightly for dropped items
• paper-global.yml: Enable optimize-explosions

Avoid extreme values that make gameplay feel wrong.

7. Measure first: Timings & Spark

Use built-in timings to see real bottlenecks:

/timings on
/timings paste

For deeper insight, use the Spark plugin to profile CPU hotspots. Remove or replace plugins that consistently show heavy load.

8. Pre-generate chunks (Chunky)

Chunk generation causes spikes when new areas are explored. Use a chunk pre-generation plugin (like Chunky) during off-hours so gameplay is smoother later.