Palworld Dedicated Server: Complete Hosting Guide 2026
Palworld took the gaming world by storm and its dedicated server demand spiked accordingly. The server is more resource-intensive than its "Pokémon with guns" aesthetic suggests.
Hardware Requirements
| Players | RAM | CPU | Notes | |---|---|---|---| | 2–4 | 8 GB | 4 cores | Minimum viable | | 5–16 | 16 GB | 6 cores | Comfortable | | 16–32 | 32 GB | 8 cores | With open world activity |
Palworld's server does not scale down gracefully. 8 GB RAM is the real minimum — the server process alone uses 4–6 GB under normal operation.
Installation via SteamCMD
# Install SteamCMD
sudo apt install lib32gcc-s1 steamcmd
# Create a dedicated user
sudo adduser palworld
su - palworld
# Download Palworld server (App ID: 2394010)
steamcmd +login anonymous +force_install_dir /home/palworld/server +app_update 2394010 +quit
Starting the Server
#!/bin/bash
/home/palworld/server/PalServer.sh \
EpicApp=PalServer \
-port=8211 \
-players=16 \
-useperfthreads \
-NoAsyncLoadingThread \
-UseMultithreadForDS
The -useperfthreads and -UseMultithreadForDS flags significantly improve performance on multi-core servers.
PalWorldSettings.ini
Server configuration is in Pal/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/PalWorldSettings.ini:
[/Script/Pal.PalGameWorldSettings]
OptionSettings=(
ServerPlayerMaxNum=16,
ServerName="Your Server Name",
ServerPassword="your_password",
AdminPassword="admin_password",
bUseAuth=True,
DayTimeSpeedRate=1.0,
NightTimeSpeedRate=1.0,
ExpRate=1.5,
PalCaptureRate=1.0
)
Updating the Server
# Update Palworld server files
steamcmd +login anonymous +force_install_dir /home/palworld/server +app_update 2394010 +quit
sudo systemctl restart palworld
Set up a daily cron job for automatic updates to keep peer with game client versions:
# crontab -e
0 4 * * * /usr/bin/steamcmd +login anonymous +force_install_dir /home/palworld/server +app_update 2394010 +quit && systemctl restart palworld