How to choose a game server host

Most game server hosts make similar claims on their front page. Judge them on what you can check before you pay, then run the 12-point checklist at the end against each host on your shortlist.

Location and ping

Where the machine physically sits decides the ping floor for everyone who joins. Ping is the time a signal takes to travel between a player and the server and back, and it grows with distance. No host can change that, so if most of your group lives far from every location a host offers, expect a higher ping whichever host you pick.

Choose the location nearest most of the group, not only the one nearest you. If the site doesn't name its locations, ask before you pay. Better still is a host that lets you measure it: a live ping test on the site, or a test address you can ping before you buy. Our own measured figures are in the "Where we stand" section below, and the server locations page has a ping test.

How fast is each CPU core?

Game servers are single-threaded or close to it. Minecraft, Rust, ARK and Palworld all run their main loop on one core, so what matters is how fast one core is, not how many you get. A vCPU count only says how much processor time the plan gets, so ask the host which CPU model runs the plan and check its single-core score before you pay.

RAM headroom, and who else is on the box

Check whether the RAM on the plan is really yours: a host that oversells puts more RAM on a machine than it has, betting that not everyone uses theirs at once. Signs of a fair host are RAM plans that step up in sensible sizes, a clear statement of what runs where, and a way to see your live usage in the panel. Plan for headroom: a Minecraft modpack that "needs 6 GB" is happier on 8, and Rust wants 8 GB for a 3000 map before anyone joins.

Backups you can restore yourself

Ask three questions. Can you make a backup on demand, or only on the host's schedule? Can you restore one yourself, from the panel, without a ticket? And where are backups kept, on the same disk as the server or somewhere else? Backups that live on the same disk vanish with it. Look for the answers on the host's own pages.

What the control panel should do

You will spend far more time in the control panel than on the checkout page. A good one has a live console, a file manager with upload and edit, a scheduler for restarts and backups, one-click version switching for games that need it, and startup settings as labeled fields rather than a raw command line. Look for screenshots or a demo of the panel before you pay, and check that mods, plugins and Workshop content have a documented install workflow in the panel.

Refund policy and support hours you can check

A refund policy should be its own page that states the refund window. Support should have stated hours and a way to reach a person. Find the policy page, find the hours, and look for a stated or measured reply time. Then look at recent reviews on an independent site and see whether people describe getting help or waiting for it.

Price is the last thing to compare

Comparing price per gigabyte hides every point above. Two plans at the same price can differ by a generation of CPU and by whether backups are included. Compare the checklist first, then compare price among the hosts that pass. Weighing a host against a spare PC at home? Home server or rented game server compares the two. Already running on another host? How to move your server from another host covers the copy.

The 12-point checklist

1. Says which locations its hardware is in.
2. Lets you measure your ping before you buy.
3. Tells you which CPU model runs the plan, and it has a fast single core.
4. Explains what "dedicated" or "shared" means for its RAM and CPU.
5. Shows live CPU and RAM use in the panel.
6. Backups on demand, restorable by you, stored off the server's own disk.
7. A panel with console, file manager, scheduler and startup settings, with a demo or screenshots.
8. A documented way to install mods, plugins or Workshop content for your game.
9. A refund policy on its own page with a stated window.
10. Support hours and a stated or measured reply time on the site, plus reviews that match.
11. An uptime commitment with a page that says what happens when it is missed.
12. Prices shown in your currency as the amount you pay, with no per-player or per-slot pricing.

Give the most weight to the first two (location and ping) and the last three (support, uptime and pricing).

Where we stand

Here are our own answers to the checklist, so you can check them the same way you would check anyone else's:

• Location and ping (points 1 and 2): every server runs on dedicated AMD Ryzen 5000-series hardware. Our live locations are Dallas, Texas, and Sydney, Australia. Pick the one nearest most of your group, and use the server locations page to test your own ping before you buy. Measured ping from each location:

Measured data center to data center, from WonderNetwork's hourly samples. Your home connection adds to these. Test your own ping to each location.

• CPU and RAM (points 3 to 5): the plan card lists each plan's RAM and vCPU, and the panel's Console tab shows live CPU and RAM use.
• Backups and the panel (points 6 to 8): take a backup on demand or on a schedule from the Backups tab and restore it yourself. The panel has a live console, file manager, SFTP, scheduled tasks and startup settings, with guides for mods, plugins and Workshop content in the Help Center.
• Refunds (point 9): a full refund within 72 hours of a purchase or renewal payment, no reason required, on the refund policy page.
• Support (point 10): live chat, email, Discord and tickets, all listed on the contact page. Support is on hand 7 days a week.
• Uptime (point 11): a 99.9% monthly uptime target, with a service credit of 5% to 50% of that server's monthly price when it is missed, set out on the SLA page.
• Pricing (point 12): every price is in your site's currency and is the amount you pay, with no per-player or per-slot pricing. What a game server costs has the cheapest plan of every game.

See every game and its plans.