Minecraft Server Hosting
in the USA 2020

Best Free Minecraft Server Host

While there are a couple “free” Minecraft servers out there, they are generally offered so that you will “upgrade” when you realize that performance is terrible a couple of hours into the game. Players can become frustrated and leave for other servers, leaving your dream unplayable.

We recommend that you get a good server for only a few dollars per month and save yourself the headache in the long run.

How Does a Minecraft Server Work?

The totality of a generated Minecraft world contains billions upon billions of blocks. These are rendered as chunks (a section of the map that is 16 blocks long, 16 blocks wide, and 256 blocks high for a total of 65,536 blocks) as a player moves through the world. The amount of ram needed to render each chunk will vary depending on the world, the number of blocks and mobs in that chunk, and other active players on the server.

Minecraft Java Edition Vs Minecraft Bedrock Edition

Minecraft has two different editions of its game. While the overall gameplay is virtually the same, there are a few differences between the two. Here are some server-related differences:

• You can’t add mods to Bedrock servers. If you need specific mods in order to run your server in the way you wish or ensure that players can claim their own plots of land, you will need to use Java.
• Like mods, you will be unable to add custom skins to the game. Instead, you will need to purchase skins from the available options from Microsoft.
• In order to run a Bedrock server, you will need to work through Microsoft. You can’t run Bedrock on a third-party server.
• Java will work on Windows, Mac, and Linux. Bedrock will work across a number of different systems, including iOS, Android, and Xbox.

Here are some typical gameplay differences:

• There is a different recipe to create maps on each edition of the game.
• In Java edition, you can hold any item in your offhand, whereas you can only hold an arrow, a map, or a totem in Bedrock.
• Redstone will work differently in each edition, so you will need to learn how to use it depending on its rules.
• Chunk loading also works differently. Bedrock will load fewer chunks, meaning that you can’t operate multiple farms at the same time. As a payoff, Bedrock often runs a little faster than Java when played on the same computer.

There are many other minor differences throughout the game, many of which come down to user preference.

Minecraft Gameplay: Supported Game Modes

There are many mods or variations of Minecraft that can change certain elements of the gameplay. These variations cause some lagging if you don’t have enough RAM for the additions.

In vanilla Minecraft, there are three main built-in modes (five if you count adventure and spectator):

Creative Mode

Minecraft creative mode allows you to enter any generated seed and build or destroy blocks at your own leisure. While there are mobs in this mode, they aren’t aggressive even if you attack them. You can’t take damage from hunger, great falls, or standing in lava.

While in other game modes, you will need to seek out resources and the materials you need, this isn’t the case in creative mode. You have access to every block in the game as well as spawners, allowing you to create whichever scenarios you wish easily. You also have the ability to “fly” through the server, moving along the Y-axis as high or as low as you are able.

Survival Mode

Minecraft survival tends to be the standard mode for most servers. Players start with nothing and have to gather everything they need to survive, including food, shelter, and other supplies. As they progress in the game and build their wealth, they will be able to venture into the nether and to the end. With skill and good armor, players will be able to go against both the ender dragon and the wither and be rewarded for their success.

As Minecraft is a sandbox, players can choose how they play. Some choose to live as nomads and continually travel through the map in search of loot and interesting sites. Others build mob farms to gather large amounts of resources with minimal effort in the future. Creative builders will create structures and bases that are awe-inspiring for others to see.

Regardless of personal style, playing on a multiplayer server allows you to see and experience other kinds of play. Depending on the rules of the server, you may even be able to engage in PvP or griefing other bases.

There are four difficulty levels in Minecraft survival mode: Peaceful, Easy, Normal, and Hard:

• It is fairly difficult to die in Peaceful Mode as you don’t have to deal with hunger or with aggressive mobs (they simply don’t exist in this level). You can drown, burn in lava, or fall from a great height.
• Easy - Hard Mode: these levels all have mobs that will spawn. In Hard, you will take more damage faster than you would in Easy.

Hardcore Mode

Hardcore Mode is Survival Mode without the safety-net of being able to respawn when you die. Players who venture into this mode are generally fairly experienced Minecraft players and want to see how long they go before they are killed. In Hardcore Mode, the game ends when you die.

While some people cheat the system by finding mods to save progress “just-in-case,” this defeats the overall purpose of the mode, which is to challenge the player under high stakes. In 2019, Phil “Ph1lza” Watson’s 5-year-old Hardcore game came to an end when he was killed by a baby zmobie in a cave. It is believed that his game was likely the longest continuous Hardcore game in Minecraft.

After you die in Hardcore, you can choose to remain in Spectator Mode, which allows you to move through your world to view everything, but you don’t have the ability to touch the world in any way.

Should You Manage Your Own Minecraft Server?

Deciding to run your own Minecraft server can be the next step in your gaming adventure. There are many benefits to creating your own environment, including the following:

• Community - most people enjoy playing Minecraft with other people. As the manager of your server, you can decide who gets to play with you. Some people will choose to play with their close friends, while others will extend their borders to others. Many live-streamers host servers for their channel, allowing their viewers to play alongside them.
• Rules - it can be frustrating to be on a server with rules that you don’t personally enjoy. With your own Minecraft server, you can choose and create your own rules and create the overall environment that you want for the game.
• Mods and Kits - as the owner, you get to choose which mods and kits will be allowed on the server. While you may ask your community for feedback on some of these decisions, you will be the one to ultimately decide.

Using Minecraft as a Teaching Tool

Both teachers and parents have found that Minecraft is a good teaching tool for children of all ages. Here are a few ways they can learn:

• Elemental Basics - young children can learn the basics of the elements. They will learn that saplings grow into trees, that sand can be turned into glass, and that eggs can hatch into chickens.
• Imagination and Creativity - often compared to a gaming form of Legos, children can use blocks to create anything, and as their redstone skill grows, they will be able to create operations that work and learn basic engineering skills.
• Social skills - many children who struggle with face-to-face social skills can learn how to make friends and collaborate while playing on child-friendly Minecraft servers. Parents have created servers where their kids can play with their siblings, cousins, and close friends.
• Permanence - while you may be able to re-spawn after a death in Minecraft, you might not be able to retrieve your items if you died in lava or fell into the void. While these early losses can be hard on a young child, the idea of cause and effect is something everyone needs to learn and a game is a good place to start.
• Computer Skills - not only will Minecraft teach them simple hand-eye coordination, you can teach them the basics behind controlling a server and using commands.

How to Choose a Minecraft Hosting Plan

There are a few things you should consider when selecting a Minecraft Hosting plan. These include the following elements:

• Easy Set-Up - if it seems far too complicated to set up and install Minecraft on a particular server, it is likely that any changes you need to make in the future will likely take just as much work and time. Find a server with clear instructions on an easy transition.
• Control Panel - while you can live without a control panel, the user-interface makes it a lot easier for you to quickly make changes to your server on the fly without having to search for and input the correct codes.
• RAM - generally speaking, the more RAM you have on a server, the better experience you and your friends will have on the game. Players will be able to load chunks faster and there will be less lag overall.
• Storage - Look for an SSD (solid-state drive) for your Minecraft server. An SSD will offer a solid internal transfer rate, allowing for faster storage and boosting the overall gaming performance.
• Processor - even if you don’t currently plan to take advantage of the full processing power of a server, you may want to upgrade your plan in the future as friends join your server, you add mods, or you explore further out on your map. Make sure that the server will be able to keep up with your future needs.
• Latency - one of the biggest influencers of your latency will be the location of your server. Depending on where it is in relation to you and your friends, it could influence data travel speeds and the overall server speed.
• Updates for Mods and Plugins - try to find one-click updates to make things easy on yourself. Spending an extra dollar or two for quick plugins will save you headaches over time.
• Customer Support - you will, inevitably, have questions or concerns about your Minecraft server. Find a host that will respond to your messages and help you through problems so that you can get the server back online and running smoothly again.

Minecraft Hosting Requirements

If you want to create your own server, you should try to have the following requirements for your Minecraft server:

• At least 4GB of RAM
• Windows 10 desktop or server
• Wired network connection
• Enough bandwidth to manage the players (up to 100MB per player per hour)

You should note, however, that running your own Minecraft server can cause strain on your equipment. It is often more affordable in the long run to rent a Minecraft server that would give you similar (if not better) gameplay results.