How much RAM Should I Allocate to Minecraft?

Volatile memory or RAM is one of the essential considerations for a computer regarding ultimate performance and efficiency as per the needs, structure, mods, and players. The more changes and the larger the size, the more RAM the server needs. For your information, your server may be delayed or perform poorly if you don’t have enough memory on your PC. In addition, it will also make it more difficult for multiple players to exist simultaneously. A player has to remember all these facts when building a system to play server-based games or do other load-intensive activities. 

Minecraft is a well-known server-based video game where several players can create, customize, and play with their family and friends. Several types of randomly designed boxes inside the game give rise to different scenes. Well, your Minecraft server will not work correctly if you don’t have enough RAM. So you must know how much RAM should I allocate to Minecraft to keep everything flowing. In addition, there are several other factors to consider for a better RAM allocation. You must read this post until the end to find everything related to the topic. 

How much RAM should I allocate to Minecraft?

The professional Minecraft hosting plan shows a 2GB RAM base for a minimal world with 10 plugins and 10 players. But there are several other considerations as per the players’ needs and requirements. The following overview of the RAM required depends on the server and mod.

Number of Players	Number of Mods	RAM requirements (Minimum)
15	25	3GB
25	40	4GB
30	45	5GB
40	50	6GB
90	50	8GB
150	50	10GB

You can see that a server with more players needs more RAM without increasing the mods. Conversely, more RAM is required even in a large world with the same player and mods. Hence, as your world size, player base, and mod needs grow, you will need to adjust your RAM as per the requirements.

Tips for adding RAM to Minecraft

No doubt, allocating a necessary amount of RAM to Minecraft is vital to enjoying the authentic gaming experience. But there are some precautions, or you may say, tips, to make the processes easy and secure. Those include

1. Make sure you have enough RAM left after the allocation process to run other programs and processes that you may be using.
2. When playing on the same computer, you mustn’t allocate enough RAM, as the graphics may not be fluid if you run out of memory.
3. You don’t have to stick to the configured amount of RAM. You can try switching to different amounts at different times.
4. If your player spikes, you can shut it down quickly and allocate more RAM to keep it running smoothly when the population is substantial. 
5. If few people have successfully turned it on, you can revert the RAM.
6. Adding too much RAM may delay the server and cause performance issues. So it would help if you also kept this fact in your mind.

How to allocate more RAM to your Minecraft 1.14.4?

Whether renting a server or managing a server, allocating memory is easy. Of course, if you’re renting a server, you must go to the control panel and update your plan to get more RAM. As your need grows, it will cost more. However, if you manage your server, it is helpful to know how to change the RAM allocation. Apart from that, we have discussed four different methods to efficiently allocate RAM for Minecraft. I’m sure that each will give you easy access to the allocation processor. Those methods include:

RAM allocation via Default Launcher

RAM can be changed directly with the Java Edition launcher. If you are using a different launcher or have problems with the default launcher, you can switch to a different one. The process of RAM allocation in JAVA Edition includes the following: 

• Step 1: Open the Minecraft Launcher.

• Step 2: Click on Installations.

• Step 3: Click the button with the three dots for the installation you want to manage.

• Step 4: Click More Options.

• Step 5: Examine the JVM argument line.

• Step 6: Change the number to “Xmx4G” to include the 4GB of RAM, or “Xmx6G” to allocate 6GB of RAM, and so on.

Note: You need to manage each installation individually.

All third-party launcher programs have JVM arguments in different places. Still, the general procedure is the same as changing them in Java Edition. Look for Settings or Edit Profile. These two places may have JVM arguments that you can tweak to give Minecraft more RAM.

Allocating RAM using the CurseForge ‘Minecraft’ launcher

The step for allocating RAM using the CurseForge ‘Minecraft’ Launcher include

• Step 1: First of all, launch the CurseForge app > go to Settings given in the left-bottom corner of the window.  

Note: The CurseForge launcher can be used to mod a long list of other games. But since we are following the process for Minecraft, we have to select Minecraft-related settings/processes by following ‘Step 2’, which is given below. 

• Step 2: Go to the Game Specific window > select Minecraft.

• Step 3: Scroll down to configure the Java Settings > select Allocated Memory. 

• Step 4: Drag the orange ball to a point to allocate the preferred RAM. 

Note: The number that varies is in megabytes or MBs. As per the rule, 1024MB equals 1GB, so 512MB is 0.5GB—change accordingly. 

RAM allocation by Twitch Launcher

Twitch Launcher is another way to start a Minecraft game. You can also use it to free up more RAM quickly. For your information, you won’t have to alter a few code lines to make the required as we have done in the Default Launcher method. Instead, this Twitch Launcher uses sliders rather than coding to adjust the RAM. So let’s dive deep into the actual practice without any due!

• Step 1: First of all, open the Twitch Launcher.

• Step 2: Click on the three-line in the top-right corner—you’ll reach your Files section.

• Step 3: Access the Setting menu via the gear icon > Click the Minecraft tab.

• Step 4: Scroll down until you find the Java Setting option.

• Step 5: Find or search the Allocated Memory slider in Java Settings section > set and allocate the desired RAM size.

Note: You can increase or decrease the RAM size in multiples of 0.25GB. 

• Step 6: Your custom setting will automatically be saved. Now, you can go to the launcher menu and do whatever you want. 

Allocating RAM via ATLauncher

Another way to allocate RAM is by using the ATLauncher method. It’s not a default launcher but a famous and widely used method, maybe since it gives better control over the easy-to-allocated memory distribution. 

The method’s steps include

• Step 1: Launch the ATLauncher in the same way as you do for Twitch Launcher. 

• Step 2: Click the Settings tag on the window’s top-right section.

• Step 3: Go to the Java/Minecraft tab from the top menu to uncover a new dropdown menu.

• Step 4: From the newly-popped menu, navigate and select the Maximum Memory/RAM.

• Step 5: Adjust the RAM size from the Maximum Memory/RAM section as per your needs. 

Note: The varying number is in megabytes or MBs, and 1024MB equals 1GB, so 512MB is 0.5GB—change accordingly. 

• Step 6: After allocating a particular memory, ensure to click Save, which is at the bottom of the window.

Conclusion

If you’re playing Minecraft without mods, 3GB should be plenty. If you’re using mods, you should probably allocate 4–5GB and close other programs: you will end up using most of your physical RAM, and you want to avoid Minecraft using virtual memory. In addition, don’t use Modpacks with lots of mods on a computer with only 8GB; you’ll experience poor performance. If you think that your system doesn’t have enough RAM, you can purchase more to support the computer and play Minecraft safely. 

But for now, we have discussed four methods to allocate any size of RAM to the game, depending on your needs. Before going into following the methods, remember you must avoid allocating RAM needlessly to Minecraft, as this can produce “spikes” of lag when the Java garbage collector runs and cleans up memory no longer being used; by giving it more RAM, there’s more “garbage” to collect, and it takes longer. If that’s clear, follow the methods given above to allocate RAM efficiently to the Minecraft game.