How Much RAM Does a Terraria Server Need?
There's no single right answer — a small vanilla world and a heavily modded tModLoader server are genuinely different workloads. Here's what actually moves the number, and what our own tiers are sized around.
Our tiers, and what they're actually sized for
These aren't arbitrary numbers — each tier reflects what we've seen actually be a comfortable fit for that kind of server, not a generic RAM ladder.
Starter
£2/mo · 1.5 GB · 25 GB
A small vanilla world for a couple of friends. Comfortable for casual play, not built around a heavy mod list.
Standard
£5/mo · 2 GB · 40 GB
Vanilla or a lightly modded tModLoader server for a growing group. This is where most tModLoader servers with a handful of quality-of-life mods sit comfortably.
Pro
£9/mo · 4 GB · 60 GB
Heavy tModLoader packs — Calamity, Thorium, or combinations of large overhaul mods — and higher player counts. Built for exactly this case rather than being a stretch fit for it.
What actually changes the requirement
World size
Large worlds hold more chunk data in memory than Small worlds, independent of anything else running. If you're planning a Large world, weight that toward the next tier up even before considering mods.
Vanilla vs tModLoader
tModLoader itself adds overhead beyond vanilla Terraria before you install a single mod — it's running a mod-loading framework alongside the game. A tModLoader server with zero mods installed already uses meaningfully more memory than the equivalent vanilla server.
Number and size of mods
Large overhaul mods (Calamity, Thorium) add substantially more entities, items, and systems running simultaneously than quality-of-life mods do. A server running two or three big overhaul mods together is a different memory picture than one running a single small mod.
Player count
More connected players means more simulated entities and more network state the server tracks concurrently — a bigger factor on a busy server than on a quiet one, and it compounds with the world-size and mod-load factors above rather than being independent of them.
Not sure which tier fits your setup?
Start on the free trial and see real memory use for your actual world and mod list before you commit to a plan.
Frequently asked questions
Is 1.5 GB enough for a Terraria server?
Yes, including a Large vanilla world — our Starter tier is sized at 1.5 GB specifically because a Large world's own generation peaks at roughly 1.2 GB with nobody connected yet, and 1.5 GB clears that with real headroom to spare. It's not the right fit for a modded server; tModLoader adds meaningful overhead of its own before a single mod is installed.
Do I need more RAM for tModLoader than vanilla?
Yes, generally. tModLoader adds overhead on its own before any mods are installed, and mods themselves add further memory use on top of that — a modded server benefits from at least a tier above the equivalent vanilla setup.
Will Calamity and Thorium together need the top tier?
Running two large overhaul mods together is exactly the kind of heavy tModLoader load our Pro tier (4 GB) is sized for. It's a reasonable starting point for that combination, not an overcautious one.
Can I start on a smaller tier and upgrade later?
Yes — moving to a larger plan does not require rebuilding your server or losing your world. If you start vanilla and later want to add a heavy modpack, upgrading first avoids finding out mid-session that the smaller tier is the bottleneck.
Does world size or mod load matter more for RAM?
Both matter, but mods are usually the bigger swing — a Large vanilla world is a moderate step up from Small, while adding heavy tModLoader packs to any world size is a substantially bigger one. If you're choosing where to prioritise headroom, weight the mod list more than the world size.