Choosing a Palworld Server Host in Australia
Palworld asks more of a server than most games do, and that changes what to look for when you rent one. This guide covers what matters for a group playing from Australia, and how the main options compare.
MCHosts is our service, so we're obviously biased. We've tried to keep this factual and leave the conclusions to you. Prices and details were checked at the time of writing and may have changed since.
Co-op or a dedicated server
Palworld's own co-op takes up to four players, and the world lives inside the host's copy of the game. Nobody else can play in it until the host is online.
A dedicated server takes up to 32 and stays up on its own. Anyone in the group can log in at any hour and pick up where the last person left off.
If there are four of you or fewer and you always play together, co-op is free and does the job. A server is for bigger groups, and for groups that play at different times.
Where the server sits
Palworld sends a lot of movement over the wire, and distance shows up as rubber banding. From the Australian east coast, a server in Sydney is roughly 10 to 40 milliseconds away. Los Angeles or Europe is 150 to 300.
Before you compare anything else, check that a host has an Australian location for Palworld and whether it costs extra.
Memory, and what happens when it runs out
Palworld uses more memory the longer it runs. A world also gets heavier as it's played, so months of bases spread across the map ask for more than a fresh world with the same number of players. Player count is only part of it.
A server that never restarts eventually runs out of memory and stops on its own, at whatever time it happens to reach the limit. Ask a host whether its servers restart on a schedule and what happens when one hits its limit. Check you can move up a size without losing the world, too.
Ours restart once a day at 4am by default. Anyone online gets a warning in game first, and you can move the time or switch it off. If your server reaches its memory limit at some other time, you get an email about it. Why your Palworld server restarts daily has the detail.
Xbox and PlayStation players
Palworld has crossplay, so one server can take players on Steam, Xbox, PlayStation and Mac.
Console players get in a different way. They can't type an address, so their game finds servers through Palworld's own in-game list, and a server has to be on that list before they can join it. If anyone in your group plays on a console, ask a host how that's set up.
On our panel it's a Server Browser switch on the Settings tab. Turning it on lists your server publicly, so set a password as well. Connecting to your Palworld server has the steps.
Mods
Pocketpair call their own mod support experimental, and it's worth taking them at their word. A Palworld update can break mods until their authors catch up. Most mods also have to be installed on every player's game as well as on the server, because a server can't hand them out.
If mods aren't the reason you want a server, pick a standard one.
We offer a Modded option beside Standard, with Steam Workshop mods installed from the panel. It's experimental here too. Switching between the two later deletes your world, so read Choosing between Standard and Modded Palworld before you decide.
The checks that apply to any game
A plan billed in US dollars moves with the exchange rate, and most Australian cards add an international transaction fee of around 3% to every renewal.
Support hours matter as well. If the team is overseas, a ticket you send in the evening can wait until their morning.
A refund window lets you test the server from your own connection before you're committed, so check how long it is.
The main options for Australians
| Host | Based in |
|---|---|
| Shockbyte | Australia |
| Apex Hosting | United States |
| BisectHosting | United States |
| Nodecraft | United States |
| MCHosts | Australia |
Shockbyte
Shockbyte is a Melbourne company that has been operating since 2013, with Sydney and Melbourne among its server locations. It sells Palworld in three plans sized by player count. Its Australian pages are priced in AUD. There is a 72 hour self-serve refund.
Apex Hosting
Apex Hosting is an American company, founded in 2013, and Sydney is on the location list for its Palworld servers. It prices in US dollars. Its terms allow a refund within 7 days of the server being created.
BisectHosting
BisectHosting is registered in the United States and has hosted game servers since 2011. Sydney is one of its 21 locations. Its Palworld page advertises crossplay and mod support, and showed prices in AUD when we checked from Australia. New customers get a 3 day money back guarantee.
Nodecraft
Nodecraft was founded in 2012 and is based in Oklahoma City. Its locations include Sydney and Melbourne, with Auckland for New Zealand players, and it shows prices in AUD. There are two ranges. A Lite server hibernates when it isn't being used and a Pro server stays online. The money back guarantee is 7 days.
MCHosts
MCHosts (that's us) runs everything from Sydney, with billing in AUD and GST included. Our servers are in Sydney and nowhere else.
Palworld needs more memory than most games we host, which is why our smallest plan is 6GB. Plans run from A$22.50 a month for 6GB to A$60.00 a month for 16GB, a flat A$3.75 per gigabyte across six sizes.
Every plan includes crossplay, automatic updates, automatic backups you can restore yourself, a live console, full file access and DDoS protection. The player count and the world rules are settings in the panel. Support comes from the people who run the servers, in Australian hours, and every new server has a 7 day money back guarantee.
The short version
| Host | AU location | Billing currency | Refund window |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shockbyte | Sydney, Melbourne | AUD on its Australian pages | 72 hours |
| Apex Hosting | Sydney | USD | 7 days |
| BisectHosting | Sydney | AUD shown for AU visitors | 3 days |
| Nodecraft | Sydney, Melbourne | AUD shown for AU visitors | 7 days |
| MCHosts | Sydney | AUD | 7 days |
Frequently asked questions
Do my Pals keep working while I'm offline? Only while somebody is on the server. Palworld stops base production once the last player leaves, so a server shared by a few people is one where the furnaces are lit far more of the time.
How many players can join? Up to 32, which is Palworld's own limit. You can set a lower number in your settings.
Can I change the restart time? Yes. Pick a different time, or switch the daily restart off. If you switch it off, your server keeps climbing until it hits its limit, and then it stops mid game.
Can I move up a size later? Yes. Your world and your address stay as they are.
Want to see the sizes? The plans are at mchosts.com.au/plans/palworld. Once you're in, Palworld server settings covers what most people change first.
