# How much RAM your Minecraft server needs, and how to change it

> Set the server RAM in the panel, what the pool model means for your bill, and the numbers that actually work.

Source: https://fadehost.com/docs/allocate-ram/

Your subscription is a pool of RAM. Each server takes a share of it while it runs; a stopped or sleeping server takes none. Every extra gigabyte in the pool is a dollar a month.

## Change a server's RAM

1. Open **Settings**, **General**.
2. Set **Server RAM (GB)** and save.
3. Restart the server. The Java memory flags are set for you; there is no start script to edit.

If the pool is too small for the new size, the panel offers to add RAM to the plan on the spot. The **Statistics** tab shows the memory the server actually uses over time, which is the honest way to size it.

## Numbers that work

The [RAM calculator](/tools/ram-calculator/) sizes a server from the player count, the modpack, plugins and Bedrock players, using what servers hosted here use. The table below is the short version.

| Server | RAM |
| --- | --- |
| Vanilla or Paper, a few friends | 2 GB |
| Paper with 20 plugins, a community | 4 GB |
| Fabric with performance mods | 2 to 4 GB |
| A 150-mod Forge pack, a few friends | 6 GB |
| A 300-mod kitchen sink pack | 8 to 12 GB |

Every modpack page on this site has a table for that pack, measured on our own fleet where we run it: [modpacks](/modpacks/).

## More is not always better

- Minecraft 1.12.2 and older run worse past 6 to 8 GB: the old garbage collector pauses longer with a bigger heap.
- Lag with RAM to spare is CPU: worldgen, mob AI, redstone and big contraptions run on one thread. See [Why is my server lagging?](/docs/server-lag/).
- The panel warns when a server sits at its memory limit; the fix is one gigabyte at a time, not doubling.