Free modded Minecraft server hosting, and why it is a trial
Modpacks are heavy: 6 GB for a friend group, 8 to 12 for a kitchen sink. The free server is 2 GB and runs a plugin server well, not a modpack. What you can get free is a real modded server for a week, with any pack installed, no card.
Why no host gives you a free modded server
A modpack with 200 mods idles at 4 to 6 GB and uses more with players on; a 2 GB free server dies at boot. Every modpack page on this site shows what the pack really uses, measured on the servers we run: the modpack list.
What is free here
The 7-day trial creates a server with 8 GB and installs the pack you pick, with the client-only mods that crash dedicated servers already removed. No card. Invite your friends, play the week, and if it is not for you it ends. If it is, a 6 GB server is $7.50 a month and 8 GB is $9.50, with the world kept.
Light modded servers do fit the free tier: a Fabric server with a few performance and quality-of-life mods runs in 2 GB. Create the free server, switch it to Fabric in the panel and install mods from the Resources tab.
Sizing a pack
Rule of thumb: 4 GB for a small Fabric pack, 6 GB for a 150-mod Forge pack, 8 to 12 GB for the big ones. The pack page has the table; the RAM guide has the reasoning.
Frequently asked questions
Can I run a modpack on the free server?
Not a real one: the free server has 2 GB and modpacks want 6 GB or more. A light Fabric server with a handful of mods fits. The 7-day trial gives 8 GB with any pack, no card.
Which packs can the trial install?
Any pack on CurseForge or Modrinth with a server pack, 1,300 of which have a page here. A few very heavy packs need more than the trial's 8 GB; the pack page says so.
What happens when the trial ends?
The server stops unless you add a payment method; nothing is charged until you do. Your world stays for a while so you can come back to it.
Do my friends need the mods?
Yes, the same pack version in their launcher. The server side is handled here.