Sensible RAM guidance for vanilla Terraria and for modded tModLoader servers, what actually drives the number, and how to upgrade if you run short.
RAM is the memory your server uses to hold the world and everything happening in it. Terraria is light on memory compared with many games, but modded tModLoader can want a lot more, so the right amount depends mostly on whether you are running mods and how big the modpack is.
Rough starting points
These are practical starting points for a small group of friends, not hard limits:
- Vanilla Terraria, a handful of players: around 2 GB is comfortable. Small servers can run on less, but 2 GB leaves headroom.
- tModLoader with a light modpack (a few quality-of-life mods): around 3 GB.
- tModLoader with a big content pack (large mods like Calamity or Thorium, or several stacked together): 4 GB to 6 GB or more.
- Very large modpacks with dozens of mods: budget 6 GB and up, and be ready to add more if the log shows memory pressure.
What actually drives the number
- Mods, most of all. Each mod loads its items, enemies, and world data into memory. A heavy content mod can multiply your usage on its own, and stacking several adds up fast.
- World size. A Large world holds more tiles than a Small one, so it uses more memory. You set this with autocreate in serverconfig.txt.
- Player count matters less than people expect. Going from 3 to 8 players adds far less than adding a big mod does.
- Long uptime. Memory use tends to creep up the longer a server runs, especially heavily modded, so a scheduled restart helps.
Signs you need more
- The Console tab shows out-of-memory errors or the server crashes during world load.
- tModLoader stalls or drops players while loading a big modpack.
- The world lags or freezes when a lot is happening on screen, even though your own connection is fine.
If you see these, more RAM is usually the fix.
How to add more RAM
GuavaHost plans are fully configurable. You pick your RAM at checkout, and you can upgrade any time.
- Go to guavahost.com/account and open your service.
- Choose the upgrade option and pick a larger plan.
- Billing is prorated, so you only pay the difference for the time left in your cycle.
Because every server runs on NVMe SSD storage and AMD Ryzen or Intel hardware, worlds load quickly and the extra memory goes straight into smoother play rather than fighting slow disks.
Get more out of the RAM you have
- Set up a nightly restart on the Schedules tab to clear the slow creep in memory use on modded servers.
- Only enable the mods you actually play with. Every extra mod in enabled.json costs memory whether you use it or not.
- Consider a Medium world instead of Large if you do not need the space.
If you are not sure what to pick, it is fine to start modest and upgrade later, especially with the 48-hour money-back guarantee giving you room to test.
Still stuck? Jump into our Discord at discord.gg/GuavaHost and the team will help you out.