# Best Rust server hosting: how to choose

> What a good Rust host gets right: enough RAM for your map, wipe day handled, plugins and a daily restart. What a server costs, and where we fall short.

By the Wilderack Crew. Last reviewed 2026-11-13.

_Rust is a trademark of Facepunch Studios Ltd. Wilderack is not affiliated with or endorsed by Facepunch Studios Ltd._

Rust is one of the hungriest games to host, and every month brings a forced wipe that no server can skip. The real differences between hosts are how much memory you get for your map and how much of wipe day you still do by hand. Here is what to check before you pay anyone, us included.

**A note before you read:** Wilderack sells Rust servers, so this is a guide from a host, not a neutral review. Every fact about Rust links the guide it comes from, and those guides cite Facepunch Studios's own documentation. We name no other hosts, and one section says where we fall short.

## Three ways to run a Rust server

### Play on a community server

Pick one of the servers in Rust’s own browser.

- Cost: Free
- Friends can play without you: Always, run by its owner
- Who can join: Anyone who finds it
- What you do: None, but the owner sets the rules, the plugins and the wipe days

### Run the free server yourself

Facepunch’s RustDedicated server is free on Steam.

- Cost: Free, plus a computer that stays on
- Friends can play without you: While that computer is on
- Who can join: Anyone with the address, once your router forwards the ports
- What you do: Facepunch suggests 12 GB of free memory, and the monthly update and wipe are yours

### Rent a server

A dedicated Rust server in a data center, with a panel to run it.

- Cost: From $35.99 a month, or $53.99 a month for the Grove 12 GB always-on we recommend
- Friends can play without you: Always on
- Who can join: With client.connect and your address in the F1 console, or from the server browser once it is listed
- What you do: None to install. Updates, backups and DDoS protection are handled

## What to look for in a Rust host

The checks that matter for every game, from ping to refunds: https://wilderack.com/best-game-server-hosting/

### Enough RAM for your map

Facepunch suggests 12 GB of free memory for a typical server, and more for a 6000 map. Memory use also grows through a wipe, because every wall, box and dropped item stays in memory. Details: https://wilderack.com/wiki/rust/performance/

On Wilderack (Yes): Plans are sold by RAM, not player slots. We recommend Grove 12 GB always-on, and Grove 8 GB always-on is enough for a few friends on a small map.

### Wipe day handled for you

Facepunch forces a map wipe on every server on the first Thursday of the month, with its update. The new version can’t load the old map, so there is no skipping it. Details: https://wilderack.com/wiki/rust/wipe-day/

On Wilderack (Yes): The Rust wipe day preset in Schedules warns players, stops the server, updates Rust and your plugin framework, wipes and starts the new map.

### Plugins through Oxide or Carbon

Rust plugins run through a framework, Oxide (uMod) or Carbon, and each Rust update needs a matching framework release before plugins work again. Details: https://wilderack.com/wiki/rust/mods/

On Wilderack (Yes): Pick Oxide or Carbon as the server type in Settings, then install plugins from the Mods tab in one tap.

### A daily restart

Rust runs best with a regular restart, which clears memory the server no longer needs. Details: https://wilderack.com/wiki/rust/performance/

On Wilderack (Yes): Add the Daily restart with warnings preset in Schedules. It warns players 5 minutes and 1 minute before, and can wait until nobody is online.

### Backups you can restore yourself

A bad plugin or a mistyped setting can break a wipe’s worth of building. After a forced-wipe update, though, Rust can’t load a map saved before it, even from a backup. Details: https://wilderack.com/wiki/rust/backups/

On Wilderack (Yes): A safe copy every 10 minutes while the server runs and every time it sleeps, plus your own. Configs, plugins and blueprints always restore.

### The Rust+ app working

The Rust+ companion app needs its own port open on the server to show your base and alarms on your phone. Details: https://wilderack.com/wiki/rust/how-to-connect/

On Wilderack (Yes): We open the app’s port for you, so pairing works with nothing to set up.

## What a cheap Rust server costs

| Group | Plan | Monthly | 3-day pass |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 25 players | Grove 8 GB always-on | $35.99 | $7.25 |
| Up to 50 players | Grove 10 GB always-on | $44.99 | $9.05 |
| Up to 75 players | Grove 12 GB always-on (recommended) | $53.99 | $10.85 |
| Up to 100 players, modded | World tree 16 GB always-on | $71.99 | $14.45 |
| Up to 150 players, modded | World tree 24 GB always-on | $107.99 | $21.65 |
| Up to 200 players, modded | World tree 32 GB always-on | $143.99 | $28.85 |

Monthly plans renew at the price shown and can be canceled any time. A 3-day pass is a one-time payment that doesn't renew. Prices in US dollars + applicable taxes.

A cheap Rust server is a small one: Grove 8 GB always-on runs a few friends on a 2000 to 3000 map. Memory climbs through each wipe, so a bigger map or a public server needs Grove 12 GB always-on or more, and a server near its limit slows down by the end of the wipe.

## Where Wilderack falls short

- Rust Console Edition players can’t join. It is a separate game with servers only its publisher hosts.
- Two regions open so far: US East and Europe. Groups in Asia, Oceania or South America will have higher ping than with a host nearby.
- We are new, so we can’t show you years of uptime yet. A 3-day pass is the cheap way to try us first.

## Questions and answers

### How much RAM does a Rust server need?

Plan on 8 GB for a few friends on a small map, 12 GB for a normal map of 3000 to 4000 with some plugins, and 16 GB or more for big maps, many plugins or a busy public server.

### Can I put a password on a Rust server?

Rust has no server password. Keep the address to your group, set max players to 0 and add friends to the skip queue, or use a whitelist plugin on Oxide or Carbon.

### Does my server have to wipe every month?

The map does. Facepunch’s monthly update on the first Thursday changes the save format, so every server starts a new map. Blueprints stay unless that update wipes them too.

## Sources

- [Creating a server](https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/Creating-a-server), Facepunch Studios
- [Community Server and Hosting Guidelines](https://facepunch.com/legal/servers), Facepunch Studios
- [Rust on Steam](https://store.steampowered.com/app/252490/Rust/), Valve
- [Useful Console Commands](https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/useful_commands), Facepunch Studios
- [Carbon Modding Framework](https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/Carbon), Facepunch Studios
- [Server Wipe Timer](https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/server-wipe-timer), Facepunch Studios
- [Getting started with your rust server](https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/Getting-Started_w-Server), Facepunch Studios
- [Server Browser Tags](https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/server-browser-tags), Facepunch Studios
- [Oxide](https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/Oxide), Facepunch Studios
- [Configuring Carbon](https://carbonmod.gg/owners/configuring-carbon), Carbon
- [Rust+ Server](https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/rust-companion-server), Facepunch Studios
- [Creating a hidden, whitelisted server](https://wiki.facepunch.com/rust/Creating_a_hidden_whitelisted_server), Facepunch Studios

Plans and prices: https://wilderack.com/rust-server-hosting/

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Corrections: support@wilderack.com