How to reduce lag on your Minecraft server Print

This article explains the most common causes of lag on a Minecraft server and what you can do on your PlayNHost server to improve performance.

1. Understand the type of lag you have

• Server lag (TPS / ticks) – blocks break slowly, mobs freeze, chat is delayed, everything feels like it is “rubber-banding”.
• Network lag (ping) – players see good TPS but high ping, teleporting/rubber-banding, or delayed hits; usually related to distance or connection quality.
• Client lag (FPS) – one player gets low FPS, but others and the server are fine; usually their own PC or client settings.

This article focuses on server-side lag, but a few network tips are included as well.

2. Check console for errors and spam

1. Go to https://panel.playnhost.com and log in.
2. Select your Minecraft server.
3. Open the Console tab and watch it while the server is running.

Look for:

• Repeated error messages.
• Warnings about plugins not loading correctly.
• Spam from a specific plugin or mod.

If one plugin/mod is constantly throwing errors, that is often where your lag is coming from. Try updating, reconfiguring or temporarily disabling that plugin/mod.

3. Reduce view-distance and simulation-distance

Chunk loading is one of the biggest CPU costs. Lowering distances can significantly reduce lag, especially with many players.

1. Stop your server from the Game Panel.
2. Open File Manager and edit server.properties.
3. Find these lines (values may differ):

view-distance=10
simulation-distance=10

• Try lowering them step by step, for example:
  • view-distance=8 or 6
  • simulation-distance=8 or 6
• Click Save.
• Start the server again and ask players if performance improved.

Lower values mean the server has to keep fewer chunks active and updated around each player.

4. Control plugins, mods and modpacks

• Remove unused plugins/mods. Every extra plugin or mod adds overhead, even if you rarely use it.
• Update to stable versions. Outdated or experimental builds can cause memory leaks and TPS loss.
• Be realistic with heavy modpacks. Large modpacks need more RAM and CPU; choose a plan that matches your setup.

If lag started right after adding a new plugin or mod, try removing or disabling it as a test.

5. Limit mobs, farms and redstone

Large mob farms, huge villager trading halls and complex redstone/automation can heavily impact performance.

• Avoid constantly loaded mob farms with huge numbers of entities.
• Spread out villager breeders and trading halls instead of having hundreds in one area.
• Optimise redstone clocks and contraptions – avoid always-on rapid clocks.

As an admin, you can periodically check entity counts using plugins (for example, a Paper/Spigot plugin that shows top chunk/entity counts) and ask players to optimise or remove abusive farms.

6. Restart the server regularly

Long uptime can cause memory usage to grow, especially with many players or heavy plugins/mods.

• Plan regular restarts during quiet times (for example, once per day during low activity).
• Let your players know the restart schedule so they are not surprised.

Even a simple restart can clear temporary lag if it is caused by memory buildup or small leaks.

7. Keep your version and server type appropriate

• For performance, server types like Paper (or other optimised forks) usually perform better than pure Vanilla.
• If you run a very old server version, consider updating to a newer, more optimised build when possible (with backups and testing).

See our article “How to change your Minecraft server version (upgrade or downgrade)” for safe version changes.

8. Check player location vs server location (network lag)

• If all players have high ping but the server TPS is fine, the issue is likely distance or connection quality.
• Make sure most of your players connect from regions close to your server location (EU players to EU server, NA players to NA server).
• Ask players to:
  • Use a wired connection instead of Wi-Fi if possible.
  • Close downloads/streaming while playing.

9. When to upgrade your plan

If you have already:

• Reduced view-distance and simulation-distance.
• Cleaned up plugins/mods and heavy farms.
• Restart regularly.
• Still see TPS drops when many players are online.

…then your server may simply need more resources for the way you play.

• Consider upgrading to a higher plan with more RAM (and higher recommended player count).
• If you’re not sure which plan is appropriate, open a ticket and describe:
  • How many players are online at peak time.
  • Whether you use heavy modpacks.
  • Any plugins that you consider critical.

10. If you need help analysing lag

If lag persists and you are not sure what is causing it, please open a ticket from Support → Submit a Ticket in the Client Area at https://playnhost.com/billing and include:

• Your server IP and Minecraft version.
• Approximate number of players online when lag happens.
• Whether you use plugins or modpacks (and which ones).
• Screenshots or copies of any repeating console errors.

Our team can then look at your setup, check console output and advise you on specific changes for your server.