For many new server owners, becoming number one and having hundreds of players is a huge goal. However, it doesn’t come easy! We’ve written some of our top tips to help you create a successful Minecraft server!

Your Idea

First you need to start with an idea, ideally one which sets you apart from others when players are looking for a new server. Ideas such as a half griefable world, or a build contest every week are great starting points. With even more resources, you may want to invent a totally new minigame server!

Hosting

Choosing a host is a big part of this, whether it is you hosting it yourself or you finding a good webhost. Some webhosts are great, and they can provide great service for a low price, others may not provide good uptime or support! If running the server yourself, ensure your computer and internet are capable.

The Name

Come up with a catchy name, a simplistic name, or any name that suits your server. This may be something to do with what your server is about, but make sure it stands out!

Start Server

Once you have all of that, go ahead and start the server. You got all the basics at this point, and the rest is about improving the experience and getting new players!

Make Spawn

Make a spawn area, or a hub, or whatever your server needs. Make sure that it looks nice, it is your players’ first impression on the server, and first impressions are hard to break. If you have a higher budget, you can hire some build teams to build a professional one for you. However, you could also find some free schematics for pre-made ones.

Staff Team

Every server should have staff to keep your server safe. If you are just starting out, maybe have some trusted friends be the staff, or create an application for interested players.

Advertise

Make sure to add your server to www.Minecraft-Server-List.net and keep it updated. Through joining the site, you have the best opportunity to gain lots of new players very quickly. Make sure to keep voting to get to the top of the site for even more players.

Listen

This is maybe one of the most important steps, and this one doesn't end until the server does: Listen. You can't run a successful server if players don’t like it, and if players don't like your server, they will leave. Minecraft is constantly changing, and you cannot expect to run a good server if you never listen to advice from anyone else. Look at what other servers are doing and try to do it even better. Good luck!