The short answer
The Minecraft: Java Edition server belongs to your club, not to one friend. Everyone chips in to the same jar and Radbot sets it up. The world stays even when the friend who started it moves on.
How much does a Minecraft server cost with friends?
Three friends on the smallest server pay €5.84 each a month. Five friends on a bigger server pay €4.50 each a month. The smallest server, always on, costs the whole club €17.50 a month.
Split the cost
Pick how many of you play to see each friend's share a month, at today's prices.
€5.84 each a month
Small: 4 GB RAM, up to 4 players. The whole club pays €17.50 a month.
Show the numbers
| Friends | Server | Each, a month |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Small | €17.50 |
| 2 | Small | €8.75 |
| 3 | Small | €5.84 |
| 4 | Small | €4.38 |
| 5 | Club | €4.50 |
| 6 | Club | €3.75 |
| 7 | Club | €3.22 |
| 8 | Club | €2.82 |
| 9 | Club | €2.50 |
| 10 | Club | €2.25 |
| Server | RAM | CPU threads | Players | Whole club, a month | Each, when full |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small | 4 GB | 2 | 4 | €17.50 | €4.38 |
| Club | 6 GB | 3 | 10 | €22.50 | €2.25 |
Each, when full: the monthly price split across every player slot, rounded up to the cent.
To pick a size for your crew, read how much RAM a Minecraft server needs.
Plugins or Mods: which should we pick?
Pick Plugins if your crew wants to play Minecraft: Java Edition without installing anything extra. Plugins run only on the server. They add things like grief protection, maps and handy commands.
Pick Mods when the whole group wants a modpack with new blocks, biomes or machines. Mods change the game itself, so everyone installs the same pack on their computer.
Not sure? Choose Plugins. It's the default, and the easiest way to start.
Can friends on phones or consoles join?
Not yet. Radclub's Minecraft worlds run Java Edition today, which players join from a computer. We're working on letting friends on phones, Xbox, PlayStation and Switch join Plugins worlds. We'll update this page when it works. Not sure which edition your friends have? Java or Bedrock explains it.
How do we get our server?
- Make your club: give it a name and colours.
- Pick Minecraft, then Plugins or Mods. Radbot sets up the server.
- Share the invite link. Friends join the club, chip in to the jar and get the server address.
Your club is invite-only. Members add their Minecraft name, and that puts them on the server's whitelist. Everyone can see who chipped in, what the server costs and what's left in the jar.
What happens to the world if someone stops paying?
The club keeps it. The server belongs to the club, so the world stays even if the friend who set it up leaves. If the jar can't cover the next month, the server pauses when its paid time runs out. The world is kept until there's enough in the jar again.
The club's owner or an admin can download the world to move it elsewhere. To save a world from an old server, read keeping your Minecraft world.
Radclub or hosting it yourself?
- Host at home if someone can keep a computer running and set up port forwarding. There's no hosting fee, but their PC has to be on whenever you play, and the world leaves with them.
- With Radclub, everyone chips in to one jar, which pays for the club's server. Nobody has to front the bill.
- Radclub is for friend groups. If you want a public server anyone can join, a host built for public servers suits you better.
Read our guide to making a Minecraft server for friends. For a fair way to share the bill, read splitting a server's cost.
Questions people ask
- Does everyone need their own copy of Minecraft?
- Yes. Each friend plays with their own Minecraft: Java Edition on a computer. The server is shared; the game isn't.
- Do we need to know how servers work?
- No. Pick Minecraft and Plugins or Mods, and Radbot sets the server up. You share an invite link, and friends get the address.
- Can we move to a bigger server later?
- Yes. Start small and move up when the crew grows. The world comes with you.
- Can we pay less if we only play now and then?
- Yes. A server can sleep when nobody's playing, which costs less than keeping it on. It starts again when someone joins.
Sources and method
- Prices, server sizes and player limits come from GameClub's catalogue, the store Radclub sells from, and update on their own when it changes.
- Minecraft: Java Edition server software, minecraft.net · checked 7 November 2026
Not an official Minecraft service. Not approved by or associated with Mojang or Microsoft.