Why your Minecraft server lags, and how to fix it

Which kind of lag is it?

On Paper and Purpur, type /tps and /mspt in the console. TPS should be 20; below about 18, the server is struggling.

• Server lag: everyone is affected at once. Blocks reappear after you break them, mobs freeze, and redstone slows down. The server can't keep up with its 20 ticks per second (TPS).
• Network lag: high ping. Players rubber-band, and often only some of them. This is the distance to the server or an unstable connection.
• Client lag: low FPS for one player while everyone else is fine. That is their PC or phone, not the server.

Lower the view and simulation distance

In server.properties, view-distance (how far players see) and simulation-distance (how far the world keeps running) both default to 10. Every step up adds a lot of chunks per player. A view distance of 6 to 8 and a simulation distance of 4 to 6 look and play almost the same, for much less work.

Use Paper or Purpur

Paper and Purpur are faster versions of the server for plugin servers, and they run the same worlds as vanilla. If you are on vanilla or Spigot, switching is often the biggest single improvement.

Pre-generate the world

Creating new chunks is the heaviest thing a server does, so players exploring in different directions cause spikes. Set a world border and pre-generate everything inside it with the Chunky plugin before players arrive.

Watch entities and farms

• Thousands of mobs, villagers or dropped items slow every tick. Look for big mob farms, villager halls and item piles.
• Kill or cap farms that run all the time, and clear dropped items on a schedule.

Find the plugin that causes it

One badly written plugin can slow everything down. Install spark, a free profiler plugin, run /spark profiler for a few minutes while the lag happens, and its report shows exactly which plugin or task uses the time. Remove plugins you don't need.

RAM: enough, not more

• Too little RAM causes stutters and crashes as the server runs out.
• More RAM than needed doesn't raise TPS. Minecraft runs each world on one main thread, so a fast CPU core matters more than extra memory.

Fixing lag on NGP Cloud

Your dashboard shows your server's CPU and RAM use. The AI assistant can read your logs, spot errors and check whether your plan fits how the server is used, and you can move up a plan any time. For players in India, servers in Mumbai keep network lag low.

Frequently asked questions