How to host a Minecraft server on Hostinger (2026)

1Which plan

Minecraft runs the world on one core, so a fast core and enough memory matter most. Hostinger's KVM plans have AMD EPYC cores and NVMe disks. The sizing guide works out what your group needs; this is the plan it picks for each group.

Prices on 28 Sep 2026, before tax, a month on the 24-month term, paid upfront. Shorter terms cost more a month.

2Create the server

1. 1

   Buy the plan

   Choose it on Hostinger's VPS page, with the 24-month term for the prices above.

2. 2

   Pick the location nearest your friends

   Hostinger has data centres in North America, Europe, Asia and South America. Closer means lower ping.

3. 3

   Pick Ubuntu 24.04

   A plain OS, not a panel or an app. Then set a root password or add your SSH key.

Playkeeper also runs on Ubuntu 20.04–26.04, Debian 12–13, the RHEL family 9+ or Amazon Linux 2023, on x86_64 or 64-bit ARM. Hostinger's KVM plans are x86_64.

3Open the ports

hPanel's firewall is optional. Once one is on, it drops every port you haven't allowed, so add a rule for each of these: in hPanel, your VPS › Security › Firewall › Add firewall, then Edit, and Add rule with Accept, the protocol, the port and Anywhere.

If ufw or firewalld runs on the VPS itself, the installer allows 8443, 25565 and 80 there for you.

4Run the one command

Log in as root over SSH, or in hPanel's browser terminal, and run:

1. 1

   It checks the VPS first

   Then it lists every change it will make, and how to undo it, before it asks to go ahead.

2. 2

   Open the link it prints

   https://your-ip:8443/setup with a one-time code, good for 24 hours. The browser warns about the certificate: continue only if the fingerprint it shows matches the one the installer printed.

3. 3

   Create your admin account

   Then your first server: the newest Paper, with memory picked for how you'll play. Change picks others.

5A free address for your friends

Machine settings › Address gives the VPS a free yourname.playkeeper.me name with a real certificate: the browser warning goes away, and friends join at a name instead of an IP address. Then New invite link on a server's Players tab: a friend opens it, types their Minecraft name and is on the allowlist.

6Keep copies off the VPS

Hostinger's free weekly backups copy the whole VPS, and stay at Hostinger. For copies of each world that survive losing the VPS, turn on World › Backup rules › Copies somewhere else: every backup is encrypted on the VPS, then sent to S3-compatible storage or to another machine over SFTP. Hostinger doesn't sell S3-compatible storage, but Backblaze B2, Cloudflare R2 and Wasabi each have a preset. Keep the recovery key somewhere other than the VPS.

7What it costs

Playkeeper and its playkeeper.me address are free; the VPS is the only bill. For 5–10 friends on Vanilla or Paper, a KVM 2 is $8.99 a month on the 24-month term: $215.76 upfront, then $14.99 a month when it renews (prices on 28 Sep 2026). The plans come with a domain for the first year, if you'd like your own.