pixly.
Create world
Pay-per-hour hosting

Pay-per-hour Minecraft server hosting, billed only while you play.

Pixly is pay-as-you-go hosting for small friend groups. You pay a live per-hour rate — shown below for every size and region — and when everyone logs off, your server sleeps and hourly billing stops. No monthly bill, no subscription.

Create my worldSee how it works

~10 hours to try · no card · instant setup

Pick a size. Pay for time you play.

Pixly’s pay-per-hour Minecraft server hosting only charges you for the hours your players are actually online — an affordable, budget-friendly alternative that works out cheaper than a flat monthly plan for the way you really play.

N. Virginia…
Most popular
Meadow
Perfect for 10 players
1 vCPU · 4 GB
Estimated cost by playtime
Weekend
$0.99/mo
10¢/hr
Regular
$2.99/mo
7¢/hr
Every evening
$8.49/mo
7¢/hr
Try it for ~10h
Village
Perfect for 20 players
2 vCPU · 8 GB
Estimated cost by playtime
Weekend
$1.49/mo
15¢/hr
Regular
$5.49/mo
14¢/hr
Every evening
$15.49/mo
13¢/hr
Start · ~$1.49/mo
Town
Perfect for 30 players
4 vCPU · 16 GB
Estimated cost by playtime
Weekend
$2.99/mo
30¢/hr
Regular
$9.99/mo
25¢/hr
Every evening
$27.99/mo
23¢/hr
Start · ~$2.99/mo
Kingdom
Perfect for 50 players
4 vCPU · 32 GB
Estimated cost by playtime
Weekend
$3.99/mo
40¢/hr
Regular
$13.49/mo
34¢/hr
Every evening
$37.49/mo
31¢/hr
Start · ~$3.99/mo
Realm
Perfect for 100+ players
8 vCPU · 64 GB
Estimated cost by playtime
Weekend
$6.99/mo
70¢/hr
Regular
$24.99/mo
62¢/hr
Every evening
$70.99/mo
59¢/hr
Start · ~$6.99/mo
All plan prices are estimates — you’re billed only for the hours your server is awake, so your real monthly cost follows how much you play.
No credit card to try Prepaid — top up what you need No player limit — you set the max Daily backups included
The wedge

Hourly billing, not a monthly box

Every other host bills calendar time whether anyone is playing. Pixly bills per minute, and only when someone is actually on. For the full monthly math behind both models, see how much a Minecraft server costs per month in practice.

No hourly charge while it sleeps

The server hibernates after about 5 minutes empty and the hourly charge stops — only a small storage fee continues.

No subscription, no lock-in

There's no monthly bill and nothing to cancel. Top up any amount you like, pause in one click, and pay as you go. No renewal price jump — what you pay per hour is what you pay.

Try ~10 hours, no card

Boot the smallest size, play with friends, and only add funds when the trial hours run out.

Hosted online

A Minecraft server online and ready to share in minutes

Setup is instant — three screens: sign in with Google, give the server a name, share the address. Pixly runs it online on its own hardware, so nothing runs on your PC.

Online, not on your PC

The server runs on Pixly's hardware, so your own computer can stay off — it's reachable whenever it's awake. Friends with a Java Edition account just paste the address you share and click Join.

A permanent address to share

You get a friendly address like cozyglade-7x.pixly.gg that never changes. Share it once; friends keep it forever.

Wakes on its own when friends join

When a friend hits Join while everything's asleep, roughly sixty seconds later everyone's in. That automatic wake is exactly why idle time carries no hourly charge.

Private by default

A private Minecraft server for friends, mods and crossplay included

Everything is on every plan — backups, whitelist, console, custom address, version switching, a styled server-list MOTD (try the Minecraft MOTD generator). Nothing is paywalled behind a bigger plan.

Friends-only whitelist

A whitelist is on by default, so only people you add can join. The server stays private and safe out of the box.

120k+ mods, one click

Choose Vanilla, Paper, Fabric, Forge, NeoForge, or Quilt, then search and install from 120k+ Modrinth projects in-panel. Switch versions or mods any time — the modded Minecraft server hosting page covers loaders and modpacks in depth.

Java + Bedrock crossplay

Flip one switch and Geyser + Floodgate install themselves, so console and phone friends share one server with Java players — the crossplay Minecraft server hosting page explains how the bridge works.

Daily backups on every plan

Worlds are backed up daily with a 7-day history, so progress is safe. No "upgrade for backups" tier.

DDoS protection, always on

Every server sits behind DDoS protection at no extra cost, so a flood of junk traffic can't knock your friends offline mid-session.

Dedicated resources on NVMe SSD

Plans run on dedicated resources backed by NVMe SSD storage, from Meadow for a handful of friends to Realm for 100+ players. Pick a region close to your players for low latency.

Built for how you actually play

Pixly is for intermittent friend groups who play a few evenings a week. If you need an always-on public network, a flat-rate host fits better — we're honest about that.

FAQ

Minecraft server hosting questions

You top up a small Wallet balance and Pixly charges by the minute, only while the server is actually online. When everyone logs off, it sleeps after about 5 minutes and the meter stops — only a small storage fee continues while it's asleep. It's pay as you go: no monthly subscription and nothing to cancel.

There's no fixed monthly bill. A small server played a few evenings a week typically runs a couple of dollars a month, with rates as low as single-digit cents per active hour. Heavier modpacks cost more per hour, but you still only pay while someone is online. Prices vary by region, so live per-hour rates are shown when you pick a plan.

No. Pixly runs the server online on our hardware, so there's nothing to configure and your own PC can stay off. You get a permanent address to share, and friends just paste it into Minecraft and join.

Yes — every world is private by default. A friends-only whitelist is on out of the box, so only people you add can join. You can open it up or keep it locked down whenever you like.

Setup is three screens and about 30 seconds: sign in with Google, name your server, and share the address. A sleeping server wakes in about a minute when the first friend hits Join.

Yes. Choose Paper, Fabric, Forge, NeoForge, or Quilt and install from 120k+ Modrinth projects in one click. For mixed groups, flip the Bedrock cross-play switch and Pixly auto-installs Geyser and Floodgate so Java and Bedrock players join the same world — a Java server with Bedrock crossplay, not native Bedrock hosting.

No. Plan sizes set CPU and RAM, not a player cap — the player counts shown on each size are guidance for what runs smoothly, and you choose the max players in your server's settings. If your group outgrows a size, you can move up a plan at any time.

As much as the server needs. There's no fixed disk size to outgrow — storage expands automatically as the world grows, and you're billed only for the gigabytes you actually use.

Yes. Pixly runs in multiple regions, so you can host your server close to your players for low latency. Pick the location nearest your group when you create a world and you'll get smoother gameplay with less lag.

Yes. Every server runs behind DDoS protection, included at no extra cost. It absorbs the common floods of junk traffic that would otherwise knock players offline.

Spin up your Minecraft server

Setup is instant — start with ~10 hours to try, then pay for the time it's online.

Create my world

No card to start