How much RAM does a Stardew Valley server need?

Stardew is the lightest server on this list by a wide margin, and the main reason to think about sizing at all is mods.

18 Players
Server Scope / Mods

Recommendation

You need a server with at least

3GB

Engine / Base OS:
2 GB
Player Overhead:
+0.2 GB
Estimated Raw Usage:
2.2 GB
Suggested cores:
2
Disk to allow:
5 GB+

Minimal load. The smallest tier is genuinely enough.

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What actually drives Stardew Valley memory use

A vanilla farm with four players is tiny. The world is small, the simulation is simple, and the player cap is low. What changes the picture is a large SMAPI mod list, where content packs adding new areas, crops and NPCs are loaded at startup and stay resident.

The mistake to avoid

Over-thinking it. Unmodded, the smallest tier is genuinely enough; the only reason to go higher is a substantial mod list, and even then the step is modest.

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