How to Play 7 Days to Die With Friends (Co-op and Servers, 2026)

To play 7 Days to Die with friends, one player hosts a game from the main menu and sets Server Visibility to Friends Only or Public, and friends join through the server browser or Steam. Peer hosted co-op supports up to 8 players, and the world only runs while the host plays. For a world that stays online, or more than 8 players on PC, use a dedicated server and join with Connect to IP.

What are the ways to play 7 Days to Die together?

There are three, and they differ mainly in who keeps the world running:

Method	Players	World online when host leaves?	Crossplay (PS5, Xbox)	Mods
Host from your game (peer to peer)	Up to 8	No	Yes, with 8 or fewer players	PC only, everyone must match
Dedicated server, crossplay	Up to 8	Yes	Yes	No
Dedicated server, PC only	Set by `ServerMaxPlayerCount`	Yes	No	Yes, including overhauls

Most groups start with peer hosting because it is free and takes two minutes. They move to a dedicated server when the host gets tired of being online for everyone else, or when a blood moon base needs to survive while the host is at work.

How do I host a 7 Days to Die game for friends?

Launch the game and click New Game (or Continue Game for an existing world).
Pick the world: Navezgane or a random generated world, and set your game rules in Sandbox Options.
Open the multiplayer settings and set Server Visibility to Friends Only (Steam friends can see it) or Public (anyone can find it). Not Listed keeps it private to you.
Set Max Players. Keep it at 8 or lower if anyone plays on PS5 or Xbox.
Add a Password if the game is public.
Start the game. The world is now joinable as long as you stay in it.

Either visibility setting creates a peer to peer session on your PC. That means your computer runs the zombies, physics and every player's actions on top of rendering your own game. On a busy horde night the host feels it first.

How do friends join a hosted game?

From Steam: right click the host in your Steam friends list and choose Join Game.
From the game: click Join a Game and check the friends tab, or search the host's game name.
On a dedicated server: click Join a Game, then Connect to IP, and type the IP and port in separate boxes. The part before the colon is the IP, the number after it is the port (26900 by default).

Everyone must run the same game version. As of October 2026 the stable branch is V3.2, and V3.3 is on latest_experimental. One friend on the experimental branch is enough to cause a version mismatch, which our 7 Days to Die version mismatch fix walks through.

Survivors fighting zombies in 7 Days to Die

Can PC, PS5 and Xbox players play 7 Days to Die together?

Yes. 7 Days to Die has crossplay between Steam, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, and it works for both peer hosted games and dedicated servers. The rules come from The Fun Pimps' crossplay server requirements:

8 players or fewer. A max player count above 8 makes the game PC only, and console friends simply never see it.
Easy Anti-Cheat on. Consoles will not join without it.
No mods. Not even small XML modlets.
Same stable version. Experimental branches are Steam only.

Console players cannot type an IP address, so they find a crossplay dedicated server by name in the browser. Make the name distinctive. The full checklist, including why consoles sometimes cannot see a server, is in our 7 Days to Die crossplay server guide. PS4 and Xbox One are separate older editions and cannot join V3 games.

Should we use peer hosting or a dedicated server?

Peer hosting is fine when your group always plays at the same time and the host has a strong PC. A dedicated server wins in almost every other case:

	Peer hosting	Dedicated server
Cost	Free	Hardware and power, or a monthly plan
Who can play	Only while the host is in game	Anyone, any time
Day counter	Pauses with the host	Keeps going with players online
Host's frame rate	Drops on horde nights	Unaffected, the host is just a player
Admin tools	Basic	Full console: kick, ban, `saveworld`, admin levels
Overhaul mods	Awkward	Supported on a PC only server

7 Days to Die is more demanding to host than most co-op games. Random generated worlds, high zombie counts and overhaul mods all push memory use up, and a single fast CPU core matters more than many slow ones. Our 7 Days to Die server requirements guide breaks down RAM by world size and player count. If you want to run your own, how to make a 7 Days to Die server covers SteamCMD (app ID 294420), serverconfig.xml and ports.

Which settings should your group agree on first?

Arguments about blood moons end friendships. Settle these before day one, because some cannot change without a new world:

Setting	Where it lives	Why agree first
World and size	`GameWorld`, `WorldGenSize`	A new seed or size means a fresh map. 6K or 8K suits most groups.
Difficulty, XP, loot	The `SandboxCode` (since V3)	One code holds most game rules. Everyone sees the same values.
Blood moon frequency and horde size	`SandboxCode`	Every 7 days is the classic. Bigger groups often raise horde size.
Player killing	Game rules	Co-op groups usually turn player damage off before anyone builds traps.
Crossplay or mods	Server type	You cannot have both.
Day length	`SandboxCode`	Longer days give casual groups time to loot.

Since V3.0, difficulty, XP, loot, blood moons and most other game rules are made in the Sandbox Options screen and exported as one code. You paste that code into the server's SandboxCode property, or the Sandbox code setting on a hosted panel. V3.1 split density and respawn options into day and night values, so a code made in V3.0 may silently fall back to defaults. Rebuild it after big updates. Our best 7 Days to Die server settings suggests good starting values for small and large groups.

How many friends can play 7 Days to Die together?

Up to 8 in peer hosted co-op and on any crossplay server. A PC only dedicated server can be set higher with ServerMaxPlayerCount, and community servers run 16 to 32 players or more, but each extra player loads more of the world and adds zombies to simulate. For a friend group, 4 to 8 is the sweet spot: enough people to cover looting, building and defending on horde night without the server struggling.

How do I keep the world going when the host is offline?

Only a dedicated server does this. The server holds the world, the day counter and every base, so friends log in on their own schedule. Two habits keep it healthy:

Save before restarts. Run saveworld in the console, then restart. Scheduled restarts help long running worlds.
Back up before horde nights and updates. A broken base is one thing, a corrupted save is another.

FAQ

How many players can play 7 Days to Die co-op?

Up to 8 players in a game hosted from the main menu, and up to 8 on a crossplay server. PC only dedicated servers can allow more.

Can my friends play on my world when I am offline?

Not with peer hosting, since the world runs on your PC. Move the world to a dedicated server and anyone can play at any time.

Is 7 Days to Die crossplay between PC and console?

Yes. Steam, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S players can share a game with 8 or fewer players, Easy Anti-Cheat on and no mods.

Do my friends need to own 7 Days to Die?

Yes. Every player needs their own copy on the same version. A dedicated server itself needs no game license.

Why can't my friend join my 7 Days to Die game?

Usually a version mismatch, visibility set to Not Listed, or a max player count above 8 for console friends. Check the version first.

The easy way: a hosted server

If nobody wants to leave a PC running, our 7 Days to Die server hosting gives your group a dedicated server that is ready minutes after paying. Pick the PC type for mods or the Crossplay type for PS5 and Xbox friends, paste your sandbox code in the panel, and take a backup before every horde night. Plans start at 19.99 USD a month for 8 GB and 8 players, new customers get 50% off the first month on monthly plans, and friends can each pay their own share from a link.