Palworld Server Lag and Memory Leak Fix: Restarts and Settings

Q: Will restarting a Palworld server lose progress?

Not if it saves first. Shutdown saves before stopping. Run Save beforehand to be safe.

Palworld server lag almost always comes down to memory: the server holds more RAM the longer it runs and the more Pals work in bases, until it stutters, rubber bands or crashes. The fix is a scheduled restart every 6 to 8 hours, keeping BaseCampWorkerMaxNum and PalSpawnNumRate reasonable, and giving the server enough RAM (Pocketpair recommends 16 GB). Here is how to tell what is causing yours and what to change.

Quick fix

Save and restart the server. If lag disappears, it was memory growth.
Set up an automatic restart every 6 to 8 hours.
Check BaseCampWorkerMaxNum (default 15) and PalSpawnNumRate (default 1.0). Bring them back down if someone raised them.
Turn off raids (bEnableInvaderEnemy=False) if memory is tight.
If it still runs out of memory between restarts, the world has outgrown the machine. Add RAM.

Why does Palworld use more and more RAM?

The dedicated server has a long known memory leak: memory use climbs with uptime and does not come back down until the process restarts. On top of that, the normal working set grows as your world grows:

Base Pals. Every working Pal is simulated: pathing, hunger, sanity, work. A guild with four bases of 15 Pals is 60 Pals running around the clock.
Wild Pal spawns around every player.
Structures and dropped items. Huge builds and piles of dropped loot all live in memory.
Raids spawn extra enemies near bases.

Pocketpair's own requirements say 8 GB can boot a server but raises the chance of out of memory crashes, 16 GB is standard and 32 GB or more suits large setups.

What does lag look like, and what causes it?

Symptom	Most likely cause
Smooth after a restart, slow after hours	Memory leak. Restart on a schedule.
Pals freeze or teleport in bases	Too many working Pals, or the server is out of CPU
Rubber banding when several people are in different areas	CPU, or players spread over the map with high spawns
Sudden crash and rollback to the last save	Ran out of memory
Lag spike every few minutes	Autosave or backup writing to a slow disk

Fix 1: Restart on a schedule

This is the fix that matters most. A restart clears the leak entirely.

On a self hosted server, warn players and restart with the admin command, either in game chat after /AdminPassword yourpassword, or over RCON without the slash:

Save
Broadcast Restart_in_5_minutes
Shutdown 300 Server_restarting_in_5_minutes

Shutdown takes seconds and a message, and saves on the way down. Then let your service manager (systemd, a scheduled task or a loop in your start script) start it again. Every 6 to 8 hours suits most servers. Busy 32 player worlds may want 4.

Avoid DoExit for routine restarts. It stops the server immediately.

Fix 2: Keep base Pal counts sensible

BaseCampWorkerMaxNum defaults to 15 and goes up to 50. BaseCampMaxNumInGuild defaults to 4 and goes up to 10. Pocketpair's docs warn that raising either increases processing load.

What we recommend:

Small group, 12 to 16 GB: up to 20 workers per base, 4 to 6 bases per guild.
Big public server: leave both at default.
Never 50 workers with 10 bases per guild unless you have lots of memory and very few players.

Lowering the limit later does not delete Pals already assigned, but it stops the number growing.

Fix 3: Settings that cut load

Setting	Default	Lag friendly value	Effect
`PalSpawnNumRate`	1.0	1.0 or lower	Fewer wild Pals around every player. Pocketpair flags it as affecting performance.
`bEnableInvaderEnemy`	True	False if memory is tight	No base raids, fewer spawns
`DropItemAliveMaxHours`	1.0	0.5 to 1.0	Dropped items vanish sooner
`ServerReplicatePawnCullDistance`	15000	10000	How far (in cm) Pals are synced to players. Minimum 5000. Lower means less network and CPU load, but Pals pop in closer.
`bAutoResetGuildNoOnlinePlayers`	False	True on public servers	Clears bases of guilds that never log in
`bIsUseBackupSaveData`	True	True, unless your disk is slow	Pocketpair notes it increases disk load

Each one is a value in the OptionSettings=(...) line of PalWorldSettings.ini. Stop the server before you edit. If changes do nothing, see Palworld server settings not working.

Fix 4: Check the hardware

RAM: watch the server's memory just before it lags. If it is close to the limit, no setting will save you. Add memory.
CPU: Pocketpair recommends 4 or more cores. Palworld still leans on a few busy threads, so single core speed matters.
Disk: use an SSD. Pocketpair warns that slow storage can corrupt saves.
Launch flags: the classic tuning flags are -useperfthreads -NoAsyncLoadingThread -UseMultithreadForDS. Pocketpair's current docs note that leaving them unset may perform better on 1.0 and later, so if you self host, test with and without them.

Fix 5: Lag for one player only

If only one person lags, the server is fine. Check their ping, ask them to close downloads and streams, and make sure they are on the same game version. Players physically far from the server will always have more delay than those close to it.

How we handle it on GamezServers

Our Palworld servers deal with the leak for you. Each one saves and restarts itself with a two minute in game warning every 8 hours by default, and early if memory reaches 90% of the plan. You can change the interval to 4, 6, 12 or 24 hours, or turn it off, under Auto restart in Settings. Pals per base and raids are panel settings too, so lowering load is two clicks and a restart.

If restarts are already frequent and memory still fills up, move up a plan from Settings. It is prorated and keeps your world. Plans are 12, 16 and 24 GB, see Palworld server hosting or how many players can join a Palworld server for sizing.

FAQ

Does Palworld still have a memory leak in 1.0?

Memory use still grows with uptime on dedicated servers, which is why scheduled restarts remain the standard advice. Bigger worlds simply reach the limit sooner.

Will restarting a Palworld server lose progress?

Not if it saves first. Shutdown saves before stopping. Run Save beforehand to be safe.

How often should a Palworld server restart?

Every 6 to 8 hours for most servers. Busy servers with many bases may need every 4 hours.

Does turning off raids reduce lag?

Yes, somewhat. Raids spawn extra enemies near bases. If you enjoy them, leave them on and fix memory with restarts instead.

Why do my base Pals get stuck or stop working?

Usually too many Pals in one base, or the server is short on CPU. Reduce workers per base and restart. Pals also only work while the server runs.