Prepaid vs Subscription Game Server: Which Way Should You Pay?

A subscription renews automatically until you cancel, which keeps the server online without anyone remembering to pay. Prepaid means paying once for a fixed stretch, and nothing is charged again: when the time runs out, the server stops. Pick a subscription for a server your group uses every week. Pick prepaid when you want a hard spending limit, have no card that allows recurring charges, or only need the server for a set period.

Both cost about the same per day for the same length. The difference is in who has to remember what, and what happens when someone forgets.

How a subscription works

You pay the first period at checkout. The host's payment processor then charges the same card every period, monthly, every 6 months or yearly, until you cancel. Cancelling stops future charges, and the server keeps running until the end of what you already paid for.

Good for:

Servers that are always on for a group or community.
People who do not want to think about it.
Getting new customer deals, which hosts usually tie to subscriptions.

Watch out for:

Forgetting the server exists and paying for months of nobody playing.
Card expiry. If the card on file expires, the renewal fails and the server can go offline until you update it.
Renewal surprises if the first period was discounted. See renewal price increases.

How prepaid works

You pay once for a fixed length, say 30 days, 6 months or a year. No card is stored for future charges. Before the time ends, the host should remind you. If you do nothing, the server pauses and its files are usually kept for a while in case you come back.

Good for:

A hard budget. You can never be charged more than you chose.
Teens and students using a prepaid card or a parent's card for a one off payment. Our guide on paying for a game server without a credit card covers the options.
A server for an event, a holiday break or a weekend. See renting a game server for a weekend.
Trying a game for a month when you know you will not remember to cancel.

Watch out for:

The server stopping mid session if nobody extends it.
New customer discounts that only apply to subscriptions.
Losing the world if you miss the grace period after time runs out.

Side by side

	Subscription	Prepaid
Renews automatically	Yes	No
Card stored for later	Yes	No
Can be charged again without action	Yes, until you cancel	Never
Server stops if you forget	Only if payment fails	Yes, when time runs out
Best for	Ongoing servers	Fixed budgets and events
Cancelling	Stops the next charge	Nothing to cancel
Changing to the other	Cancel, then buy prepaid	Switch to a subscription any time

Cost per day

On most hosts, the price for the same length is the same either way. The real cost difference comes from:

Length. Longer periods are cheaper per day. On GamezServers, 6 months costs 5.5 months' price and a year costs 10 months' price, on both subscription and prepaid.
Very short rentals. A few days costs more per day because the server is built and installed from scratch either way.
First payment deals. Ours apply to a first subscription only, not prepaid.

So for a single month, a new customer pays less on a subscription than prepaid, then can cancel before renewal. For a known fixed stretch where you hate auto renew, prepaid is the calmer option.

What happens when prepaid runs out

On GamezServers:

A day before the time ends, we email you and the control panel shows how long is left.
You can Extend for any length, or Switch to a subscription so it never runs out. Prepaid time you already have is kept: new time starts when the old time ends.
If the time runs out, the server pauses and its world is kept for 14 days. Extending in that window brings it straight back.
After 14 days, the files are deleted. Download the world first if you might want it later. See how to download your world from a game server.

Prepaid with friends

Prepaid works with split billing too. Each friend pays their own share of the prepaid period, and each share adds its part of the time. When the period ends, each person extends their own share from their link. It is a good fit for a group where some people do not want a recurring charge on their card.

Which should you pick?

A server you will use every week for months: subscription, and consider a longer length. See monthly vs yearly billing.
A trial month of a new game: subscription if you are a new customer and will remember to cancel, prepaid if you will not.
An event, LAN weekend or school holiday: prepaid.
A strict budget or a prepaid card: prepaid.
A server for a community that must never go down: subscription with a card that will not expire soon.

Paying on GamezServers

At checkout, pick a game and plan, then choose Subscription (monthly, 6 months or yearly) or Prepaid (3 days, 30 days, 6 months or 1 year). Either way there are no setup fees, the server is live in about a minute for most games, and you get backups, DDoS protection, SFTP and the full control panel. Our billing docs list every detail. Pick a game on the games page to see the prices.

The world of Terraria

FAQ

Is prepaid cheaper than a subscription?

For the same length, the price is the same on most hosts. New customer deals usually only apply to subscriptions, which can make the first month cheaper that way.

Can I switch from prepaid to a subscription later?

On GamezServers, yes, from the control panel. Your remaining prepaid time is kept and the subscription starts after it.

What happens to my world if prepaid time runs out?

The server pauses and the world is kept for 14 days. Extend within that window and it comes back as it was.

Does prepaid need a credit card?

You still pay by card or wallet once, but nothing is stored for future charges. Debit and many prepaid cards work for one off payments.