How to Play Terraria Multiplayer

Terraria multiplayer has a few different paths, and which one makes sense depends on your group. Playing with one friend on weeknights is a different problem than running a modded server for eight people who play on different schedules. This covers all the options honestly so you can pick the one that fits.

Host & Play (Steam Multiplayer)

This is the fastest way to get into a multiplayer game. You open a world in singleplayer, go to the multiplayer menu, and select “Host & Play.” Your friends join through Steam - either through the friends list or by joining your Steam game directly. No IP addresses, no port forwarding, no server software.

It works well for small groups doing casual playthroughs. Two or three friends on a weeknight session? This is probably all you need.

The tradeoff is that the world only exists while you’re playing. When the host closes the game, everyone gets kicked. If your friend group spans time zones or people want to hop on at random hours, that becomes a problem quickly. Performance also depends entirely on the host’s PC and internet connection - if the host is running Terraria on a laptop with spotty Wi-Fi, everyone feels it.

We see people outgrow this method once a playthrough gets serious. It’s great for “let’s try multiplayer,” less great for “we’re 40 hours deep and three people want to play while I’m at work.”

Dedicated Server on Your PC

Terraria ships with a dedicated server binary. On Steam, you can install it through the Tools section in your library - look for “Terraria Server.” This runs the server as a separate process from your game client, which means better performance than Host & Play and the ability to keep the server running while you’re not actively playing.

The basic setup:

1. Install the Terraria dedicated server from Steam (Library > Tools)
2. Navigate to the server folder and edit serverconfig.txt - set your world path, max players, and password
3. Run TerrariaServer.exe (Windows) or the equivalent for your OS
4. Forward port 7777 on your router
5. Share your public IP with friends

Port forwarding is the part that trips people up. Every router handles it differently, and if you’re behind a CGNAT (common with some ISPs), it might not work at all without a workaround. There are guides specific to most router brands, but expect to spend some time in your router’s admin panel if you haven’t done this before.

The server stays running as long as your PC is on and the process is alive. Close your laptop lid or restart for a Windows update, and the server goes down. For groups where one person is happy leaving their desktop running, this works. For everyone else, it’s an annoyance that builds up over a few weeks.

Self-Hosted on a VPS

Same server binary, different machine. You rent a VPS from any cloud provider, install the Terraria server, and it runs 24/7 on hardware you don’t have to babysit.

This gives you full control - you pick the OS, manage updates, configure everything yourself. Some people prefer that. But the overhead is real: you’re responsible for keeping the server software updated, setting up backups, managing firewall rules, and troubleshooting anything that breaks. There’s no control panel or one-click setup. It’s a Linux terminal and a config file.

If you enjoy server administration as a hobby, this is a perfectly valid option. If you just want to play Terraria with friends and “SSH into a box to debug a crashed process” sounds like a chore, keep reading.

Game Server Hosting

This is what companies like us do. You pick a game, pick a plan size, and get a running server with a web-based control panel. No port forwarding, no terminal access required (though it’s there if you want it), automatic backups, and the server stays online whether you’re playing or not.

The panel gives you file access, a console, scheduled restarts, and mod management without needing to touch config files manually. When something goes wrong, you can open a support ticket and get help from someone who’s looked at Terraria server logs before.

The cost is the obvious difference. You’re paying a monthly fee instead of running it on hardware you already own. For most people, it’s a few dollars a month - a vanilla Terraria server needs 1-2GB of RAM, and modded setups typically run 3-6GB depending on what you’re running. If you want specifics on sizing, we wrote a breakdown of RAM requirements for Terraria servers.

Which Method Fits You?

If you’re playing with one friend and you’ll always be online together, Host & Play is fine. Don’t overthink it. If your group is bigger, plays at different times, or plans to mod the game, a dedicated server of some kind makes the experience noticeably better.

Connecting to a Server

Regardless of how the server is hosted, players connect the same way:

1. Open Terraria and select Multiplayer from the main menu
2. Select Join via IP
3. Pick a character (or create one)
4. Enter the server’s IP address and port (default is 7777)
5. Enter the password if one is set

For Steam-hosted games, you can skip the IP step and join directly through Steam’s friend list or invite system.

Adding Mods to Multiplayer

If you want mods in multiplayer, you’ll need tModLoader installed on both the server and every player’s client. All players must have the exact same mods enabled at the same versions - even a minor version mismatch will block connections.

The setup process is different enough from vanilla that we wrote a separate tModLoader server guide covering installation, mod management, and common problems. If you’re planning a Calamity playthrough specifically, there’s also a Calamity hosting guide that covers RAM requirements and companion mods.

The short version: create a Steam Workshop collection with your mod list, share it with your group so everyone subscribes to the same versions, and mirror that list on the server. This avoids the “why can’t I connect” debugging session that happens when one person has a slightly newer version of Recipe Browser.

We’re obviously biased, but WinterNode exists because we wanted hosting that didn’t nickel-and-dime people. All our game servers are $1.99/GB - a 2GB vanilla Terraria server runs $3.98/month. We don’t charge extra for CPU usage, storage, or basic features that other hosts mark up. Get your Terraria server →

Everything’s backed by our 48-hour refund policy, so there’s no risk in trying things out.

Got questions? Our support team responds to tickets with actual humans, and we’re active on Discord if you prefer chatting there. We also have a tModLoader setup guide in our help center if you want to get into the modding details.