If you’ve ever tried to host an Ark session for your friend group only to hit a hard limit when the 4th person tries to join, you know how frustrating that arbitrary cap can be. Most new non dedicated server hosts don’t realize the default player limit is set low to prevent performance issues for lower-end PCs, but it’s totally adjustable if you follow the right steps. This guide walks you through exactly how to raise player cap on Ark non dedicated server setups, no advanced coding or expensive hardware required.
Pre-requisites Before You Raise Player Cap on Ark Non Dedicated Server
Before you make any changes to your server settings, there are a few boxes you need to check to avoid crashes, lost save data, or unplayable lag for your group. Non dedicated servers run on your personal PC while you’re playing, so your hardware and network will directly impact how many people can join smoothly. I’ve skipped these steps before and lost 20 hours of tamed dino progress when a bad config reset my save, so don’t make that same mistake.
- Minimum 16GB of RAM for player caps between 5 and 8, 32GB if you plan to run mods alongside the higher cap
- Upload speed of at least 2Mbps per connected player to avoid lag and rubberbanding for remote players
- A complete save file backup stored in a separate folder to avoid data loss if a setting breaks your session
- All players running identical game and mod versions to prevent join errors
Back up your existing save file first, no exceptions. It only takes 30 seconds to copy your save folder to your desktop, and it will save you hours of frustration if something goes wrong. Make sure all players are on the same game version too, including mod versions if you use custom content, otherwise they’ll get kicked immediately when trying to join.
Adjusting Player Cap Through In-Game Settings
For most casual hosts, you don’t need to edit any hidden files to raise your player count. The in-game host menu has a built-in slider that works for 90% of use cases, and it takes less than a minute to adjust. If you want to raise player cap on Ark non dedicated server to 8 or lower, this in-game method is all you need.
To access the setting, launch Ark and select “Host/Local” from the main menu. If you’re starting a new save, you’ll see a “Player Count” slider on the main setup page. The default cap is set to 3 non-host players, so you can slide that up to 8 directly before launching your session. If you’re loading an existing save, select your save file first, then navigate to the “Advanced Settings” tab to find the same slider.
That’s all you have to do for basic adjustments. I use this method every time I host a casual session for 5 of my friends, and it works flawlessly as long as my PC is running nothing else in the background. If the slider is greyed out, it usually means you have a conflicting mod that’s overriding server settings, so you’ll need to use the config file method instead.
Editing Config Files for Higher Player Caps
If you want to raise player cap on Ark non dedicated server above 8, you’ll need to edit the game’s .ini configuration files directly. The game automatically caps in-game adjustments at 8 to prevent performance issues, but you can bypass that limit with a few quick edits. This method is only recommended if you’re comfortable editing basic text files, and you should only change the specific values we mention to avoid breaking your save.
First, navigate to your Ark config folder on Windows: C:\Users\[Your Username]\AppData\Local\Ark\Saved\Config\WindowsNoEditor. Find the file named GameUserSettings.ini and open it with Notepad or another basic text editor. Look for the [ServerSettings] section, then find the lines labeled “MaxPlayers” and “NonDedicatedServerMaxPlayers”. Change both values to the same number of players you want to allow, up to 100. Make sure you set the "NonDedicatedServerMaxPlayers" line to the same number as MaxPlayers, otherwise the game will override your change when you launch.
If you don’t see those lines in the [ServerSettings] section, you can add them manually. Save the file after making your changes, then right click the file, select “Properties”, and check the “Read Only” box to stop the game from overwriting your settings next time you launch. I once tried to set the cap to 16 on my 32GB RAM PC, and we had constant crashes every 20 minutes, so I don’t recommend going higher than 12 even on top-tier hardware. Non dedicated servers just aren’t built for large player counts the way dedicated servers are.
Fixing Common Issues After Raising Player Cap
Even if you follow all the steps correctly, you might run into small issues after increasing your player limit, especially if you’re running mods or playing with people outside your local network. Most of these issues have quick fixes that don’t require you to roll back your settings entirely.
The most common issue is lag or rubberbanding for all players. This usually happens when your PC or internet can’t keep up with the extra load from more players. You can fix this by lowering the global view distance setting, turning off dynamic shadows, or limiting the number of tamed dinos allowed in render distance in your server settings. If players can’t join at all, it’s almost always either a mod version mismatch or a port forwarding issue for remote players. If you're playing with people outside your local network, you'll need to forward port 27015 (UDP and TCP) on your router to your host PC's local IP address.
If your game crashes immediately when launching the server, you probably set the player cap too high for your PC’s specs, or you added the config lines to the wrong section of the .ini file. Just delete the lines you added, or replace the .ini file with your backup, and try again with a lower cap. When I first added 15 mods to my server and raised the cap to 8, we had crashes every time someone rode a large dino. I fixed it by lowering the cap to 6, and we haven’t had an issue since. Sometimes small compromises go a long way to keeping the session stable.
Raising the player limit on your Ark session doesn’t have to be a complicated process, even if you’ve never edited a config file before. Whether you use the in-game slider for quick adjustments or edit the .ini files for a higher cap, the steps we covered will help you get more friends into your game without unnecessary headaches. Now that you know how to raise player cap on Ark non dedicated server setups, you can stop turning friends away from your next dino taming or boss fight session. Just remember to prioritize stability over a super high player count, and always back up your saves before making changes to your settings.