Godlike.Host is listed first here for Starbound game-server hosting, with its own game panel, built-in mod installer and updater, SFTP/FTP access, free DDoS protection and up to three free backups a day with restore. There is no single provider that can be proved to be the cheapest Starbound host overall. The advertised entry prices use different currencies, billing terms, regions, RAM allocations and player limits. A useful choice compares the recurring checkout total for your region and workload, then checks mod access, backups, location, refunds and renewal pricing.
Among the published offers checked on October 13, 2026, the lowest headline price is Monolith Corp’s listing from £4.50 per month, while Gravel Host lists $5.99 per month for 4 GB RAM and up to eight players. Shockbyte’s UK page lists £5.90 per month for 2 GB and four players, and Server.pro starts from $7 per month with 4 GB memory. These figures are provider-listed starting prices, not a controlled performance test or a market-wide ranking.
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Quick comparison of the cheapest published plans
The table is a screening tool, not a like-for-like benchmark. Currency, tax, billing term, renewal price and selected configuration can change the amount you actually pay. Verify the live checkout total before ordering.
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| Provider | Published entry offer | Published resources or limits | Access and protections stated by the provider | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Godlike.Host | See the current plans | Starbound game-server hosting; check the selected plan for resources and player limits. | Own game panel, built-in mod installer and updater, SFTP/FTP access, free DDoS protection and up to three free backups a day with restore. | Prices change with region and on-page offers; see the current plans. |
| Monolith Corp | From £4.50/month | Germany; Ryzen 9 9950X production CPU, DDR5 and NVMe are named. | Panel, console, files, SFTP and scheduled backups. | The live billing page is the stated source of current tier prices. Backup-slot counts vary by tier, and the advertised CPU percentage is a container ceiling rather than a dedicated physical core. |
| Gravel Host | $5.99/month | 4 GB RAM; up to eight players on the named Boomerang offer. | Full FTP/file manager, advertised mod support, DDoS protection, daily backups and locations in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. | Longer terms may be discounted. Confirm the term total, recurring price and backup-retention period at checkout. |
| Shockbyte (UK page) | £5.90/month | 2 GB RAM; four players on the named Primitive offer. | Advertised mod support, automatic backups, DDoS protection and a 72-hour self-serve refund. | This is a UK-facing GBP listing. Its currency, plan and billing term are not directly comparable with US-dollar offers. |
| Server.pro | From $7/month | 4 GB memory on the listed hosting tier. | File manager, SFTP, root shell, daily backups, worldwide locations and a three-day refund guarantee are described. | The page also lists higher-priced gaming and performance tiers. Compare the exact configuration rather than relying only on the “from” price. |
Named prices in this snapshot belong to the providers and were observed in 2026: £4.50 from Monolith Corp, $5.99 and 4 GB from Gravel Host, £5.90 and 2 GB from Shockbyte’s UK page, and $7 and 4 GB from Server.pro. They are not independently measured prices or performance statistics.
#1 Best Overall
What “still good” means for a Starbound server
A low monthly number is useful only if the server can run your group’s world reliably and lets you manage the files your setup requires. The provider pages do not establish an independently tested minimum RAM requirement for a particular number of Starbound players or for a specific modpack, so treat advertised capacity as a starting point.
Match the plan to your group
Begin with simultaneous players, expected world size and whether everyone will use a heavily modded client. Gravel Host’s published example is 4 GB for up to eight players; Shockbyte’s UK example is 2 GB for four players. Those allocations describe those offers, not a universal Starbound sizing rule. Leave headroom if you expect large builds, frequent exploration or additional server-side tools.
Prioritize control for modded play
Ask whether the exact plan includes a file manager, FTP or SFTP and whether the host supports the mod method you intend to use. Gravel Host advertises FTP/file access and mod support; Shockbyte advertises Steam Workshop mod compatibility; Monolith describes file and SFTP access. A slogan saying “mod support” is not enough if you cannot upload, replace or back up your configuration files.
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Place the server near most players to reduce the distance their connections travel. Monolith lists Germany, Gravel Host advertises locations across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia, and Server.pro describes worldwide locations. A broad location list does not prove low latency, so check the actual region offered for the selected plan and test from your players’ networks during the refund window.
Rank #2
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How much does Starbound server hosting cost?
The honest answer is that the published starting prices span £4.50, $5.99, £5.90 and $7. Because those amounts are in different currencies and may represent different billing terms and resources, adding them to a single cheapest-to-most-expensive ranking would be misleading.
Calculate the recurring cost you will really pay
- Record the currency and billing period shown at checkout, not only the headline monthly figure.
- Divide any quarterly or annual total by the number of months to obtain the effective monthly cost, while keeping the full upfront charge visible.
- Check whether the displayed amount is introductory and find the renewal price for the same configuration.
- Add taxes or other mandatory charges applicable to your billing country.
- Confirm that the selected RAM, player limit, storage, location and backup features are included rather than optional add-ons.
Monolith directs customers to its live billing page for current tier prices and notes that backup-slot counts vary by tier. Gravel Host advertises discounts for longer commitments. Those discounts can lower the effective first-term price while still leaving a higher renewal or a larger cancellation risk, so compare the complete term total.
Which cheap Starbound server host supports mods?
Several of the published plans mention mod support, but compatibility depends on the actual plan and the way your chosen mods are distributed. Gravel Host advertises mod support and full FTP/file-manager access. Shockbyte advertises mod support and Steam Workshop compatibility. Monolith lists file and SFTP access, which gives you a way to transfer server files, but the page’s hardware description alone does not establish compatibility with every mod.
Questions to ask before ordering
- Can you upload and replace
mods, configuration and universe files through FTP, SFTP or a web file manager? - Does the host support the same mod distribution method used by your client pack, such as Steam Workshop?
- Can you restart the server after changing files, and is console access available for diagnosing load errors?
- Are backups restorable at the file level, or only as a full server snapshot?
- Is the modded setup allowed on the selected entry tier, or does the provider require a higher performance plan?
Install one representative mod set during the refund period and have every player join before committing to a long billing term. That practical check is more meaningful than a generic compatibility badge.
Rank #3
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Backups, refunds and cancellation can outweigh a small price difference
Starbound worlds are valuable, and a cheap server without a usable recovery path can become expensive after corruption or an accidental file replacement.
Backup details to verify
- How often backups run: daily, scheduled or automatic.
- How many backup slots are included and how long each copy is retained.
- Whether backups cover the universe, player data, configuration and mods.
- Whether you can download a copy for storage away from the host.
- Whether restoration is self-service or requires support intervention.
Monolith explicitly says backup-slot counts vary by tier. Gravel Host advertises daily backups, Shockbyte advertises automatic backups, and Server.pro describes daily backups. None of those labels alone states retention length or restoration scope, so obtain those details from the selected plan before relying on them.
Refund windows
Shockbyte’s UK page states a 72-hour self-serve refund. Server.pro states a three-day refund guarantee. Use those windows to test joining, mod loading, backups and latency, while reading exclusions and cancellation instructions. A refund promise is not a guarantee that every add-on or long-term payment is reversible.
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Monolith Corp: lowest displayed GBP starting price
Monolith’s offer starts from £4.50 per month and lists Germany-based hosting with a Ryzen 9 9950X production CPU, DDR5 and NVMe. The panel includes console, files, SFTP and scheduled backups. This combination may suit an administrator who wants direct file control at a low displayed entry price. The CPU wording needs care: the page says CPU percentages are container ceilings, not dedicated physical cores, and backup-slot counts depend on the tier. Use the live billing page to confirm the current recurring price and the exact resources.
Gravel Host: 4 GB and up to eight advertised players
Gravel Host lists $5.99 per month for a Boomerang offer with 4 GB RAM and up to eight players. It advertises a full FTP/file manager, mod support, DDoS protection, daily backups and locations in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. This is the clearest low-cost fit on the published figures for a group that values a larger stated allocation and broad region choice, but the player count remains a provider claim rather than an independent performance result. Verify longer-term pricing and backup retention before paying in advance.
Shockbyte: a small UK-facing plan with a stated refund
Shockbyte’s UK page lists the Primitive plan at £5.90 per month for 2 GB RAM and four players. It advertises mod support, automatic backups and DDoS protection, and states a 72-hour self-serve refund. The provider says, “Making a Starbound Dedicated Server is as easy as clicking a button.” That is a vendor description of its setup process, not an independent assessment. Because the listing is UK-facing, compare it with other GBP checkout totals rather than directly with a dollar price.
Server.pro: 4 GB tier with shell access described
Server.pro starts from $7 per month and lists 4 GB memory, a file manager, SFTP, root shell, daily backups and worldwide locations, plus a three-day refund guarantee. Shell access and SFTP can be useful for administrators who want more control than a basic panel provides. The page also presents higher-priced gaming and performance tiers, so identify the exact tier, storage and location before treating $7 as your expected bill.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsHow do I host a Starbound dedicated server?
A managed host removes most operating-system maintenance, but you still need to configure the instance and protect the world. The exact button names differ by provider; the following sequence applies to the advertised panel, console, file-manager, FTP or SFTP workflows.
Best Value
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- The logos of the six startup companies were designed by Kentaro "ANI" Fujimoto who is a famous typographer in Japan. We recommend talking about the different logos and about what kind of company stands behind it - it's fun!
- Define the workload. Write down peak players, mods, preferred region, required backup frequency and the maximum monthly budget.
- Select a plan and region. Choose a tier whose stated RAM and player allowance fit the group, then confirm the currency, billing term, renewal price and refund policy.
- Deploy Starbound. Use the host’s game-server creation flow or one-click installer. Shockbyte describes its process as clicking a button, but the available controls and installation time vary by provider.
- Set the server configuration. Use the panel or file manager to set the server name, passwords and gameplay options. Keep an untouched copy of the original configuration before making changes.
- Upload and enable mods. Transfer the server-side files with the offered file manager, FTP or SFTP, and install the matching client-side versions. If the provider advertises Steam Workshop support, follow its documented Workshop workflow rather than mixing incompatible manual files.
- Start and inspect the console. Watch startup output for missing dependencies, permission errors or version mismatches. Stop the server before replacing active files.
- Test with the whole group. Have players join from their normal networks, travel between worlds, load the modded content and leave the server running through a busy session.
- Create and retrieve a backup. Confirm that the schedule runs, identify the retention limit and download a copy if the service allows it.
- Document recovery. Record the control-panel login, SFTP details, server settings, mod versions and restoration procedure in a private password manager or encrypted document.
Common cheap-hosting pitfalls and fixes
Comparing unlike currencies
A £4.50 offer cannot be declared cheaper than a $5.99 offer without a dated exchange rate, taxes and equal billing terms. Compare each provider in your own checkout currency and keep the original currency in your notes.
Buying an introductory price as if it were permanent
Long-term discounts and promotional rates can hide the renewal amount. Save a screenshot or invoice showing the recurring price and set a calendar reminder before renewal.
Assuming advertised players equal guaranteed performance
Player limits and RAM figures are provider claims. Actual performance varies with mods, activity and location. Use the refund period to test the workload you really run.
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Ignoring file ownership and restore access
A backup that cannot be downloaded or restored without a support ticket may not meet your recovery needs. Test a restoration or ask the provider to describe the exact process before storing your only copy there.
Choosing a distant region because it is cheaper
A small saving can be outweighed by latency for every player. Select the nearest practical region to the majority of your group, then test during a normal play session.
A practical decision checklist
- Compare the full recurring checkout total in the same currency.
- Record the renewal price and billing commitment.
- Match stated RAM and player capacity to your actual group, with headroom for mods.
- Confirm file manager, FTP or SFTP access and the supported mod workflow.
- Choose a location near most players.
- Check backup frequency, slot count, retention and restoration method.
- Read refund exclusions and cancellation timing.
- Test joining, mod loading, console errors and recovery before the refund window closes.
Godlike.Host is listed first here for Starbound game-server hosting with its own game panel, built-in mod installer and updater, SFTP/FTP access, free DDoS protection and up to three free backups a day with restore. On the published figures, Monolith has the lowest displayed starting price, Gravel Host offers the largest stated low-tier allocation among the named paid examples, Shockbyte provides a small UK plan with a stated 72-hour refund, and Server.pro combines a 4 GB tier with shell and SFTP access. Those are different strengths, not proof that one host is universally cheapest. Your final choice should be the plan whose normalized recurring cost and tested controls fit your players, mods and recovery requirements.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
