Minecraft vs Valheim Server: Which to Self-Host?

Quick Verdict Both are excellent self-hosted game servers, but they solve different problems. Minecraft is the better first game server — it runs on less RAM, has a vastly larger mod ecosystem, and the itzg/minecraft-server Docker image is one of the best-maintained in the entire Docker ecosystem. Valheim edges out on automation — the lloesche/valheim-server image includes built-in auto-updates, hourly backups, and crossplay out of the box, while Minecraft needs a sidecar container for backups. If you are choosing between them for a friend group, pick whichever game your group actually wants to play. The self-hosting experience for both is painless. Overview Minecraft has been the dominant self-hosted game since 2010. The server software is mature, the modding ecosystem is enormous (Paper, Fabric, Forge, Spigot), and the Docker image supports every server variant. Hundreds of thousands of Minecraft servers run 24/7 worldwide. Valheim launched in 2021 and quickly became one of the most