If you just want a space to play with a few friends without dealing with public servers, you have three realistic paths: Realms, a third-party hosting provider, or a local/LAN setup. Each has a different tradeoff between cost, convenience, and control.
Comparing Your Options
| Method | Setup effort | Cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Official Realms subscription | Low | Recurring subscription fee | Players who want simplicity and official support |
| Third-party hosting provider | Medium | Varies by plan and resources | Groups wanting more control, mods, or a larger player cap |
| Local/LAN or home-hosted | High | Free aside from hardware/electricity | Technical users comfortable with networking |
Option 1: Using Realms
- Open Minecraft PE and sign in with the account you want to host under.
- Go to the Play tab and select Realms, then choose to create a new Realm.
- Follow the subscription prompts, then invite friends directly through their in-game username.
- Adjust world settings like difficulty and game rules from the Realm’s settings menu.
Realms is the lowest-maintenance option since the hosting, uptime, and updates are handled for you, but customization is limited compared to running your own server software.
Option 2: Third-Party Hosting
Hosting providers let you rent a managed server with more flexibility, including custom plugins or add-ons in some cases, and a higher player cap. The general process is to choose a plan sized for your expected player count, configure the server through a web control panel, then share the generated address and port with your group. Research any provider’s reputation and refund policy before committing to a longer billing cycle, since quality varies widely.
Option 3: Hosting It Yourself
Running dedicated Bedrock-compatible server software on your own hardware, a spare computer, a home server box, or a rented virtual private server, gives you full control but requires comfort with basic networking concepts like port forwarding and, for anything other than the same Wi-Fi network, exposing a port safely through your router. This path is best suited to players who are already comfortable troubleshooting network settings, since any misconfiguration can either block friends from connecting or needlessly expose your home network.
Keeping a Private Server Healthy
- Set a world backup schedule before anyone starts building seriously
- Decide on ground rules for griefing and PvP among friends before conflicts happen
- Keep server software and the game client on compatible versions to avoid connection errors
- Limit who has operator-level permissions to avoid accidental world resets
Which Option Should You Pick?
If you want something running in minutes and do not mind a subscription, Realms is the easiest route. If your group wants more customization and is willing to spend a bit more time configuring things, third-party hosting is the middle ground. Self-hosting makes sense only if you already have the technical background or want to learn, since the time investment is the real cost, not just the electricity bill.