How Much RAM Minecraft Needs and How to Allocate It Properly

How much memory to give it for what you play, what happened when we measured Java with 2, 4 and 16 GB, and why this setting does not even exist in Bedrock.

How much RAM? We tested it: Minecraft Java F3 screen with 2712 of 4096 MiB in use

How much RAM does Minecraft need?

For Minecraft Java without mods, 4 GB allocated is the best starting point: it was the amount that did best in our tests, and it is what the official launcher already sets in version 26.3. Modpacks need more. In Bedrock you allocate nothing, because that setting does not exist.

That difference between the two editions causes most of the confusion online, so it is worth separating them from the start:

  • Minecraft Java Edition runs on a Java virtual machine, and you decide the memory cap it can use. Here there is something to adjust.
  • Minecraft Bedrock, the one on Windows, consoles and phones, asks the system for memory when it needs it. There is nothing to adjust: no hidden setting and no trick.

If you are looking for how to allocate RAM to Bedrock, the answer is that you can't. If Bedrock runs short of memory, what you need to lower is the Render Distance. We measured it: on PC it used 1.7 GB at 16 chunks and 4.4 GB at 80 chunks, and on a Redmi Note 12, about 1.2 GB at 7 chunks.

From here on, this guide is about Java.

How much RAM to give it, by what you play

These numbers are for memory allocated to the game, not what your PC has. We only measured the game without mods; the rest is guidance, because every modpack asks for something different. If your modpack has its own recommendation, follow that:

  • No mods: 4 GB. It also works with 2 GB, but with more stutters.
  • With shaders or large textures: 4 to 6 GB.
  • With around a hundred mods: 6 to 8 GB.
  • Modpacks with two or three hundred mods: 8 to 10 GB.
  • With a server on the same PC: add the server's share separately, because they are two programs and each asks for its own.

The rule that matters more than that list

Do not give Java more than half of your PC's RAM. What you allocate is not all it uses: in our tests, with 2 GB allocated the process reached 2.9 GB, and with 4 GB it reached 4.5 GB. If you have 8 GB and give it 6, between Java and Windows you run out of memory and the system starts using the disk.

What happened with 2, 4 and 16 GB

We tested it rather than repeat what everyone says. We did the same 60-second flight over new terrain, on a PC with an i5-11400F, an RTX 5060 Ti and 32 GB, with Minecraft 26.3 without mods at 16 chunks:

  • 2 GB: 380 FPS on average, 77 in the worst second, and the process took 2.9 GB.
  • 4 GB: 436 FPS on average, 256 in the worst second, and it took 4.5 GB.
  • 16 GB: 369 FPS on average, 178 in the worst second, and it took 10.6 GB.

What matters there is the worst second, which is the stutter you feel. With 2 GB it fell to 77, with 4 GB it held at 256, and 16 GB did not improve it: it dropped to 178 and also took 10.6 GB of your PC. That is a single run per case, so read it as a trend and not an exact figure, but the conclusion is clear: going from 4 to 16 GB gave nothing back.

Does a lot of RAM cause freezes?

That gets repeated everywhere, and our own guide used to say it too. When we measured it, we could not reproduce it. Java has a garbage collector that cleans memory and stops the game for an instant, and in these runs the longest pause was 14 ms with 16 GB on 26.3, and 26 ms with 16 GB on 1.21.3. Neither is close to a freeze you would notice.

There is a likely reason: newer versions changed collector. On this PC the launcher opens 26.3 with Java 25 and ZGC, and 1.21.3 with Java 21 and G1. We only measured 60-second sessions, so the result may differ over hours of play. But the reason not to overdo it is no longer fear of freezes: it is that you gain nothing and take that memory away from the rest of your PC.

How to tell if it has too little or too much

Before you change the number, look at what it really uses. In the game, press F3 and find the Mem line at the top left: it shows what is in use out of what is allocated.

Minecraft Java F3 screen with the line Mem: 66 % 2712/4096 MiB
With F3 you see memory live. Here it uses 2,712 of the 4,096 MiB allocated: there is room to spare.

Play for a while somewhere normal and watch the pattern. The percentage goes up and down all the time, and that is normal. These are the signs that do mean something:

  • It has too little if the game closes with OutOfMemoryError, if it hangs when entering a world, or if the Mem line stays close to 100 % most of the time.
  • It has too much if the Mem line hardly ever passes half, or if the rest of the PC slows down while you play.

To see how much RAM your PC has, press Ctrl + Shift + Esc and go to Performance → Memory in Task Manager.

How to allocate RAM to Minecraft in the official launcher

Memory is set with two «arguments», which are instructions Java receives on startup. -Xmx is the maximum, the one you almost always change: -Xmx4G means 4 GB. -Xms is what it reserves at startup. The launcher already has the line written, so you only change the number:

  1. Open the launcher, go to Minecraft: Java Edition and then Installations.
  2. On the installation you use, click the three dots and choose Edit.
  3. Click More Options.
  4. In JVM Arguments, change the -Xmx number.
  5. Click Save and open the game.
JVM Arguments field in the Minecraft launcher with -Xms2G -Xmx4G
The JVM Arguments line in Edit Installation, with 26.3, shown in Spanish: it starts with -Xms2G -Xmx4G.

Change only the -Xmx number. The rest of that line is settings that already come in place, and do not leave -Xms above -Xmx, because then Java will not start.

If you would rather not fight with arguments

That line is easy to break: a deleted dash or an extra space and the game will not open. A launcher that lets you choose RAM with a slider does the same without that risk. It is one of the things JuanseCraft does, and it also stops you from going too far: its cap is your PC's RAM minus 2 GB, so Windows always has room left.

Three things that get mixed up with this

They come up every time RAM is discussed, and they are not the same:

  • More RAM does not mean more FPS. Frames are produced by the processor and the graphics card. Our test shows it: 16 GB gave fewer FPS than 4 GB.
  • 32-bit Java cannot use that much memory. If the game will not start with -Xmx8G, that may be why. It is rare today: the launcher brings its own 64-bit Java.
  • The Java version has nothing to do with memory. Each Minecraft version asks for its own: 26.3 uses Java 25 and 1.21.3 uses Java 21. The launcher sets it by itself; the problem appears when you pick another one by hand in Java Executable.

Frequently asked questions

How much RAM should I give Minecraft Java?

No mods: 4 GB. With around a hundred mods: 6 to 8 GB. With heavy modpacks: 8 to 10 GB. And never more than half of what your PC has.

How do I allocate RAM to Minecraft Bedrock?

You can't: that setting does not exist in Bedrock. The game manages its own memory. If it runs short, lower the Render Distance, which is what decides how much it uses.

Does more RAM raise FPS?

No. In our test with Minecraft 26.3, 4 GB gave 436 FPS and 16 GB gave 369. What RAM fixes is crashes from lack of memory and stutters when it runs short, as happened with 2 GB.

What happens if I give it too much?

You lose memory for the rest of your PC and gain nothing: with 16 GB allocated, the game took 10.6 GB. The long freezes people mention did not appear in our 60-second sessions, but it could be different in long play sessions.

Should I buy more RAM?

If you have 8 GB and play without mods, you will not notice much. If you want big modpacks, moving to 16 GB does help. And if you have 4 GB, going to 8 is one of the cheapest upgrades there is, for everything and not just Minecraft.

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Sources

  • FPS, pauses and memory measured by us on October 30, 2026 with RivaTuner and jcmd in Minecraft 26.3 and 1.21.3 for Windows. The launcher line and each version's collector are what we saw on that PC.
  • What -Xmx and -Xms do: official java command documentation.
  • The JuanseCraft memory cap (your PC's RAM minus 2 GB) comes from the app itself.