How to Play Project Zomboid with Friends: Host, Dedicated or Rented Server
There are three ways, and what changes is where the world lives: on your PC while you play (“Host”), on a PC you leave running (Steam's free dedicated server) or on a rented server. For an afternoon, the first one. For a game that lasts weeks, where everyone joins when they can, one of the other two.
What you all need
Every player needs their own copy of the game on Steam: it can't be shared. Everyone on the same version (currently Build 42.21, Steam's normal one) and the same branch: if one of you is on a beta and another isn't, you won't see each other. And the same mods as the server, although the game takes care of that: they download automatically when you join.
Since Build 42.20 (July 2026), multiplayer is in the normal version of the game. If an old guide tells you Build 42 has no multiplayer, it's out of date: what changed from 41 to 42.
Rather not set it up yourself? Project Zomboid servers from €12 a month, no contract and a full refund within 72 hours. Or create a free Project Zomboid server, no card needed.
1. “Host”: the game on your PC
It's the quickest way. Your game runs a server on your PC and your friends join it while you play.
Create the game
In the main menu, “Host”. In “Manage Settings” you choose the name, zombies, loot and mods. That's also where you set the server's memory: if your PC has RAM to spare, raise it a little.
Start and create your character
Click “Start”. The first time takes a while, because it generates the world and downloads the mods.
Invite your friends
In the game, press Esc and “Invite Friends”, and pick who from your Steam list. They can also join from their own Steam friends list, with “Join Game”.
The downsides of playing with “Host”
Your PC runs the game and the server at the same time, and Build 42 is already demanding on its own: with three or four friends you'll feel it. And the world only exists while you play: if you quit, it's over for everyone, and nobody can join without you. How much memory to give it and what to do if a friend can't join, in the guide to “Host” in Project Zomboid.
If you get hooked, the game can later be moved to a dedicated server without losing anything: the guide to moving your Project Zomboid save to a server explains how.
2. Steam's free dedicated server
In your Steam library, under “Tools”, there's “Project Zomboid Dedicated Server”, free. Install it on a PC that can stay on all the time and the world will still be there when you're not playing. It's all explained in how to set up a Project Zomboid dedicated server on your PC.
What it costs you: the electricity for that PC day and night, opening UDP ports 16261 and 16262 on your router (impossible with some ISPs that use CG-NAT) and changing the settings by hand in its files. The Project Zomboid ports guide explains it.
3. A rented server
The server sits in a data centre, with its own address and port, and everyone joins whenever they like, even when you're not around. It's the easy option for groups whose schedules don't line up, or for long modded games.
With NapNodes you have two routes. The free Project Zomboid server: Build 42, no card, which you turn on with “Start” when you want to play and which stops by itself after 20 minutes with nobody on. Or a plan, Fort (6 GB) or Bastion (8 GB), always on and with backups. The game settings are changed in the panel's “Settings”, in plain English, and mods in “Mods”.
How to join a friend's server
Add it to your favourites
In the main menu, “Join” → “Favorites”. Type the address (or IP) and port given to you by whoever runs the server, and the server password if it has one.
Create your account
Choose a username and a password: the first time you join, your account on that server is created. Write them down: they're the ones you'll always use there, and they're tied to your character.
If it won't connect
Check the version (at the bottom of the main menu) and that you're not on a Steam beta. If the server is at someone's home and ports can't be opened, try “Use Steam Relay” in the connection options, or Radmin VPN or Hamachi. Everything else is in the “I can't join my Project Zomboid server” guide.
How to spawn together
Each player chooses where they spawn when creating their character. To start together, pick the same place; even then you may end up in different houses in the same area, so agree on a spot that's easy to find on the map.
The admin can make every new player spawn at the same point with the SpawnPoint option in the .ini (x,y,z coordinates; 0,0,0 does nothing), or bring one player to another with /teleport "player" "other". Once you have a base, a safehouse with respawn sends whoever dies back to it: the safehouses and factions guide explains how.
Frequently asked questions
How do I invite a friend to my Project Zomboid game?
If you play with “Host”, press Esc in the game → “Invite Friends” and pick them from your Steam list. If it's a dedicated server, give them the address, port and password, and have them add it in “Join” → “Favorites”.
Does my friend need to buy Project Zomboid to play with me?
Yes: every player needs their own copy of the game. The dedicated server, though, is free.
Can you play Project Zomboid with friends without a server?
Yes, with “Host” from the main menu: your PC acts as the server while you play. The catch is that if you quit, the game ends for everyone.
Why can't my friend join my game?
It's almost always the version (you have to be on the same one and on the same Steam branch), a mod that fails to download or, on a home server, UDP ports 16261 and 16262 being closed.
How many players can a Project Zomboid server hold?
Since 42.20.3, up to 254, but the game itself warns that with more than 32 at once there can be problems. For a group of friends, that's plenty.
Shall we set it up for you?
Project Zomboid servers from €12 a month, never oversold: your RAM is yours alone. And if you'd rather start without paying, there's a free Project Zomboid server, no card needed.
Not sure whether your server is online? Check it in a second with the Project Zomboid server status checker: players, version and password, free.
Free tool: What does it cost in electricity?. What it costs in electricity to keep the server running on your PC at home, side by side with a plan and the free server.