Minecraft Realms is the official, inside-the-game hosting solution from Mojang. It's the "default" choice for many players because it's right there in the menu. In 2026, it remains the simplest way to get a basic multiplayer world online. But that "official" simplicity comes at a major cost: your freedom.

If you've ever wanted to add a specific mod, increase your render distance beyond basic limits, or pay only for the hours you actually play, it’s time to see how Fern is providing the professional alternative that Realms simply can't match.

The 30-Second Verdict

Go with Minecraft Realms if: You want a zero-configuration experience, only play with a very small group (2-10 friends), and you are strictly playing the "Vanilla" game on Bedrock or Java without any desire for external mods or performance tuning.

Go with Fern if: You want a "Game-First" experience with no compromises. Fern offers professional hardware, full mod support (Forge/Fabric/Bedrock Add-ons), and a billing model that actually respects your time. With the $5 Phase campaign, you get a 2-Week Phase* of Starter tier playtime for less than the cost of a Realms Plus subscription, and since billing stops when the server is off, it lasts far longer.

Head-to-Head Comparison

Feature	Minecraft Realms / Plus	Fern (fern.host)
Pricing Model	Monthly Subscription	Flexible Credits (Pay-as-you-go)
Player Limit	3 or 11 (Strict)	Unlimited (Resource-based)
Mod Support	No (Limited Add-ons only)	Full (Forge/Fabric/One-Click)
Hardware	Basic Cloud Instance	High-Performance NVMe & Modern CPUs
Render Distance	Restricted (12-20 chunks)	Unlockable High-Performance
Cross-play	Bedrock-only / Java-only	Native (Java + Bedrock Together)
Billing Flexibility	Fixed Monthly	'Stop the Burn' Credits

Deeper Dive: The "Official" Limitations

The biggest difference between Realms and Fern is whether you're renting a "feature" or a "server."

Real Power vs. 10-Player Caps

Minecraft Realms Plus is capped at you and 10 friends. If you want a real community, a public hub, or just a large group of 15 friends, Realms simply tells you "No."

The Realms Bill: You pay $7.99/month for 11 slots. If you're the only one online for a week, you've still paid for all those empty slots.
The Fern Way: We don't believe in artificial slot limits. Our credits power the hardware; how many players you invite is up to you. With the $5 Phase campaign, you get a 2-Week Phase* of Starter (Vanilla) tier time. Turn the server off when no one is playing, and that 2-Week Phase* could last you half a year.

Modpacks: The Heart of Minecraft

Realms is built for Vanilla. While it supports some Marketplace content, it doesn't allow for the true creative freedom of Forge or Fabric modpacks.

Modpacks & Customization: Fern is designed for the modder. One-click install your favorite packs from Modrinth.
Large Tier Performance: For heavy modded play on our 7GB Large tier, your $5 buy-in provides ~41 hours of elite performance, which is something Realms' basic infrastructure literally cannot handle.
Native Cross-play: Join from Java, Bedrock, consoles, and phones all on the same world. Fern handles the complex "Geyser" networking natively, so your "official" cross-play experience is actually better than the official host.

The "Phase" Factor

Most Minecraft groups follow a "Phase" pattern. You play intensely for two weeks, everyone gets "burnt out," and you take a break until the next major update.

Realms requires a recurring subscription to keep your world alive. If you stop paying, your world eventually disappears. Fern’s $5 Phase campaign is built for this cycle. Buy $5 in credits, play your phase, and hit Stop. Your world stays safe for free on our NVMe storage, your credits stay in your account, and you can pick up exactly where you left off six months later without ever seeing a "subscription expired" warning.

Final Verdict

Minecraft Realms is a lovely, simplified service for families or a small group of close friends who just want a vanilla survival world without any extra fuss.

But for the player who wants a professional server that grows with them, supporting hundreds of players, thousands of mods, and a billing model that never wastes a cent, Fern is the clear winner. For $5, you get the keys to the kingdom.

Ready for a real server?

Launch your server on Fern for $5 →

<small>*Based on 166 hours of metered runtime, equivalent to ~12 hours/day for 2 weeks of active play.</small>