How to Allocate More RAM to Minecraft

May 10, 2021

How to Allocate More RAM to Minecraft.

Minecraft can be a surprisingly resource-intensive game, and for a reliable experience, it is important that you allocate a sufficient amount of RAM. The minimum amount of RAM required to play the game is 2 GB, but the recommended system specifications actually state that at least 4 GB is required for optimum performance.

Crucially, these recommendations are based on the game in its default state. Many people play Minecraft using mods and this can significantly increase the RAM needed to run the game properly. If you are using a lot of mods, or if you are seeking the best possible experience, you may need to allocate as much as 6 GB RAM to the game.

If you do not have sufficient RAM for Minecraft, you may encounter a range of issues, from frequent stuttering, to full-blown game crashes, and this can ruin the entire experience. For this reason, it may be necessary to manually adjust RAM allocation at certain times. In this article, we explain precisely how to dedicate more ram to Minecraft.

How Much RAM do I Have? – Identifying Your RAM.

Before you do anything else, you will first need to find out how much RAM your computer actually has. After all, you cannot allocate more RAM to Minecraft if you do not have RAM available. You may already know how much RAM you have, in which case you can likely skip this step, but if you are unsure, you can check from within Windows.

  1. To do so, click on the ‘Start’ button and then select the ‘Settings’ icon. If you are unsure of where to find this, look for the icon that resembles a gear. Once the settings window pops up, select ‘About’ you should be presented with a list labelled ‘Device Specifications’.
  2. Under this heading, scan down to ‘Installed RAM’ and you should see the amount of RAM you currently have installed. For instance, if it shows 16.00 GB, this means you have 16 GB RAM installed.
  3. One thing to note here is the installed RAM displayed is not necessarily the amount of RAM you can spare for Minecraft. You are going to want to keep some RAM available for other processes on your computer. At the bare minimum, it is recommended that you keep 1 GB RAM available for handling other things and you may need more than that if you want to run any other resource-intensive applications at the same time as playing Minecraft.

How to Allocate More RAM to Minecraft With the Default Launcher.

The easiest way for most players to learn how to allocate more RAM in Minecraft is to use the Minecraft Launcher, which is commonly referred to as the Default Launcher or the Vanilla Launcher.

  1. First, run the Minecraft Launcher and select either ‘Bedrock Edition’ or ‘Java Edition’, depending on the version you wish to play. Then, at the top of the screen you should see a series of tabs. Click on the one labelled ‘Installations’, then move the cursor over the correct version of the game and click on the three dots to the right of this. A drop-down menu should appear and you need to select the ‘Edit’ option, which will take you to the ‘Edit Installation’ screen.
  2. On this screen, you need to click on ‘More Options’ and then move to the field labelled ‘JVM Arguments’. Here, you will see a lengthy string of code. At the beginning of this, you should see ‘Xmx_G’ with the underscore being a number. For instance, it may say ‘Xmx2G’ or it may say ‘Xmx1G’.
  3. Alter only this number, inserting the amount of RAM you wish to allocate to Minecraft, in GB. So, if you change it to ‘Xmx6G’ you will be allocating 6 GB of RAM. Make your decision based on the amount of RAM you have installed, while factoring in the need to have some RAM for other applications and processes. Do not alter any other part of the code.
  4. Then, simply click on the ‘Save’ button at the bottom of the screen and continue launching Minecraft.
How to allocate more ram to minecraft with default launcher
How to allocate more RAM to Minecraft with default launcher: Click on Installation, then the 3 … Settings menu, and choose Edit. On the next page, click on ‘More Options’.
How to Change the Ram in Minecraft
After clicking  ‘More Options’, find the JVM Arguments panel, and find the value in this panel that says Xmx2G (or Xmx1G), for example, and change ONLY THAT PART of the line to, for example, Xmx4G or Xmx6G. Basically, you only have to change one digit, then click ‘Save’

How to Allocate more RAM to Minecraft 1.16.5.

If you need more in-depth help, then watch this Step-by-Step video on how to allocate  more RAM to Minecraft with the Default Launcher:
 

 

How to Add More RAM to Minecraft Using ATLauncher.

A common alternative to the Default or Vanilla Launcher is to make use of ATLauncher. This is a Minecraft launcher that contains more than 100 modpacks, allowing you to quickly and easily play the game using mods.

These mods have been created by the Minecraft community and make a variety of changes to the game, altering the way the game looks, or various in-game features. However, some of these mods also make Minecraft a bigger drain on your system memory, which can necessitate extra RAM allocation to achieve a good performance.

Fortunately, it is relatively simple to achieve this within ATLauncher.

  1. First, you need to load ATLauncher and then click on ‘Settings’, which you will find on the right-hand side of the screen. Along the top, you should now see a series of tabs. Click on the one labelled ‘Java/Minecraft’.
  2. Scan down through the options until you see ‘Maximum Memory/RAM’. Next to this, you should see the current maximum amount of RAM that will be allocated to Minecraft. Using the up and down arrows, you can then adjust this number until you are allocating the amount of RAM you would like, based on how much RAM you have installed.
  3. After you have set the ‘Maximum Memory/RAM’ option to where you want it, click on the ‘Save’ option at the bottom of the screen, or the change will not take effect. After doing so, simply launch the game as normal.
How to allocate more RAM to minecraft
How to allocate more RAM to minecraft with ATlauncher: Click on Settings, then ‘Java/Minecraft’ and set your preferred Maximum RAM allocation.

How to Allocate More RAM in Minecraft With CurseForge.

Another option is to allocate more RAM to Minecraft through CurseForge – a mod and add-on repository, which was previously under the ownership of Twitch. It has since been acquired by Overwolf and the application allows you to manage various games, including Minecraft, and adjust RAM allocation for each of them, as needed.

  1. To do this, you should first start CurseForge and then click on the ‘Settings’ icon, which looks like a gear and can be found in the bottom left of the screen.
  2. On the left side of the next page, you should see the words ‘Game Specific’. Click on Minecraft underneath this heading and you will be able to access the Minecraft settings page.
  3. On this page, scroll down to the ‘Java Settings’ section and you find a slider underneath the words ‘Allocated Memory’. Use this slider to allocate your chosen amount of RAM to Minecraft.
  4. Once you have set the slider, click on the ‘X’ at the top right-hand side of the page to close the settings. There is no need to click ‘Save’.
  5. From here, all you need to do is launch Minecraft in the usual way to play the game with the new RAM settings.

How to Add More RAM to Minecraft Using the Technic Launcher.

Finally, another option is to make use of the Technic Launcher. This is another example of a platform that allows for the easy installation of modpacks and it is available for Windows, Mac OSX and Linux. As with the other launchers mentioned, it also allows you to easily allocate more or less RAM to Minecraft.

  1. To do so, you should start by opening the Technic Launcher. In the top right, you will see an option labelled ‘Launcher Options’, along with the familiar gear icon. Click this and then use the tabs along the top to select ‘Java Settings’.
  2. You should now see an option labelled ‘Memory’, with a drop-down menu next to it. Use this drop-down menu to select the amount of RAM you wish to allocate to Minecraft in GB.
  3. Once you have allocated the desired amount of RAM, click on the ‘X’ in the top right to close the window and then launch Minecraft in the usual way.

How to Allocate More RAM to Minecraft Twitch Launcher.

  1. To adjust the allocated RAM (Memory) setting in the Twitch Launcher, visit your settings by choosing the small down arrow in the top-right.
  2. Then choose the Settings option shown by the gear icon.
  3. Lastly, select the Minecraft tab on the Settings page, and simply locate the ‘Allocated Memory’ slider under Java Settings .

How to give more RAM to Minecraft with The Legacy FeedTheBeast (FTB) Launcher.

Select Options, then simply move the RAM Maximum (MB) slider around to your desired memory amount. We recommed at least 4096MB.

How to Dedicate more RAM in Minecraft From the Void Launcher.

Choose the gear in the top-right corner. Under the Minecraft: Options, change the Max to increase the amount of RAM. Again, We recommed at least 4096MB.

Final Thoughts.

Minecraft is a relatively accessible game, which runs on a huge number of devices. However, it is more resource-intensive than you might initially think and this is especially true if you intend to play using mods. Therefore, to achieve peak performance, you may need the ability to allocate more RAM to the game.

The minimum requirement for Minecraft is 2 GB RAM, but the recommended amount is 4 GB and this rises to 6 GB if any advanced mods are installed. To allocate RAM properly, you will need to check how much memory you have installed and you will also need to make sure you save some for other applications and processes running in the background.

The good news is, regardless of whether you are using the Default Launcher or another option, like ATLauncher or the Technic Launcher, the process for actually allocating more RAM to Minecraft is very simple.

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