ARK private servers come in two flavours that don’t talk to each other: Survival Evolved (the original 2017 game) and Ascended (the 2023 Unreal Engine 5 remaster). Pick your game first, then your cluster.
For the live list, see ARK private servers.
Survival Evolved vs Ascended
- ARK: Survival Evolved (ASE) — older, cheaper, much larger modding community. Best for players who want mature mod packs (S+, Awesome Teleporters, custom dinos).
- ARK: Survival Ascended (ASA) — newer, prettier, fewer mature mods. Crossplay between PC and console. Best for players who want modern visuals.
Servers don’t bridge between them. Pick one and commit.
Cluster vs single map
A cluster is a group of maps a player can travel between with their tames and items. Big clusters (5+ maps) feel like a full ARK experience. Single-map servers are smaller-community focused; you stay on Ragnarok / The Island / Genesis 2 forever.
Look at the map list before joining:
- The Island / Ragnarok / Valguero — beginner-friendly.
- Aberration / Extinction / Genesis — harder, expect to die.
- Lost Island / Fjordur / Crystal Isles — community favourites for variety.
Rates that actually matter
- Harvest / XP / Taming — the headline numbers. 1x is vanilla, 5x is the typical “casual” rate, 25x+ is “let me build, not grind”.
- Breeding / Mating Interval / Maturation — separate sliders, often overlooked. A server with high taming but vanilla breeding is still a grind.
- Difficulty — controls max wild dino level. “Difficulty 5” means level 150 wilds (with mod-specific bumps possible).
PvP, PvE, and the in-between
- PvE — no player damage to players or tames. Most active servers are PvE; people like ARK for the building.
- PvP — full raiding, tame killing. Smaller scene; clans dominate.
- PvPvE — PvE in safe zones, PvP in the wild. Hard to get the balance right; few servers do it well.
- ORP (Offline Raid Protection) — bases can’t be damaged while owner is offline. Standard on most modern PvP servers.
What to check before joining
- Performance. ARK servers are demanding. If you see “lag” or “rubber-banding” complaints in recent Discord messages, walk away.
- Mod load. 50+ mod servers exist; they’re cool until your client crashes every 20 minutes. Smaller, curated mod lists beat the kitchen sink.
- Wipe history. Good ARK servers run for years. A wipe in the last 12 months without a clear reason is a red flag.
- Tribe cap. Solo / duo caps mostly exist for PvP. If you’re with friends, confirm the cap matches your group size.
- Decay timer. How long until your base / tames despawn if you go on holiday? 14 days is generous, 5 days will catch you out.
Common questions
Do I need the DLCs?
For Survival Evolved: most clusters use a mix of base + DLC maps. Owning all DLCs is recommended but not always required. For Ascended: maps are released progressively as DLC; check which the server uses.
Is crossplay supported?
On ASA, yes — PC and Xbox/PlayStation can usually share servers. On ASE, no — PC servers are PC only.
Can I bring my single-player save?
No. Private servers run their own world data. You start fresh.
What’s a “wiped” ARK server?
A server that has reset to day zero. Less common than in Rust — ARK servers usually run uninterrupted for years.
Why do some servers cap tames at 50?
Performance. Each tame is data the server has to simulate. Caps keep the server playable. If you collect dinos like Pokémon, find a 200+ tame-limit server.