Valheim Server Not Showing in Community List: How to Fix It
Why a Valheim dedicated server is missing from the community list and how to fix it: the -public flag, password rules, crossplay for consoles and joining by IP.
Valheim server not showing in the community list? A Valheim dedicated server is listed only when it starts with -public 1, accepts its password, answers on its query port and runs on the backend your friends' platform reads. This guide checks each cause in order, then shows how to skip the list and join by address.
If you are still setting the server up, our Valheim dedicated server guide covers the whole install. If you host with us, every switch below is in the panel of your Valheim server, and our join code guide covers the crossplay codes.
- Not in the list at all: the server runs with
-public 0. On 1up: Game → Show in the server browser, set a Server password, then restart. - The server will not take your password: it needs at least five characters and cannot be part of the server name.
- PS5, Switch 2 or Xbox friends cannot see it: without
-crossplayonly Steam players can see the server. Turn on crossplay. - In a hurry: skip the list. Join Game → Add server with the address and port, or a join code.
1. The public flag: is the server advertised at all?
Iron Gate's dedicated server guide describes one launch argument for this: "-public 1 - Set the visibility of your server. 1 is default and will make the server visible in the browser. Set it to 0 to make the server invisible and only joinable via the 'Join IP'-button." The same guide says -name is the name "that will be visible in the Server list".
On your own PC, -public 1 is the default, so check that nobody wrote -public 0 in your copy of the start script.
On 1up it is the other way round: a new server starts with -public 0, so it stays out of the list until you choose otherwise.
- Open the Game tab and turn on Show in the server browser.
- Set a Server password (section 2). The hint under the switch says "Only with a password": without one, our start script keeps
-public 0even with the switch on. - Press Restart the server. The switch only applies on restart.
The list shows the Server name you typed when you created the server; the world name in the Game tab is a different thing and is not shown.
One switch does not put you in the game's list: Public list under Server → Address and ports (and Show in the public list in the creation wizard) publishes your server on our website, not in Valheim.
Give it a few minutes, then search by name
A listed server is not visible the second it starts. First the world has to load: wait until the log, which you can read in Console on 1up, shows Game server connected, the line the wiki ties to the server reaching Steam. The Valheim wiki explains what happens next on the Steam backend: the server registers with Steam's master servers, which then query it every five minutes and drop it when a query fails.
In the game, open Join Game, pick the Community tab and type the exact server name in the filter box. Since patch 0.221.4 the community list is only fetched once you open that tab, so open it, wait, and refresh if needed.
2. Password rules
The start script that ships with the dedicated server carries Iron Gate's note: "Minimum password length is 5 characters & Password cant be in the server name." Those are the only two rules Iron Gate gives, so check them before you look anywhere else.
| Rule | Example that fails | Example that works |
|---|---|---|
| At least 5 characters | odin | odin42 |
| Not part of the server name | Name Viking Hall, password Viking | Name Viking Hall, password mead-runs |
On 1up the panel checks both rules before it saves. Server password says "At least 5 characters, and not part of the server name", and a password inside the name is refused with "It cannot be part of the server name." The check is on the server name, not on the world name.
A password does not hide the server. The wiki's example launch lines pair -password with -public 1, and its join steps end with typing the password after you pick the server in the list. On 1up you need one anyway to be listed, as section 1 explains.
3. Crossplay: the list depends on the backend
Valheim has two networking backends. The dedicated server guide says it plainly: -crossplay "Runs the Server on the Crossplay backend (PlayFab), which lets users from any platform join. If you do not include this argument, the Steam backend is used, which means only Steam users can see and join the Server."
So a server without crossplay can be perfectly listed for Steam players and still be invisible on PS5, Switch 2, Xbox, Game Pass and Mac. Patch 0.221.4 rewrote the server list to fetch community servers from both backends, and fixed a bug that had stopped community servers being advertised on non-Steam platforms.
On 1up, open the Game tab, turn on Crossplay (every platform) and restart. The hint spells out the trade: "Off, only Steam players can join. On, players on Xbox, Game Pass, PlayStation 5, Switch 2 and the Mac App Store join too." Crossplay goes through a relay, and the wiki warns that it makes lag, timeouts and disconnects more likely, so leave it off for an all-Steam group.
In the list, a "shuffle" icon next to a server means it supports crossplay, according to Iron Gate's crossplay patch notes. The same notes say the join code changes at every restart.
4. Ports: the address the list hands out
A Steam-backend server needs two UDP ports. The guide warns that "Valheim uses the specified Port AND specified Port+1", and the wiki's port table explains the second one: the Steam query port, used "for public lobby registration metadata and server heartbeat". If the game port is open and the query port is not, players can join by address while the list never shows the server.
Self-hosted: forward UDP 2456 and 2457 (or your -port and the next number) to the server and allow both through the firewall. Valheim does not use UPnP, says the wiki. Since patch 0.219.13 the client also filters out local IP addresses when it searches for online servers, so a server that advertises a LAN address will not show up.
On 1up: our servers do not use 2456 on the outside. The Overview shows the address and port players reach. The server is started with -port set to that same port, and the next port up is reserved for it and open, so the query port the list relies on is reachable. You do not set anything here.
5. Join by IP: skip the list
The list is a convenience. A small group can join directly:
- Open Join Game and press Add server, as the Crossplay FAQ describes.
- Type the address and port from the Overview (
address:port), or the join code from the pause menu of a crossplay server. - Enter the server password when asked, then mark the server as a favourite so you find it next time.
This works with -public 0 too. On crossplay, the wiki adds two rules: a LAN or loopback address never works, and a domain name must point to the exact public IP the relay sees.
Tested on Valheim 1.0.16 (1up image sha256:08fece41), 2026-10-05: we checked the launch line our start script builds with the switches on and off. We have not yet watched a 1up server appear in the community list from a game client.
Change log
- 2026-10-05: first version.
- 2026-10-08: panel names updated: the Game and Server tabs replace the old Settings tab.
- 2026-10-20: Valheim now runs on Free and 24/7 from Casual (2 GB).