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June 28, 2026ModForge Team

How to Set Up a FiveM Server: Complete Beginner's Guide (2025)

A complete step-by-step walkthrough for setting up your first FiveM server — from choosing hosting to installing your first scripts. No experience needed.

Starting your own FiveM server can feel overwhelming. Between choosing a host, picking a framework, and figuring out which scripts to install, there are a lot of moving parts. This guide breaks everything down into clear, actionable steps so you can go from zero to a running server in a weekend — even with no prior experience.

What You Need Before You Start

To run a FiveM server you need three things:

  1. A server host — a machine that runs 24/7
  2. FiveM server artifacts — the actual server software
  3. A framework and scripts — what makes your server unique

You also need a FiveM account at cfx.re and a Steam account linked to a legitimate, purchased copy of GTA V on PC.

Step 1: Choose Your Hosting

Picking the right host is the most important infrastructure decision you will make. There are three main options:

VPS (Virtual Private Server) is the most common choice for serious servers. Providers like Vultr, Hetzner, and OVH offer excellent value. A starter server typically costs $10–$25/month and can comfortably handle 20–40 concurrent players.

Dedicated game server hosting from providers like ZAP-Hosting or Iceline simplifies setup with one-click FiveM installs and managed control panels. More expensive but far less technical — ideal if you want to skip the server administration learning curve.

Home hosting is free but not recommended for any public-facing server. Home internet connections typically have poor upload bandwidth and no uptime guarantees. Use this only for local testing.

Recommended minimum specs for a starter server:

  • 4 CPU cores (high single-core clock speed matters more than core count)
  • 8 GB RAM
  • 50 GB SSD storage
  • 1 Gbps network port

Step 2: Download FiveM Server Artifacts

The FiveM server software is called "artifacts." Download the latest recommended build for your operating system from the official FiveM artifacts page and extract it into a dedicated folder:

C:/FXServer/server/

Next, create a separate folder for your server data — this is where all your resources, configs, and scripts live:

C:/FXServer/server-data/

Clone or download the official cfx-server-data repository from GitHub into your server-data folder. This gives you a working base configuration to build from.

Step 3: Get a License Key

Every FiveM server requires a license key to start. Without one, the server will refuse to launch.

  1. Go to keymaster.fivem.net and sign in with your Cfx.re account
  2. Click New Server and fill in your server details
  3. Copy the generated license key
  4. Open server.cfg and add the following line:
sv_licenseKey "PASTE_YOUR_KEY_HERE"

Keep your license key private. Do not commit it to any public repository.

Step 4: Configure server.cfg

Your server.cfg is the primary configuration file for your server. Here are the essential lines to set up:

sv_hostname "My FiveM Server | QBCore | Active Staff"
sv_maxclients 32
sets tags "roleplay, qbcore, economy"
sv_projectName "My Server"
sv_projectDesc "A great RP server"

You also need to list every resource you want to start using ensure:

ensure mapmanager
ensure chat
ensure spawnmanager
ensure sessionmanager
ensure basic-gamemode
ensure hardcap
ensure oxmysql
ensure qb-core

Resource load order matters critically. Dependencies must always be listed before the resources that depend on them. oxmysql must come before qb-core, and qb-core must come before any script that uses it.

Step 5: Set Up a Database

Almost every serious FiveM framework requires a MySQL database to store player data, inventory, jobs, and economy. You have two options:

  • Install MySQL on your VPS directly — free and gives you full control
  • Use a hosted database service — simpler setup but adds cost

After installing MySQL, create a dedicated database for your FiveM server:

CREATE DATABASE fivem_server CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_unicode_ci;

Then install oxmysql as your database connector resource. It is significantly faster and more reliable than older alternatives like mysql-async. Configure the connection string in server.cfg:

set oxmysql_connection_string "mysql://root:yourpassword@localhost/fivem_server?charset=utf8mb4"

Step 6: Install a Framework

For new servers in 2025, QBCore is the recommended framework. It has a clean modern codebase and a rapidly growing ecosystem of scripts.

  1. Download all QBCore resources from the official QBCore-Framework GitHub organization
  2. Place them in a subfolder like resources/[qb]/ for organization
  3. Import the QBCore SQL file into your database using HeidiSQL or the MySQL command line
  4. Add all QBCore resources to server.cfg with qb-core listed first

Step 7: Install Essential Scripts

Once your framework runs without console errors, install these core scripts one at a time, testing after each:

  • ox_inventory — the community-standard inventory system for 2025
  • qb-multicharacter — character creation and selection screen
  • A HUD script — gives players health, armor, and money indicators
  • An admin menu — so you can manage the server in-game from day one

Step 8: Manage Everything with txAdmin

txAdmin is a free web-based control panel that ships bundled with the FiveM server artifacts. On first startup it walks you through a setup wizard automatically. It gives you:

  • Server start, stop, and restart controls from any browser
  • Live console output with color-coded errors
  • Player management (kick, ban, warn) with permanent history logs
  • Scheduled automatic restarts with in-game countdown warnings
  • Resource performance monitoring

Access it by navigating to http://localhost:40120 in your browser while the server is running.

Step 9: Test Thoroughly Before Opening

Before inviting players, test every system yourself on a clean character:

  • Connect and verify the spawn/character creation flow works end to end
  • Watch the server console for red error lines — fix every single one before opening
  • Test with 2–3 friends to catch issues that only appear with multiple players online
  • Press F8 in-game to open the client console and check for client-side errors

Common First-Time Mistakes

  • Wrong load order in server.cfg — the framework must load before anything that depends on it
  • Forgetting to import SQL files — scripts will fail silently or throw database errors at runtime
  • Installing too many scripts before testing — when something breaks you will have no idea which script caused it
  • Ignoring console errors — small errors compound over time and eventually cause server crashes

Once your server is running, ModForge is the best place to find quality verified scripts to build it out. Browse at modforge.xyz.