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Best Final Fantasy XIV Servers

Final Fantasy XIV has a vast variety of servers to choose from and some tend to get very congested from time to time, this is why knowing the best servers is important. Of course, the general choice of server won’t affect your experience too much but it certainly can when you aren’t able to create a new character on a server because of congestion. This article will take you through the best Final Fantasy XIV servers.

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Best Final Fantasy XIV Servers for Each Region

There is no secret formula to deciding upon the best Final Fantasy XIV servers but I have curated a list of those which have a great mix of stability and player count. The table below avoids some of the most congested servers and also throws in a few of the preferred servers such as Ultima. These server preferences can change every so often but these are the best choices at the time of writing.

Region/Data CenterBest Server(s)
Light (Europe)Phoenix or Twintania
Chaos (Europe)Louisoix or Cerberus
Materia (Oceanian)Ravana
Aether (North America)Faerie or Siren
Crystal (North America)Zalera or Brynhildr
Primal (North America)Farmfrit
Dynamis (North America)Seraph or Marilith
Mana (Japanese)Avoid any servers here since they are all congested, however, if you have an existing character on the Anima server then that will be one of the best servers to play on.
Elemental (Japanese) Atomos or Tonberry
Gaia (Japanese)Ultima or Tiamat
Meteor (Japanese)Unicorn, Ramuh, or Valefor

Related: The Beauty of a Positive Community — An Analysis Through the Lens of Final Fantasy XIV

The most important factor in choosing a server is to make sure that you are on a local data center region server as this will improve connection greatly. I personally am on the Phoenix server in the Light Data Center and have always found a welcoming player base.

Final Fantasy XIV World Status Explained (Preferred, Congested, and New)

It can be confusing at first to choose a server if you don’t understand what each world status means. A list has been written below which will take you through each status and its meaning.

  • Preferred Server — If a server is preferred it indicates that there is plenty of space for new characters and you will also receive bonuses for making a character on this server. You will receive double exp and 10 Silver Chocobo Feathers.
  • Congested Server — A congested server means that there is an extreme number of players currently on that server and you won’t be able to create any new characters for it.
  • New Server — The new server indicates that the specific world/server has just been created recently and will likely not have as many players on it.
  • Standard Server — The standard server has a great balance of players and has been active for some time.

Data Center Travel and Crossplay in Final Fantasy XIV Explained

Crossplay is allowed between all logical data centers branched under the physical data center. This means that you will be able to visit any other data center within your chosen region. For example, those on the European Physical Data Center will be able to travel to Chaos servers if they are on Light and so forth. However, if you are on the European Data Center you can’t travel to any North American servers.

Related: Is Final Fantasy XIV Down? How to Check Server Status and More

Players can take part in the range of activities that Final Fantasy XIV offers when traveling to a different world but it should be noted that you can’t summon Retainers or sell on the marketplace. There are some other restrictions but it won’t have too much of an impact on your gameplay.

Are There Any Changes to Gameplay in Different Final Fantasy XIV Servers?

No, there are no changes to the overall gameplay on each server but if you are just starting out in your Final Fantasy XIV journey, make sure to choose the server which your friends are on — especially if you are planning to play together a lot. I know you can still visit your friends on other servers and partake in activities with them, but it can just make things easier if you are all on the same server.

Related: One Year Later, Final Fantasy XIV Still Has Me in Its Clutches

No matter what server you choose in Final Fantasy XIV, the community will welcome you with open arms and will always be there with helpful tips, gifts, and more: Kupo will most definitely be known in the realm of Eorzea in no time.


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Author
Image of Gordon Bicker
Gordon Bicker
Gordon is a contributing writer for Attack of the Fanboy, a Games Design (BA) Honours student, and a Video Game Ambassador. He has been writing at AOTF for over a year and a half, with four years of games writing experience for outlets like Green Man Gaming. When he's not busy, he'll no doubt be experiencing games, writing poetry, playing guitar, adventuring, or happily starting a new Skyrim playthrough! As an avid Final Fantasy XIV player, he also hopes that you'll gain a warm feeling from his community stories. Gordon has reported on Fallout 4 and Destiny 2, whose favorite genres include action RPGs, MMORPG's and First Person Shooters but is always experimenting with many other types of games.