How to reduce RAM usage in Minecraft

Hey folks! If Minecraft is using up too much of your computer‘s memory, I‘ve got some great tips to trim down that RAM hog and keep your game running silky smooth. We‘ll optimize settings, tweak configs, upgrade stuff, and more – so let‘s get to it!

Lower That Render Distance

The render distance is how many chunks (16×16 block sections) of world Minecraft loads around you. At 16 chunks, you can see 256 blocks ahead – but each extra chunk adds load for your RAM.

Dropping from 16 to 8 chunks cuts RAM use nearly in half. You‘ll lose some visibility, but boost FPS since there‘s less to render. I stick to 8 chunks for buttery gameplay, switching to 12 or so when I‘m exploring.

As you see above, cutting render distance makes a massive difference in RAM consumption – especially on high-res texture packs!

Disable Fancy Graphics

All those pretty effects like smooth lighting, swaying leaves and 3D clouds look snazzy – but gobble up precious RAM that could go toward better gameplay.

Here‘s what to turn off for lower RAM usage:

• Smooth Lighting: ADA natural lighting – costs FPS and RAM.
• Particles: Rain/snow effects, basically. Mood lighting.
• Clouds: Squint and pretend they‘re there!
• Anti-Aliasing: Smooths jagged edges, not worth the RAM.

I know, it stinks to lose the eye candy… Think of it as switching graphics to "Performance Mode" so your game can shine!

Limit Mods & Plugins

Mods kick Minecraft up a notch with new weapons, biomes, mechanics, and mayhem. But each mod guzzles RAM for its code and features. Too many, and your game turns into a laggy, glitchy mess.

Pro tip: Test mods in a creative copy of your world first. If FPS drops below 60, that mod‘s too taxing for your PC.

Stick to 5-10 mods max, focusing on ones that truly enhance your playstyle – whether technical, magic, farming, cooking, industrial, or building. Avoid mods that overlap in scope too.

Oh, and keep mods updated! Older versions more often have memory leaks causing bloated RAM over time. Not fun when your game eventually eats 32GB and crashes…

Allocate Less RAM to Minecraft

By default, the Minecraft launcher lets your Java-powered game gobble up 1-2GB RAM. That‘s fine for vanilla, but modpacks or high render can demand more memory.

Too often, players just jack the RAM to 4GB or above without a second thought! But an overloaded allocation indirectly pushes up usage further.

Start low, then go higher if needed. 2-3GB is plenty for most modded gameplay. Save the rest for your operating system and other tasks. Monitor RAM usage as you play, and only add more if you see lag, crashes or the dreaded "Can‘t keep up" warnings.

As you see above, limiting allocation also limits potential usage, keeping things trim.

Restart Your PC Before Playing

After using your computer for a while, you accumulate gobs of background processes, many gobbling RAM and threads. Your OS tries to juggle it all, but can get overwhelmed.

Before a long Minecraft session, restart your computer so only essential processes startup. This prevents other apps and services from fighting Minecraft for resources.

It‘s an easy trick I employ religiously for smoother gaming. Plus, it often frees up 1-1.5GB RAM on its own – definitely worth the minute restart time!

Close Other Programs

Speaking of background processes, be sure to close any other memory-hogging programs before launching Minecraft, especially:

• Web browsers – Chrome, Firefox and others can slowly bloat to 1GB+ over time.
• Video/photo editors – GIMP, Premiere, etc. Eat tons of RAM.
• Games launchers – Even when idling, Steam, Origin and the like consume RAM.

Basically, anything taxing should be shut down so Minecraft has all the memory it needs. Use Task Manager (CTRL+SHIFT+ESC) to monitor what‘s running.

On that note, I recommend 16GB system RAM minimum for modded Minecraft. 8GB can get tight, causing lag when Windows swaps data to your hard drive.

Use 64-bit Java for Better Performance

Most players run the 32-bit version of Java – but that limits Minecraft to around 1.2GB RAM before crashing. Upgrading to 64-bit lets the game address over 32GB instead for superior stability.

The switch does mean a larger initial memory footprint upwards of 500MB. But with all the tricks we‘re using to pare RAM down, that hardly matters – and the 4x+ potential is well worth it!

Check out my pal XisumaVoid‘s video guide on switching from 32 to 64-bit Java:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtRqa6Pz3T0]

Fewer Entities = Less RAM Strain

Every creature, item drop, boat, and minecart in loaded chunks becomes an "entity" tracked by the game. Too many entities jammed together, especially mods with complex AI, can mean FPS drops and RAM spikes.

To ease the load, cut down on entities where possible:

• Limit livestock in farms using nametags (keeps them despawning)
• Regularly clean up item and arrow clutter
• Avoid monster grinders flooding an area
• Entity-heavy mods like Pam‘s HarvestCraft should be used sparingly

If you notice FPS tanking around certain places, entity overload could be the culprit.

Oh, and recent versions of Minecraft added a visible entity count you can enable in Video Settings! Keep an eye on that number as you play and look for entity hotspots dragging you down.

Fix Mod Memory Leaks

As mods age, some end up with memory leaks accidentally programmed in, causing RAM usage to slowly balloon the longer you play. The game eventually bogs down and crashes once it hits Java‘s memory cap. Not ideal!

If this starts happening even on a lightly modded profile, a leak could be the cause. Test by monitoring RAM usage in Task Manager for 30 minutes. If it climbs higher and higher, there‘s likely a leak.

Isolate the culprit mod by selectively disabling them and repeat testing. Once identified, check for updates – many authors quickly patch leaks once reported. If no updates available, try an alternative similar mod or switch away that mod until it‘s fixed.

Sticking to well-maintained mods through trusted launchers like CurseForge lowers your risk of leaks in the first place too. Their staff vets additions, and user comments often call out misbehaving mods.

OptiFine Offers Big Performance Boosts

This magic mod transforms Minecraft‘s graphical performance through optimization tricks absent from vanilla Java. The results? Way smoother gameplay, faster world rendering when exploring, and yes – less memory needed!

By tweaking graphics rendering at the code level, OptiFine achieves superior FPS using the same resources. Features like occlusion culling skip rendering what you can‘t see for efficiency.

Just adding OptiFine alone often slashes RAM consumption 10-20% since the game can work smarter. Combining it with render distance tweaks, graphics downsgrades and our other tips here combines for even greater savings!

So for that snappy modded gameplay we all crave, be sure to include the legendary OptiFine in all your profile installs!

Wrap Up

Phew, we‘ve covered a ton of ground in optimizing Minecraft RAM usage! With all these tricks combined, you should see smoother gameplay, faster world loading, and more memory freed up for mods and texture packs.

No change makes a huge impact on its own, but together they lower requirements to let even mid-range PCs run intensive modpacks well.

I hope these tips help your blocky adventures go smoother. Let me know if you have any other Minecraft optimization questions! I‘m always happy to chat gaming tech.

Game on, my friends!