Comparison
An Aternos alternative
built around wake-on-join.
Aternos is an established, ad-funded free host with a manual startup and capacity queue. WorldFolder is a pre-launch alternative built around automatic wake-on-join. Its planned free tier may still queue when shared capacity is busy; planned paid worlds receive priority.
| Aternos | WorldFolder Free | |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | Publicly available | Early-access waitlist |
| Price | Free, funded by website ads | Planned free tier with no ads |
| When capacity is busy | Startup queue may apply | Free wake queue may apply; paid plans get priority |
| Starting the server | An authorized user starts it through Aternos | Joining is planned to trigger wake automatically |
| Idle behaviour | Stops when nobody is playing | Sleeps when empty; planned automatic wake on join |
| Backups and export | Google Drive backups and world download | Planned daily backups and world export |
| Paid option | exaroton is a separate pay-per-use service | Planned fixed paid tiers from €1.99 |
What we’d actually recommend
If you need a working free host today and don’t mind its startup process, use Aternos — it’s free and established. WorldFolder isn’t public hosting yet. Join the waitlist only if automatic wake-on-join is worth waiting for. And one honest note: our planned free tier may still queue when shared capacity is full.