Top ARK Server Configs

About the Top ARK Configs Leaderboard

Every time someone builds a config with our ARK Game.ini generator or ARK GameUserSettings.ini generator and hits Share, it gets tracked. Every time someone loads a shared config link, that gets tracked too. The configs above are the ones people actually use — not the ones we think look cool, and not whatever some forum post from 2017 claimed was "the best PvP setup."

The share count tells you how many admins thought a config was worth sending to a friend. The load count tells you how many people actually opened that link. Both matter, neither lies.

What's a Game.ini config, and what's in GameUserSettings.ini?

ARK splits its server tweaks across two files. Game.ini handles the deep stuff — breeding multipliers, imprint cuddle intervals, XP gains by activity, per-level stat scaling, crafting bonuses, structure decay rules. GameUserSettings.ini handles the "everyone touches this" stuff — server name and password, taming speed multiplier, harvest amount, day/night cycles, PvP toggles, dino damage, structure damage, tribe limits, and platform-saddle rules.

Most boosted servers tweak both. Most casual PvE servers only ever touch GameUserSettings.ini. Most hardcore PvP servers obsess over Game.ini's structure decay and PvP timer values like it's tax season.

Why these configs are worth copying

Anyone can post "best ARK server settings" on a forum and never explain why. The configs above came out of actual server setups — somebody opened our generator, changed values until it felt right for their community, and shared the result. Then enough other admins thought it was worth loading that it climbed this list.

That doesn't mean a popular config is the right one for your server. PvP communities need different numbers than PvE breeders. Casual weekend servers need different numbers than hardcore wipe-week servers. Use these as starting points, not gospel.

How to use a top config

• Click any config on the left to see the full INI text on the right.
• Copy pastes the whole INI to your clipboard — drop it straight into your server's config file.
• Download saves it as a properly-named file (Game.ini or GameUserSettings.ini) ready to upload.
• Tweak this config → opens the matching generator with every setting pre-loaded so you can adjust before exporting.

Common questions admins ask before copying someone else's config

Will a popular config work on my host (Nitrado, GPortal, self-hosted)?

Yes. INI files are just text — they don't care who's running the server. Whether you're on Nitrado, GPortal, ASMR, a self-hosted machine, or running a non-dedicated session, the same Game.ini and GameUserSettings.ini values apply. The only difference is where you paste them.

Will copying a top config break my existing settings?

Only if you replace your whole file without checking. The safer move is to copy the config, compare it to your current values, and pull over the lines that make sense. Or use the Tweak button, adjust everything to taste, and export fresh.

What's the most-changed ARK server setting?

TamingSpeedMultiplier in GameUserSettings.ini, by a country mile. Right behind it: HarvestAmountMultiplier, XPMultiplier, and BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier from Game.ini. Almost nobody runs official 1x rates on an unofficial server.

Do these configs work for both ARK: Survival Ascended and ARK: Survival Evolved?

Mostly. ASA and ASE share the same INI structure for the vast majority of settings. The configs above are written for ASA but the breeding, XP, harvest, taming, and stat multipliers all translate to ASE without changes. A handful of ASA-specific values (some cryopod and structure flags) won't apply to ASE servers — they'll just be ignored.

More tools

• ARK Game.ini Generator — build a Game.ini from scratch with every relevant setting
• ARK GameUserSettings.ini Generator — build a GUS file the same way
• All ARK generators
• All GamesOMG generators