If your mob farm suddenly stops working or furnaces quit smelting when you walk away, simulation distance is almost certainly the reason. This setting controls how many chunks around you the game actively processes, covering entity ticking, liquid flow, mob spawning, and more. Set it too low and your farms break. Set it too high and your frame rate tanks. This guide explains what simulation distance does and how to adjust it on Java Edition, Bedrock Edition, and dedicated servers.
What Is Simulation Distance?
Simulation distance is the maximum number of chunks around each player in which blocks, fluids, and entities receive game ticks. Inside that radius, mobs can spawn and despawn, furnaces smelt, crops grow, and liquids flow. Outside it, those processes pause.
The setting works slightly differently depending on which version you play:
Java Edition focuses simulation distance primarily on entities: mobs, projectiles, and dropped items all tick within the radius. Starting with Java 1.21.5, blocks inside the simulation radius (or loaded by another chunk source) also receive random ticks, meaning crops, ice, snow, and cauldrons are now governed by this setting as well.
Bedrock Edition applies simulation distance to mob spawning and despawning, tick updates for blocks and fluids, and entity processing. The maximum is 12 chunks, available in even increments: 4, 6, 8, 10, or 12.
Simulation distance is distinct from render distance. Render distance controls how far you can see. Simulation distance controls how far the game actually runs behind the scenes. You can have a high render distance and a low simulation distance, which is often the best balance for performance.
How to Change Simulation Distance
The recommended range is 8-12 chunks for most setups. Lower values reduce background processing and improve performance; higher values keep more of your world active at once. The right number depends on your hardware, so testing a few values is worthwhile.
Java Edition
Players can change simulation distance from the in-game settings menu at any time, including from the main menu before loading a world.
- Launch Minecraft and navigate to Options, then Video Settings.
- Proceed to change the Simulation Distance setting to your desired value.
- Afterward, click the Done button and load into your world.
Bedrock Edition
Bedrock treats simulation distance as a world-level setting, so it is found in the world options rather than a global settings menu. The steps below apply to an existing world; for a new world, the option appears in the Advanced section of the creation menu.
- Open Minecraft Bedrock, then click Play and press the Edit icon for your existing world.
- While in the Game settings, scroll down and change the Simulation Distance option.
- Afterward, click Play at the top left corner and load into your world.
Dedicated Servers
The server’s simulation distance applies to all players connected. Changing it requires editing the server configuration through the Apex panel.
- Head towards your Apex server panel, then click Config Files near the top left.
- On the next page, find and select the Server Settings option.
- Proceed to edit the Simulation Distance setting to your desired amount.
- When you’re finished, click Save at the bottom and restart the server.
The simulation distance value in your server.properties file also interacts with your view distance setting. Keeping simulation distance at or below your view distance prevents background processing from exceeding what players can actually see.
Java vs. Bedrock: Quick Reference
| Java Edition | Bedrock Edition | |
|---|---|---|
| Default | 10 chunks | 4 chunks |
| Range | 2-32 chunks | 4-12 chunks (even numbers) |
| Where to Set | Options > Video Settings | World Settings > Game |
| Server Setting | server.properties | Server config |
Tips for Getting the Best Performance
A high simulation distance is the most common cause of server lag. If your server is struggling, lowering this value is often the fastest fix. The following suggestions help you dial in the right balance:
- Keep simulation distance lower than your render distance. Having both at the same high value doubles the processing load with little visible benefit.
- For most survival servers, a value between 8-10 works well. Farms run reliably and performance stays stable.
- If you run a heavily modded server, aim for 5-7 chunks. More active entities from mods means each chunk costs more to process.
- If mob farms or furnaces stop working when you walk away, your simulation distance is probably too low for the farm’s location.
For a broader look at improving server performance, the Minecraft server optimization guide covers view distance, RAM allocation, and other key settings.
Simulation Distance FAQ
How important is simulation distance in Minecraft?
It controls all background processing tied to ticks: mob spawning, despawning, liquid flow, furnace smelting, crop growth, and more. Farms and automated systems depend on it. Getting it wrong in either direction breaks gameplay or hurts performance.
What is a good simulation distance value?
For singleplayer, the default of 10 chunks works well for most machines. For servers, 8-10 is a reliable starting point. Bedrock Edition players are limited to a maximum of 12 chunks. Test values that work for your setup rather than copying a specific number.
Why is my simulation distance not working?
If your simulation distance is set higher than your render distance, the game may not process chunks outside the render radius as expected. Try matching or setting simulation distance slightly below your render distance and see if that resolves the issue.
How do I see chunk boundaries while adjusting this setting?
Press F3 + G in-game to display chunk borders. This makes it easier to understand what the current simulation distance radius looks like in practice. See the guide on how to show chunk borders in Minecraft for more detail.
