How to Make a FiveM Roleplay Server (From Zero, 2026)

To make a FiveM roleplay server, get a free Cfx.re license key, start a FiveM server with txAdmin, deploy a roleplay framework recipe (Qbox, QBCore or ESX Legacy) with a MySQL database, then set up jobs, voice, a whitelist, rules and a staff team. The technical part takes an afternoon. The community part, rules, staff and a reason to play, is what decides whether anyone stays. Here is the whole path in order.

What you need before you start

You need	Why	Cost
A Cfx.re account and license key	Every FiveM server needs one, from portal.cfx.re	Free
A server with 8 GB of RAM	A framework with a normal script pack, up to 32 players	From 19.99 USD a month hosted
A MySQL or MariaDB database	Frameworks store characters, money and items there	Included with our FiveM servers
A Discord server	Applications, rules, announcements, the whitelist	Free
GTA V and FiveM on your PC	To test as a player	You already have it

A free key allows up to 48 players, which is plenty for a new community.

Step 1: Pick your framework

The framework is the base every roleplay script plugs into: characters, jobs, money, inventory. Pick it first, because scripts are written for one framework and switching later means migrating every player.

Framework	Pick it if
Qbox	You are starting fresh and want the modern ox stack (ox_inventory, ox_target, ox_lib) while still running most QBCore scripts
QBCore	You follow QBCore tutorials or already own QBCore scripts
ESX Legacy	Your developer knows ESX or the scripts you want are ESX first

Our full comparison is in QBCore vs Qbox vs ESX. If you have no preference, start with Qbox.

Step 2: Get the server running with txAdmin

On a GamezServers FiveM server:

Pick the 8 GB plan and the txAdmin server type, paste your license key and pay. It is ready about a minute later.
Click Open on the txAdmin card on your panel's Overview tab, enter the setup PIN and sign in with your Cfx.re account.
Choose Popular Recipes and pick Qbox, QBCore or ESX Legacy.
Leave the database fields as they are. We create a MySQL database for every FiveM server and fill its host, port, user, password and name into the recipe for you.
Let the recipe run, then Save & Run Server.

Self hosting instead? Our FiveM self hosting guide covers FXServer, MariaDB and ports on Windows and Linux. The recipe step is the same.

Join with F8 and connect your-address, make a character and walk around. You now have a working city with default jobs, shops, garages, a phone and police and EMS.

Step 3: Make yourself the boss

You are already txAdmin's master admin, and the recipes also write your Cfx.re identifier into the server's group.admin in server.cfg, so admin commands work for you from the first join.

To give the same in game rights to a co-owner, add a line under it in txAdmin's CFG Editor with their identifier:

add_principal identifier.fivem:1234567 group.admin

A player's fivem: identifier is shown in their player window in txAdmin. On ESX, the admin group is stored in the group column of the player's row in the users table. Restart once after changing permissions.

Step 4: Name it and get it listed

In the CFG Editor:

sv_hostname "Harbor City RP"
sets sv_projectName "Harbor City RP"
sets sv_projectDesc "Serious roleplay, whitelisted, active police and EMS"
sets tags "roleplay, serious, qbox, economy"
sets locale "en-US"

The recipes leave sets locale "root-AQ", which is a placeholder, and tags like default, deployer. Replace both. The project name and description are what the FiveM server list shows. If your server does not appear after a while, see FiveM server not showing in the server list.

Step 5: Set up jobs

Default recipes come with police, EMS, mechanic, taxi, tow, trucker, garbage and more. Trim before you add. A new city with 25 jobs and 10 players feels empty.

Where jobs are defined:

Framework	Job list	Notes
QBCore	`qb-core/shared/jobs.lua`	Grades, pay and `defaultDuty` per job
Qbox	`qbx_core/shared/jobs.lua`	Same idea as QBCore
ESX	`jobs` and `job_grades` tables in the database	Edit with HeidiSQL or a script

What we suggest for a new city:

Whitelisted: police, EMS, and later lawyers or government. Staff hire for these.
Open: mechanic, taxi, tow, delivery jobs, so new players earn money from minute one.
Criminal: keep the defaults (store robberies, drugs) but tune payouts and police requirements so crime is worth it but not easy money.

Set a job in game with your framework's admin command, for example /setjob id police 2 on QBCore and Qbox.

Step 6: Voice and radio

Roleplay without proximity voice does not work. All the recipes ship pma-voice, which uses FiveM's built in Mumble server, so there is nothing extra to host. The voice settings sit in server.cfg on QBCore and in voice.cfg on Qbox:

setr voice_useNativeAudio true
setr voice_defaultCycle "GRAVE"
setr voice_defaultRadio "LMENU"

GRAVE is the key left of 1, which cycles whisper, normal and shout. LMENU is left Alt for talking on the radio. Players can rebind both in GTA's key bindings under FiveM. Police and EMS use the radio resource for their channels. Ask everyone to set push to talk in FiveM's own settings. Leave pma-voice in place unless you have a specific reason to change; running two voice systems is a common cause of "nobody can hear me".

Step 7: Whitelist

Most roleplay servers are whitelisted: players apply, staff read the application, and approved players get in. In txAdmin, Settings, Whitelist tab, set Allowlist Mode to Discord Server Roles and give approved players a role in Discord. Full steps, including the Discord bot, are in how to whitelist a FiveM server.

A short application works better than a long one. Five questions: age, roleplay experience, a character idea, how they would handle a scenario, and whether they read the rules.

Step 8: Write rules people will read

Put them in a Discord channel and link them in your allowlist instructions. Keep it to one screen. The core set nearly every RP server has:

No RDM or VDM: no killing or running people over without a roleplay reason.
No metagaming: do not use information your character could not know, such as something from Discord or a stream.
No powergaming: do not force outcomes the other person cannot respond to.
Value your life: act like your character wants to live when held at gunpoint.
New life rule: after going down and respawning, forget what led to it.
No combat logging: do not disconnect to escape a scene.
Staff calls are final in the moment, with appeals afterwards in a ticket.

Add your own on top, such as gang size limits or how many officers a bank robbery needs.

Step 9: Build a staff team

You cannot run a city alone once it has more than a dozen players.

Role	txAdmin permissions	Does
Owner	All	Server, money, final decisions
Admin	Players, resources, restart, allowlist	Handles bans, manages staff
Moderator	Kick, warn, spectate, allowlist, menu	Handles reports in game
Support or trial staff	Warn, spectate	Answers tickets, learns

Add each one in txAdmin's Admins page with only the permissions they need. Do not hand out console or CFG Editor access to anyone you would not give your license key to. Give staff the /tx menu for in game moderation, and ask them to always leave a reason so the History page tells you what happened. More on the panel in how to use txAdmin.

Step 10: Add your own content carefully

This is where most new servers break themselves. Rules that save you a lot of grief:

Press Backup in the panel before every change. You keep 3 backups.
Add one resource at a time and check the console after each one.
Do not run two of the same system (two inventories, two phones, two target scripts).
Only use scripts and cars you have the rights to. Leaked paid scripts are the classic source of server backdoors.

Good next steps are custom cars for police and civilians (how to add cars) and a few well chosen free resources (best free FiveM scripts).

Step 11: Restarts and upkeep

Schedule restarts every 6 to 12 hours in Settings > FXServer > Restart Schedule. Players get warnings in chat beforehand.
Update FXServer when txAdmin says it is out of date: press Update game in our panel. Resources, server.cfg and txAdmin data stay.
Watch the console after updates. If the city starts to stutter, the lag and hitch warning guide shows how to find the cause.
Turn off Sleep when empty in Settings once you have a community, so the server never stops overnight.

How much does a FiveM roleplay server cost?

The software is free. Hosting is what you pay for. On GamezServers:

Plan	RAM	Players	Price a month
Starter	4 GB	up to 16	9.99 USD
Standard	8 GB	up to 32	19.99 USD
Pro	12 GB	up to 48	29.99 USD
Elite	16 GB	up to 48	39.99 USD

Start on 8 GB and move up as you add cars and maps. Upgrades are prorated. New customers get 50% off the first month, and you can split the bill with up to 10 friends at checkout, which suits a staff team that shares costs. See FiveM hosting for the details.

FAQ

How long does it take to make a FiveM RP server?

The server itself is running within an hour using a txAdmin recipe. Making it yours, with trimmed jobs, rules, a whitelist and a few custom scripts, takes most people a few weekends.

Do I need to know how to code?

No, not to start. Recipes give you a complete city and most free scripts install by copying a folder and adding an ensure line. Some Lua knowledge helps once you want to change how jobs or scripts behave.

How many players can a FiveM RP server have?

Up to 48 with a free Cfx.re license key. Most new communities take a while to fill 32, so the slot limit is rarely the first problem.

Can I make a roleplay server without a framework?

You can, but you would be rebuilding characters, money, jobs and inventories yourself. Use a framework unless you have a developer and a very specific idea.

Is it legal to run a FiveM roleplay server?

Yes, as long as you follow the FiveM terms and Rockstar's rules for servers, such as only using content you have the rights to. GamezServers is not affiliated with Rockstar Games or Cfx.re.