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How to Add Mods to Your Factorio Server
FactorioFactorioAdd Mods

How to Add Mods to Your Factorio Server

Add mods to a Factorio server

2 min read
Jul 30, 2026

Factorio has its own mod system and does not use the Steam Workshop. Mods come as .zip files from the official mod portal mods.factorio.com or from the in-game mod portal.

Download a mod

  1. Open the mod portal
    Open mods.factorio.com and search for the mod you want.

  2. Choose the matching version
    Download the .zip file that matches the game version of your server.

  3. Do not unzip the file
    The mod stays a .zip file – Factorio loads mods directly from the archive.

Upload mods to the server

  1. Stop the server
    Stop your server via the dashboard.

  2. Connect via SFTP
    Connect to your server via SFTP.

  3. Upload mods
    Upload the .zip files to the following directory. If the folder does not exist yet, create it:

    /mods/
    
  4. Start the server
    Start your server.

Enable and disable mods

Which mods are loaded is controlled by the file mods/mod-list.json. It is created automatically on the first server start once the mods folder exists. Each mod is listed there with its name and the enabled status:

{
  "mods":
  [
    {
      "name": "base",
      "enabled": true
    },
    {
      "name": "my-mod",
      "enabled": false
    }
  ]
}

Set enabled to false to disable a mod without deleting it. Restart the server after making changes.

Written byEmeraldHost Team
Last updated on Aug 29, 2026 Edit on GitHub

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