In Assetto Corsa Competizione you can play online in three ways: on the official public servers, on the competition servers (long races that require good ratings) and on private servers. On PC, a private server is set up with the free «Assetto Corsa Competizione Dedicated Server» tool on Steam, which uses UDP port 9231 and TCP port 9232 by default, or you can rent one from a provider. On PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, private lobbies are free and created from within the game. If you’re looking for organized races, the best-known option on PC is Low Fuel Motorsport (LFM), a free community platform.
How ACC online works
ACC doesn’t let you jump into any race from day one. It uses a rating system that measures how you drive, and those ratings open or close access to servers. The key points:
- Track medals (Track Competence): you earn up to three medals per track by stringing together clean laps (one, two and four in a row). Many servers require a minimum number of medals at the race track.
- Safety Rating (SA): measures whether you race cleanly around other cars. It goes up when you drive without incidents alongside rivals and down when you cause contact. It’s the most common server requirement.
- Racecraft (RC): measures how you hold your own in races against drivers of a similar level. Beating higher-rated drivers raises it more.
- Other ratings: Consistency, Car Control, Pace (pace in special events) and Competition (results on the competition servers). Together they make up your license.
To get started, do clean solo laps at the tracks where you want to race, with a stable setup (we explain how in ACC setups). That way you earn medals and unlock the other ratings before jumping into public sessions.
Public, competition and private servers
| Type | What it is | Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Public (Public Multiplayer) | Short, quick races. You get a server list and join whenever you want. | Few. The better your Safety Rating, the more slots are available to you. |
| Competition (Competition Servers) | Weekends with practice, qualifying and a race of around an hour, with a formation lap and harsher penalties. | Track medals and a high Safety Rating. They award the Competition rating. |
| Private | Password-protected server for leagues, friends or events. The organizer chooses the track, sessions, weather, assists and rules. | Whatever the organizer sets (password, medals, SA, RC). |
The exact thresholds for the official servers are set by Kunos and have changed with updates, so check what each server requires in the list.
How to host an Assetto Corsa Competizione server on PC
The dedicated server is free for anyone who owns the game on Steam. It only runs on Windows: on Linux you need Wine. The basic steps are:
- In Steam, open your Library, show Tools and install Assetto Corsa Competizione Dedicated Server.
- Go to
Steam\steamapps\common\Assetto Corsa Competizione Dedicated Server\server\. That’s whereaccServer.exeand thecfgfolder with the configuration are. - Edit the JSON files in
cfg(explained in the table below). - Open the two ports from
configuration.jsonon your router and firewall: by default, UDP 9231 and TCP 9232. - Run
accServer.exe. If you left lobby registration enabled, the server will show up in the in-game list.
| File | What it’s for |
|---|---|
configuration.json |
Network: udpPort and tcpPort ports, maximum number of connections (maxConnections), registration in the public list (registerToLobby) and LAN discovery. |
settings.json |
Server name, passwords (player, admin and spectator), car class (GT3, GT4, GT2, GTC, TCX or free), medal, Safety Rating and Racecraft requirements, and number of slots. |
event.json |
Track, sessions (practice, qualifying and race) with their duration and time of day, temperature, clouds, rain and weather randomness. |
eventRules.json |
Race rules: pit window, refueling, tire changes and stints. |
assistRules.json |
Allowed assists, such as the racing line or stability control. |
entrylist.json |
Optional: fixed list of drivers, race numbers and reserved slots. |
Three details cause almost all the problems:
- File encoding. ACC reads the JSON files in UTF-16 LE. If you save them in UTF-8, the server may silently ignore your changes and recreate the default configuration. Use an editor that lets you choose the encoding.
- Public or private. A server without a password works as a public one: it has a maximum of 30 cars and doesn’t apply the rules from
eventRules.json. For leagues, set a password. - Sessions. The weekend in
event.jsonneeds at least one session that isn’t a race, or the server won’t start.
If you don’t want to leave your PC on or open ports, you can rent an ACC server from a game hosting company. It’s paid, and the configuration is the same.
LFM and other community leagues
Low Fuel Motorsport (LFM) is an independent, free platform that runs daily ranked races in ACC on PC, and in other sims too. It’s not run by Kunos. Here’s how it works:
- You sign up on its website with your Steam account and, to race, you pass an in-game license test (several consecutive valid laps at a good pace).
- You register for a race on the website and join the server it points you to from the ACC server list.
- It has its own Safety Rating and an Elo, like in chess, that groups you with drivers of your level. You start as Rookie and move up licenses by racing clean.
- Results are saved to your profile automatically.
There are also lots of leagues on Discord, in Spanish and English, that run their own private servers with a calendar and rulebook. Before signing up, read the rules and check which DLC you need for the season’s cars and tracks.
Multiplayer on console: what’s different
- Free private lobbies. On PS5 and Xbox Series X|S you create a private lobby from the game, without paying for a server, for up to 30 players.
- Crossplay between consoles. Since December 2023, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S share public sessions, competition servers and private leagues. PC isn’t included.
- Subscription. You need PS Plus or Game Pass Essential (or higher).
- PS4 and Xbox One have their own online, separate from the new generation and with smaller grids.
- No LFM. Console leagues are mostly organized through Discord, using private lobbies.
If you’re torn between console and PC, check the differences in Assetto Corsa Competizione on PS5, PS4 and Xbox. And if you want to play the original Assetto Corsa online, that works differently: see Assetto Corsa servers.
Frequently asked questions
Does it cost money to host an ACC server?
The Steam tool is free if you own the game, but you have to leave a PC running and open ports. Renting one from a provider costs money. On console, private lobbies are free.
What ports does the Assetto Corsa Competizione server use?
By default, UDP 9231 and TCP 9232. You can change them in configuration.json, but you have to open whichever ones you set on your router.
Why doesn’t my server show up in the list?
The most common reasons are that the ports aren’t open on the router or firewall, that registerToLobby is disabled, or that you saved the JSON files in UTF-8 instead of UTF-16 LE.
How do I raise my Safety Rating quickly?
Race cleanly around other cars, with no contact or off-tracks. Solo laps earn medals and consistency, but SA mainly goes up in races.
Does LFM work on PS5 or Xbox?
No. LFM works with the PC version of ACC. On console you have the official servers, private lobbies and leagues organized through Discord.