Project Zomboid co-op: how to play with friends

Project Zomboid co-op supports user-created servers and local split-screen according to the developer. For online friends, first match the exact version and intended mods, then use the game’s Host or Join flow for that session.

Start a small online group

1. Agree which branch and exact build everyone will use. Stable 42.21 is this guide’s baseline.
2. Decide whether the first session is unmodded and write down any required mods if it is not.
3. The current multiplayer guide describes Host on the main menu for a friends’ session, followed by Escape → Invite Friends once it is running.
4. Alternatively, use Join for an existing server and read its settings and wipe information before investing in a character.
5. Confirm the group can connect and identify the world settings before beginning a long trip.

Single source for the detailed current Host/invitation menu path: the current multiplayer article. The developer confirms server and split-screen support; Hizzle has not conducted a live connection or controller test.

Agree on the world, not just the difficulty name

Ask about PvP, loot rules, sleep, respawn and whether time runs while nobody is online. A building that a solo player expects to own is not automatically a protected multiplayer safehouse. Claiming and permissions depend on server options.

Keep the group’s roles practical: one person checks the approach while another works on a car or searches a room. Do not assume that the inventory or a settings menu pauses the whole server.

Separate reports from promises

Stable 42.21 includes split-screen fixes for shared book status, fishing behavior and a crash involving both characters in a moving vehicle. Those published fixes do not prove every local co-op interaction is now flawless.

UNSURE: every router, authentication failure, hosting capacity and modded session. This draft does not ask beginners to expose ports or paste third-party fixes before a simple matching-version session has been attempted.

Related: Project Zomboid beginner guide: Build 42, Project Zomboid best beginner build (42.21), Project Zomboid achievements: Steam status, Project Zomboid patch notes: 42.21 vs 42.22, Project Zomboid how to climb ladders, Project Zomboid platforms and current release.