How to Change Incubation Time in ARK: Survival Evolved (and Ascended)
Egg incubation is one of ARK's most demanding mechanics — and one of the most frequently misunderstood. Whether you're running a private server, a single-player session, or trying to optimize a breeding program, knowing how incubation time actually works (and where you can change it) makes the difference between a smooth breeding operation and a graveyard of failed eggs.
What Is Egg Incubation Time in ARK?
When a fertilized egg is laid in ARK, it begins a timer before it hatches. That timer is the incubation period, and it varies significantly depending on the dinosaur species. A Rex egg, for example, has a much longer incubation window than a Raptor egg.
During incubation, the egg needs to be kept within a specific temperature range — too hot or too cold and the egg loses health rather than progressing. Getting the temperature right is a prerequisite before the timer even matters. But the length of that timer is a separate variable, and it's one you can actually control.
Where Incubation Time Is Controlled
ARK separates incubation mechanics into a few distinct settings, and it's important to understand which one does what:
EggHatchSpeedMultiplier— This is the primary setting that controls how fast eggs incubate. A value of1.0is the default (official server speed). Setting it to2.0makes eggs hatch twice as fast. Setting it to0.5makes them take twice as long.BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier— This controls how quickly a baby matures after hatching, which is a separate but related setting often adjusted alongside incubation time.MatingIntervalMultiplier— Affects the cooldown between breeding attempts, not incubation itself.
These are different levers. Changing one does not automatically change the others. 🥚
How to Change Incubation Time on a Single-Player or Private Server
Single-Player (PC via GameUserSettings.ini)
- Open ARK and go to Host/Local.
- Scroll through the sliders to find Egg Hatch Speed under the breeding section.
- Adjust the multiplier slider directly in the UI — no manual file editing required.
Alternatively, you can edit the config file directly:
- Navigate to:
ShooterGameSavedConfigWindowsNoEditor - Open
GameUserSettings.ini - Under
[ServerSettings], add or modify:EggHatchSpeedMultiplier=5.0(or whatever value suits your game)
Save the file, then launch the game. The change takes effect immediately on your next session.
Dedicated/Rented Server
Access your server's GameUserSettings.ini through your hosting panel (Nitrado, G-Portal, or direct file access via FTP).
Find or add the line under [ServerSettings]:
EggHatchSpeedMultiplier=5.0 BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier=5.0 Most server hosts also expose these as labeled fields in their web dashboards, so direct file editing isn't always necessary. After saving, restart the server for the changes to apply.
ARK: Survival Ascended (ASA)
The same INI-based system carries over into ARK: Survival Ascended. The setting names are identical. If you're on a rented ASA server, the process through your hosting panel is essentially the same as ARK: Survival Evolved.
What Multiplier Values Actually Mean
| Multiplier Value | Effect on Incubation Time |
|---|---|
| 0.5 | Eggs take 2x longer to hatch |
| 1.0 | Default official server speed |
| 2.0 | Eggs hatch 2x faster |
| 5.0 | Common single-player fast-breed setting |
| 10.0+ | Near-instant hatching (useful for testing) |
There's no hard cap enforced by the game, but extremely high values (50+) can occasionally cause timing bugs, particularly with imprinting windows in baby care.
Factors That Affect Which Value Is Right for Your Setup 🎮
Not every player benefits from the same multiplier, and a few variables shape what makes sense:
- Playstyle and available time — Casual players often crank incubation multipliers to 5–10 just to make breeding practical without sitting at a screen for hours. Hardcore or roleplay servers may keep it at or near 1.0 for realism.
- Whether imprinting matters to you — Imprinting requires interacting with a baby during its maturation window. Very high maturation multipliers can make those windows extremely short, sometimes impossible to hit. This creates tension between "fast breeding" and "max imprint" goals.
- Server population and coordination — On a populated server with multiple players running breeding programs, a shared multiplier affects everyone. What works for one tribe may frustrate another.
- Species being bred — Some creatures have naturally long incubation and maturation cycles (Gigas, Wyverns, Rock Drakes). A multiplier that feels reasonable for smaller dinos may still feel slow for these species, or conversely, too fast to manage their imprint schedules.
- Cluster or cross-server play — If you're playing on a cluster, multipliers are usually set per-server, not globally. Eggs transferred between servers with different multipliers follow the destination server's rules.
A Note on Official Servers
On official ARK servers, you cannot change these settings. The values are fixed by Wildcard/Studio Wildcard. During special in-game events, incubation and maturation multipliers are often temporarily boosted — but those changes are server-side and outside player control.
The ability to modify incubation time is exclusively a feature of single-player, unofficial, and privately hosted servers.
What the right value looks like in practice depends heavily on how much time you actually have per session, which creatures you're prioritizing, and whether perfect imprinting is part of your breeding goals — all of which vary considerably from one player to the next.