Rust Force Wipe Schedule 2026: All Wipe Dates and Times

Every Rust player knows the rhythm: the first Thursday of the month, Facepunch pushes a mandatory update and every server in the world wipes its map. This is the force wipe. Knowing exactly when it happens lets you plan your farming, raiding and base building around it. Below is the complete force wipe calendar for 2026 with all dates, times and what actually gets reset.

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All 2026 force wipe dates

Force wipe always falls on the first Thursday of each month at 19:00 London time. That is 20:00 in the Netherlands, Germany and the rest of central Europe. In UTC it is 18:00 while the UK is on summer time (until 25 October 2026) and 19:00 after that. The Facepunch wiki gives this time as the default of the in-game wipe timer, which is set to match force wipes.

The next force wipe is 5 November 2026.

What gets wiped during a force wipe

A force wipe is always a map wipe. The following resets:

• The entire map: terrain, monuments and procedural generation start over
• All buildings and deployables
• All player inventories, hotbars and belt items
• Stashes, sleeping bags and respawn points on the map
• Tool cupboard authorisations
• Team data on some servers

Map wipe vs blueprint wipe

A map wipe (which every force wipe includes) removes everything physical from the world. Blueprints are separate. Learned blueprints survive a normal force wipe and carry over to the new map.

A blueprint wipe resets all learned recipes. Facepunch forces a BP wipe a few times per year, usually when a major content update changes the tech tree or progression. These are announced separately. Individual server owners can also wipe blueprints on their own schedule.

In 2026, Facepunch has forced blueprint wipes in January (alongside the new year update) and June. Whether more follow depends on the size of upcoming content patches.

What time exactly?

Rust's wipe timer counts down to 19:00 London time (20:00 in central Europe), the default the Facepunch wiki gives for force wipes. Your own server only wipes once it runs the new version. The process works like this:

1. Facepunch pushes the Rust server update to Steam.
2. Game servers detect the update and shut down (or admins trigger the shutdown manually).
3. The server downloads the new version via SteamCMD.
4. Because the save format changes, the old map cannot load. The server starts fresh.
5. Players update their game client and reconnect.

The whole process takes 5 to 15 minutes per server, depending on download speed and map size.

How to prepare for force wipe

As a player, there is not much you can do except spend your resources before the wipe hits. A few tips:

• Use your best gear on wipe day eve. It disappears tomorrow anyway.
• Raid if you have boom left. Nothing carries over.
• Download the client update in advance by keeping Steam auto-update on.
• Have your preferred server favourited so you can reconnect quickly.

Setting up automatic wipes on your own server

If you run your own Rust server, you can automate the wipe process so you do not have to be online at 20:00 on a Thursday.

Using a cron job (Linux)

Create a script that stops the server, deletes the save files and restarts:

#!/bin/bash
# rust-wipe.sh
RUST_DIR="/home/rust/server/rust"

# Stop the server gracefully
rcon -a 127.0.0.1:28016 -p "yourpassword" "server.save"
rcon -a 127.0.0.1:28016 -p "yourpassword" "quit"
sleep 10

# Remove map files (keep .db for blueprints)
rm -f "$RUST_DIR"/*.sav
rm -f "$RUST_DIR"/*.sav.*
rm -f "$RUST_DIR"/*.map

# Update the server
steamcmd +login anonymous +app_update 258550 validate +quit

# Start the server
cd /home/rust && ./start.sh

Schedule it with cron for the first Thursday of each month. Cron starts a job when either the day of the month or the day of the week matches, so 0 19 1-7 * 4 would run on each of the first seven days and on every Thursday. Let cron start on days 1 to 7 and add a test so the wipe only runs on a Thursday:

# First Thursday of the month at 20:30 (server clock on central European time), after the release
30 20 1-7 * * [ "$(date +\%u)" -eq 4 ] && /home/rust/rust-wipe.sh

On a HostValues Rust server

In the game panel you plan restarts, console commands and backups under Schedules; there is no automatic wipe task. The wipe itself takes a few steps: stop the server, then delete the .map and .sav files (and for a BP wipe the player.blueprints database) in the file manager or over SFTP, or enter a new World Seed under Startup for a fresh map. The server downloads Rust updates every time it starts, so after the monthly release a restart is enough to get the new version.

Blueprint wipe automation

To include a blueprint wipe, also delete the player.blueprints.*.db files in your wipe script. Only do this when you intentionally want to reset progression.

Frequently asked questions

Can I skip a force wipe?

No. The force wipe is tied to the monthly update. The old save format is incompatible with the new server version. Your server will not start on the new version with an old save.

Do all servers wipe at the same time?

They all wipe on the same day. The exact minute depends on when each server admin updates. Official Facepunch servers update first. Community servers follow within minutes to hours.

When is the next force wipe?

The next force wipe is Thursday 5 November 2026 at 19:00 London time: 20:00 in central Europe and 19:00 UTC, because the UK is back on winter time by then.

Do I lose my blueprints?

Not during a regular force wipe. Blueprints only reset during an announced blueprint wipe or if the server owner wipes them separately.

Want to run your own Rust server? See our plans on Rust hosting. For a deeper look at wipe types and strategies, read our Rust wipe schedule guide.