To make a Fortnite Creative island private, enter it in Create mode, open the Creative menu, choose Island Settings, and set Mode → Matchmaking Settings → Island Matchmaking Privacy to Private. Private games are limited to players in the same party. Then configure the player, team, round, and join settings for your group, publish the island if people will enter with an island code, and have everyone use the same matchmaking region (or Auto).
This workflow is different from an Epic Battle Royale custom-key match. A Creative island uses an island code and its privacy setting; a Battle Royale custom match uses a case-sensitive 4–16-character key, requires an eligible creator-program host, and must be joined before the match starts. The instructions below keep those two systems separate so you can choose the one that fits your event.
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Choose the right private-match method
Fortnite has two code-based ways to restrict access, and they are not interchangeable.
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| Option | Game type | What players enter | Who can host | How access is restricted | Timing requirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Published Creative island | Your Creative island | An island code, normally reached through Discover or a Matchmaking Portal | Any player who can create and publish the island through the normal Creative workflow | Island Matchmaking Privacy set to Private, or a portal configured for Private Only | Players follow the island-code workflow; the island’s start and late-join settings control when they can enter |
| Epic custom-key match | Battle Royale | A case-sensitive custom matchmaking key containing 4–16 characters | The host must be active in an eligible Epic creator program | Only players who know the key and select the matching mode can attempt to join | Everyone must submit the key before the match begins |
If you are building or playing a user-created island, use the first option. If you are organizing a Battle Royale lobby through Epic’s custom-match system, use the second.
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Understand Island Settings versus Game Settings
In Create mode, Island Settings are the shared rules for the island. They determine privacy, capacity, teams, rounds, game start behavior, and how players join an active game. Game Settings in the Creative menu’s Settings tab are personal preferences for the individual player, such as the matchmaking region selection. Changing your personal Game Settings does not replace the island’s privacy configuration.
Prepare the island before inviting anyone
- Decide whether the session is a Creative island match or a Battle Royale custom-key match.
- Know the intended number of players, team arrangement, number of rounds, and whether late arrivals should spawn, spectate, or wait.
- Choose a server region with the group. Auto is available, but a nearby region generally gives better response time.
- If a portal will launch the island, have the destination island code ready and decide whether players may override it.
- If players will use an island code, publish the island first; unpublished islands cannot provide the normal public code-entry workflow.
Set up a private Creative island step by step
- Enter the island in Create mode. Privacy and rule changes are made while editing the island, not from a player’s ordinary in-match preferences.
- Open the Creative menu and select Island Settings. Epic documents the Island Settings tab as the place for the island’s shared rules when you are in Create mode.
- Open Mode → Matchmaking Settings. Locate Island Matchmaking Privacy.
- Set Island Matchmaking Privacy to Private. This restricts the game to players in the same party. Public allows anyone to join, while Party Choice leaves the public-versus-private choice to the player when launching the game.
- Configure the Structure section. Set Max Players, Teams, Team Size, and Total Rounds for the group. The documentation lists 32 as the maximum-player value for a matchmaking session in its documented default/value; your island’s available limit and mode can still determine what you can select.
- Make team settings compatible. If Teams is Custom, choose a fixed Team Size. Do not leave Team Size at Dynamic: Epic documents that the Custom-plus-Dynamic combination prevents matchmaking from working.
- Review Game Start Settings. Decide whether the game starts manually and what happens to players who arrive after it has started. Auto Start settings other than Off work only on published islands. For a private game with Auto Start Off, the host starts the match manually.
- Publish when a code is needed. After publication, share the island code with the party. Keep the code exact; a single incorrect character sends a player to a different destination or produces a join failure.
- Align the matchmaking region. Open the Creative Game Menu’s Settings tab and select the same region for the host and participants, or have everyone use Auto. A closer server region generally improves response time.
Configure the settings that control the session
Island Matchmaking Privacy
Private is the direct setting for a party-only island. It is an island rule, so every launch of that island uses the restriction until you change it. Public permits players outside your party to join. Party Choice is useful when the same island sometimes needs public sessions and sometimes needs party-only sessions, but it gives the launcher’s choice priority rather than enforcing privacy every time.
Max Players, teams, and team size
Set Max Players high enough for the intended group but no higher than the experience can support. Select the team arrangement before inviting players. Fixed team sizes make custom-team matchmaking predictable; Dynamic is appropriate only when Teams is not Custom. If your island uses multiple rounds, set Total Rounds before the first launch so the lobby and scoring rules agree with the format.
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Game start and late joining
Under Game Start Settings, Join in Progress determines what happens when someone arrives after the game is underway. Available choices include Spawn, Spectate, Spawn on Next Round, or spawning on a selected team number. A setting that sounds like a failed invite may actually be a deliberate late-join rule: the player can connect but is held as a spectator or delayed until the next round.
Auto Start has an important publication limitation. Auto Start values other than Off operate only on published islands. If the island is private and Auto Start is Off, the host must start the game manually after the party is ready.
Use a Matchmaking Portal for a controlled launch
A Matchmaking Portal is useful when players should enter a destination island from a hub or when you want the portal itself to enforce an access rule.
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- Place or select the Matchmaking Portal in the island.
- Enter the destination island code in the portal’s code field.
- Set Join Option to Private Only when the portal should reject public joins where that option is available.
- Review Code Override Allowed. Disable overriding when the portal must always send players to the configured island; restrict or allow it only when your hub design requires an alternate destination.
- Choose the portal’s cooldown and reset behavior. A cooldown can prevent repeated launches or give the destination session time to close before another attempt.
- Test the portal with the host and a party member before announcing the session. Check both the destination code and the access behavior, not just whether the portal activates.
If players reach an unexpected island, the likely causes are a wrong destination code, an enabled code override, or a cooldown/reset state left over from an earlier launch. Correct those portal fields before changing the island’s privacy setting.
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For a published island, provide the exact code and tell players which island or portal to use. Everyone should first join the host’s party if the island is private. The host then launches the island with Island Matchmaking Privacy set to Private, while each participant confirms the same matchmaking region or leaves the region on Auto.
Ask participants to verify the code character by character rather than copying a shortened label or a display name. An island code identifies the destination; it does not by itself force a private session. Privacy comes from the island’s Matchmaking Privacy setting or the portal’s Private Only option.
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Run an Epic Battle Royale custom-key match
Use this separate workflow when the goal is a private Battle Royale lobby rather than a Creative island session.
Host requirements and setup
- The host must be active in an eligible Epic creator program.
- Select Battle Royale as the game mode.
- Choose a server region and tell every participant to use that same region.
- Create a custom matchmaking key containing 4–16 characters. Do not use special characters.
- Distribute the key privately to the intended players and start the lobby process.
Participant steps
- Select the same Battle Royale game mode as the host.
- Choose Custom Matchmaking Key.
- Enter the key exactly as provided. Match keys are case sensitive, so uppercase and lowercase letters must match.
- Join before the host starts the match. A key cannot be entered after the match has started.
- Confirm that the selected server region matches the host’s region.
Epic states that no more than 100 players can join a custom-key match. If more than 100 people enter, 100 are selected randomly. That limit applies to the Battle Royale custom-key workflow, not as a promise that every Creative island supports 100 players.
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Creative island code versus Battle Royale custom key
| Decision point | Published Creative island | Battle Royale custom key |
|---|---|---|
| Eligibility | Uses the normal Creative island workflow; publish the island when a code-based entry is needed | Host must be in an eligible Epic creator program |
| Mode | Creative island | Battle Royale |
| Credential | Island code | Case-sensitive key, 4–16 characters, with no special characters |
| Privacy control | Island Matchmaking Privacy, party membership, and optional portal Private Only setting | Possession of the key plus selection of the matching mode |
| Region rule | Have the party use one region or Auto | Host and all participants must use the host’s server region |
| When access is decided | According to the island’s launch, start, and Join in Progress settings | Before the match begins; late key entry is not allowed |
Choose and verify the matchmaking region
Open the Creative Game Menu and select the Settings tab to find Matchmaking Region. Auto is a valid choice when the group does not need to force a specific server. If you select a region manually, have the host and all participants select the same one. A geographically closer region generally reduces response time, but physical distance alone does not guarantee that every player’s connection will behave identically.
For custom-key Battle Royale matches, region agreement is mandatory: participants must use the host’s server region. For Creative island sessions, matching the region is a practical way to avoid players being placed into different matchmaking conditions and makes troubleshooting simpler.
Troubleshoot a private match that will not work
“Matchmaking will not start”
- Open Island Settings and check whether Teams is Custom while Team Size is Dynamic. Change Team Size to a fixed value.
- Confirm that Max Players, team count, and team size can accommodate the current party.
- Check whether Auto Start is being used on an unpublished island. Auto Start values other than Off require publication.
- If Auto Start is Off, have the host start the private game manually after everyone is ready.
“A player cannot join the island”
- Confirm the island’s Island Matchmaking Privacy value. Private requires the player to be in the same party.
- Recheck the complete island code, including every letter and number.
- Confirm the player is using the intended portal and that Join Option is not blocking the desired access path.
- Have the player use the same matchmaking region as the host or select Auto.
- For a custom-key match, verify every character’s case, the 4–16-character length, absence of special characters, and entry before the match starts.
“The portal opens the wrong island”
- Inspect the portal’s destination island code.
- Check whether Code Override Allowed is enabled and being used unintentionally.
- Review the cooldown and reset policy; an old session can make a new launch appear to go somewhere unexpected.
- Set Join Option to Private Only when public joins should be blocked.
“A late joiner is stuck or cannot play”
Open Island Settings → Game Start Settings and review Join in Progress. Spawn permits an immediate entry, Spectate keeps the player observing, Spawn on Next Round delays entry, and a selected team number assigns the player to that team. The observed behavior follows this setting even when the island code and privacy mode are correct.
“The custom key is rejected”
- Make sure the host is using Battle Royale, not a Creative island code.
- Confirm that the host qualifies for the required creator program.
- Use a key between 4 and 16 characters with no special characters.
- Match uppercase and lowercase letters exactly.
- Enter the key before the match begins and select the same server region as the host.
Pre-launch checklist
- Mode: Create mode for an island, or Battle Royale for an Epic custom-key match.
- Privacy: Island Matchmaking Privacy is Private, or the portal uses Private Only.
- Teams: Custom teams have a fixed Team Size, never Dynamic.
- Capacity: Max Players and Total Rounds match the event plan.
- Start: Auto Start is compatible with publication status, and the host knows whether a manual start is required.
- Late joining: Join in Progress is set to Spawn, Spectate, Spawn on Next Round, or the intended team assignment.
- Code: The island code or custom key has been copied exactly.
- Region: Everyone uses the same selected region or Auto; custom-key participants use the host’s region.
- Portal: Destination code, Join Option, Code Override Allowed, and cooldown/reset behavior have been tested.
What each code can—and cannot—do
An island code identifies a published Creative destination; it does not automatically make that destination private. The island’s privacy setting, party relationship, and any portal restrictions decide who can enter. A custom matchmaking key is an access credential for an Epic Battle Royale custom match, not a substitute for a Creative island code. Keeping those credentials and workflows separate prevents the most common setup errors: entering a key in an island-code field, expecting a code to override a public privacy setting, or trying to use Creative team rules in a Battle Royale custom lobby.
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