5 ways to reduce ping time during online gaming

There is nothing more frustrating than when high latency causes you to miss out on an online gaming victory. When characters start jumping around the screen and the game stops responding to your actions it can be hard not to succumb to rage. Don’t slam your keyboard just yet though, as there are a lot of things you can do to reduce your ping time. The first step is understanding what ping really is.

Ping is the measurement of latency, which is the time it takes for a message to be sent from your computer to the game server and back again. While download speed is useful for installing patches and downloading new games faster, it is not necessarily related to latency. Switching to a ‘faster’ broadband thus doesn’t necessarily improve ping time – though fibre connections will usually allow for a faster ping in addition to increases in download speed. What does improve ping time then? Find out below.

• Minimise network usage

If your ping times have deteriorated recently or go up and down, you are likely suffering from network congestion. Make sure that you are not downloading anything while playing, including updates for other games. You may also be suffering from congestion if other people in your house are downloading, streaming or gaming, so it may be worth talking to your family or housemates and try to spread out your internet usage throughout the day. If someone wants to download a large new game for example, you could ask them to leave it to download during the day rather than doing it during prime gaming time in the evening.

• Close background programs

Even if you don’t think you are downloading anything on your computer, other programs may be using the internet connection in the background without you even realising. Closing down music streaming software is a good idea, but almost any program could be checking for updates, backing up photos and data, or doing something else with the internet connection, so you will want to close down every program that you can.

• Use a wired connection

If you are connected to the internet using Wi-Fi, you should consider switching to a wired connection. Using an ethernet cable instead of wireless will cut down on a number of potential issues. Wi-Fi will always have some level of signal loss, especially if you are far away from the router or if there are other people also connected. Multiple Wi-Fi networks in the local area will also hamper Wi-Fi connectivity, which is a problem especially in flats and in university accommodation.

If you are not in the same room as the router and moving closer is not possible, you can give powerline networking a try to avoid running long ethernet cables along the floor. Powerline networking allows you to use standard wall electrical plugs as an extension of your ethernet network, though it may or may not be possible in your house or flat depending on the electrical wiring. If nothing else works, you could try a Wi-Fi extender device to place between your router and your computer or console, boosting the signal in black spots around your house.

• Use a VPN

While they are generally useful for online privacy and accessing international streaming services, VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) can also be useful for improving your gaming ping time in specific situations.

Many online games don’t allow you to choose which server you play on and instead assign you to one automatically. While you will normally be assigned the server closest to you, in some cases this may not actually be the server that will give you the lowest ping times. A VPN service lets you change your IP (Internet Protocol) address and thus appear to be in whatever location you choose, allowing you to choose to connect to another server and possible reduce your ping.

• Upgrade your router

Wi-Fi and internet technologies are always evolving, so you will want to upgrade your router every few years at the minimum to ensure you are not falling behind other gamers. If you haven’t upgraded to a new router for a while, it may be time to do so now. You should also periodically check for new firmware updates – which can generally be found in the router’s web control panel – to ensure you have the latest firmware for speed and security installed on your device.

While a high ping is frustrating, the methods listed above are likely to help reduce it for you and improve your online gaming experience. If none of the methods above work, the issue is almost certain to be either due to your ISP (Internet Service Provider) or the game server itself. If you suffer from high ping in every game you play, you should contact your ISP for next steps, whereas if you only suffer in one game then the fault is likely at the end of the game’s own servers.