Latency and Ping! How These Techy Terms Affect Your Gaming Experience

If you’ve ever lost a video game or missed a critical shot because of lag, you have already experienced firsthand the importance of latency and ping in gaming. These techy terms might sound complicated, but they are actually pretty easy for both beginner and veteran gamers to understand if you take the time to read up on them. Let’s go over the definitions of latency and ping, as well as how these factors affect your gaming experience.

What does ping mean, and how does it differ from latency?

Ping is the signal that is sent across your network to other computers and then back. In the context of gaming, ping refers to the time it takes to send that signal between one player and other players who are playing the game. Latency is not the same thing as ping, though the two terms are often confused with one another. ‘Latency’ defines the measurement of the whole signal, while ping refers to the signal itself.

How is ping measured?

Ping is measured in milliseconds (ms). The lower your ping, the faster your connection. For example, a ping of 25 ms is actually significantly better than a ping of 200 ms.

How important is ping in online gaming?

Ping is important in online multiplayer gaming, especially if you engage in competitive gameplay. Low ping is important in action games and other games involving fine movements or could put another player at an advantage if they spot you before you spot them.

If you are a streamer on Twitch, YouTube, or other platforms, it is even more important to ensure that you have a low ping in order to prevent lag on your stream.

What is a good ping rate for gaming?

As you now know, having a low ping rate is important in gaming. The lower your ping, the better, especially if you are playing games that take up a lot of bandwidth or usually stream while you are gaming.

For most online games, a ping rate of under about 100 ms will be acceptable for consistently smooth gameplay. Any ping over 150 will likely cause issues with your gameplay, including lag or visual glitches. Streamers hosting resource-intense games should have ping as low as 20 ms.

Use this chart as a rule of thumb to determine how good your ping is:

Ping ranges by genre of game

Some games are more intensive than others, meaning that they use up more network resources and thus need a lower ping to be played smoothly. Online games, esports games, and those games in which timing is important, require a lower ping.

How to test my ping?

If you are using a Windows 10 PC, you can check your ping directly from your search bar. To do so, just follow these simple steps.

What should I do when my ping is spiking? How do I fix high ping?

If your ping is suddenly spiking while you’re playing games, there are various factors that could contribute to the issue. Thankfully, most of these problems are relatively easy to resolve with some basic changes to your setup and troubleshooting.

You have a limited amount of bandwidth, so having other programs open on your computer while gaming can contribute to high ping. Be sure to close out any other programs you have open, and only keep those open that you are actively using. Even background processes might raise your ping, so open your computer’s Task Manager and ensure that none of them are running while you play games or stream.

Just as opening other programs will raise your ping and increase your bandwidth usage, connecting to the internet on other devices uses up resources, too. If you’re streaming on your PC or laptop, be sure to disconnect from the internet on your phone or Smart TV for the lowest possible ping. It’s also a good idea to ensure that no one else in the house is engaging in high-intensity activity while you are also gaming or streaming since this is sure to slow you down. Even someone opening a browser while connected to the same wifi as you could slow down your internet.

Your distance from your router is an important indicator of ping. For lower ping, move closer to your router. To test this concept, try connecting to the internet on a device in the same room as your router. Then, move the device to another room, or connect to another device in another room without moving the router. You will likely find that your ping is significantly lower and that your internet speed is much faster when you are in the same room as your router.

Which Circle Life plan is the best for gaming?

When choosing a data plan and network, it is important to choose one with good speeds if you are a passionate gamer. All of our plans offer super-fast speeds so you can connect to your favourite mobile games and never miss a beat, whether you’re playing an intense first-person action game or a casual puzzle game. We use the Optus' 4G Plus network, which can expect speeds up to 100Mbps, although real-world results may vary.