Network latency is the time it takes for data to travel from your device to a server and back. Understanding latency is crucial for gaming, video calls, and diagnosing network issues.
What is Latency?
Latency, often called "ping," is measured in milliseconds (ms). When you click a link, your request travels through multiple routers and servers before reaching its destination. The total round-trip time is your latency.
Latency vs Bandwidth
Bandwidth is how much data can flow (like pipe width), while latency is how fast it arrives (like water pressure). You can have high bandwidth but poor latency, which affects real-time applications.
- High bandwidth, high latency: Good for downloads, bad for gaming
- Low bandwidth, low latency: Usable for video calls with lower quality
- High bandwidth, low latency: Ideal for all applications
How to Test Latency
Using Ping
Ping sends small packets to a destination and measures the response time. Use our Ping Test tool to check latency to any server.
Using Traceroute
Traceroute shows every "hop" between you and the destination, with latency at each point. This helps identify where slowdowns occur.
What is Good Latency?
- Under 20ms: Excellent - competitive gaming
- 20-50ms: Very good - casual gaming, video calls
- 50-100ms: Acceptable - browsing, streaming
- Over 100ms: Noticeable delays in real-time applications
- Over 200ms: Significant lag, poor experience
How to Reduce Latency
- Use wired Ethernet instead of WiFi
- Close bandwidth-heavy applications
- Choose game servers closer to your location
- Upgrade to a faster internet plan
- Use a gaming router with QoS settings
- Contact your ISP about routing issues
For gaming, latency matters more than download speed. A 50 Mbps connection with 20ms ping beats a 500 Mbps connection with 100ms ping.