If when playing on the PC the commands respond slowly and with a delay, you need to lower the ping of the internet connection
Ping is one of the characteristics of the Internet connection most underestimated by users, given that it does not affect the connection that much when we view web pages, e-mail or websites.
The music changes totally if Let’s play online multiplayer: in this case get very low ping (less than 50 ms) it can make the difference between a capable player and a poor player, considering our starting skills.
In the following guide we will show you what to do to lower ping from the PC, using the tricks that professionals use to always play with the lowest ping whatever the Internet connection in use.
NOTE: To check the Ping on a PC or smartphone, as well as within a game if the option is present, you can do the network speed test or Speed Test
1) Use direct Ethernet cable
The first trick is also the simplest to apply: instead of using the Wi-Fi connection we connect the gaming PC directly to the modem using an Ethernet network cableso as to avoid any type of interference with nearby wireless networks.
The gaming computer should be positioned as close as possible to the modem (in the same room) or be easily reachable even with a very long Ethernet cable; alternatively we can pass the Ethernet cable through the electrical conduits, but the intervention of a qualified electrician is almost always required.
For maximum connection speed we recommend reading our guides on How long can an Ethernet cable be and how to stretch it and on differences between Ethernet, CAT5, CAT6, CAT7, CAT8 cables and which ones to use.
2) Avoid cascades of Wi-Fi routers or range extenders
If we have a very large house and want to play, it is better to move the gaming PC directly, thus avoiding playing in rooms where the use of a Wi-Fi range extender or a router cascade to be able to connect to the Internet.
The priority is to always use the direct Ethernet network cable, also avoiding the use of Powerline; the only technology we can prove to do so is Mesh Wi-Fi with Ethernet sockets on each satellite, although we will still get a small deterioration in ping.
We invite you to read the article on this topic Powerline vs Wi-Fi Mesh: which is more effective for expanding your network.
3) Use a gaming router
Using a Professional router can bring immense advantages in gamingas these devices often include optimization modes, priority for gaming PCs, and speed tricks to compensate for cascading with a modem.
The best gaming routers we can try are theASUS TUF-AX3000 V2l’MSI RadiX AXE6600il TP-Link Archer AX11000 el’ASUS ROG Rapture GT-AX11000 Pro.
Other valid gaming routers can be viewed in the ai articles best routers with maximum Wi-Fi coverage come on how to use the FRITZ!Box modem on an FTTH fiber optic network.
4) Close apps on auto startup
An always effective trick to lower the ping while playing involves closing all the programs and apps currently running on the PC at that precise moment.
To proceed we press CTRL+MAIUSC+ESClet’s get into the menu Startup apps and we deactivate as many apps as possible, relieving the system; after deactivating everything we restart the PC before starting to play.
On this topic we can read the guide above how to control whether programs start when you turn on your PC.
5) Use Windows Game Mode connection
Windows 11 and Windows 10 have a dedicated gaming mode that can lower ping, as well as optimize other Windows parameters dedicated to gaming.
To activate it, press WIN+I on the keyboard, let’s go to the menu Gamesclick on Game Mode and activate the switch present every time we have to play on the PC.
On the performance of the game we can read the guides on how to use Game Mode to increase the performance of programs and games come on How to allocate more memory for a PC game.
6) Run the game at minimum resolution
Another trick widely used by gaming professionals involves setting the multiplayer game graphics to minimum, also leaving the graphic details to a minimum. This will reduce the load of the game on our PC and, under certain conditions, also speed up the connection ping.
On video parameters we can read our articles on optimal configurations for NVIDIA and AMD graphics cards come on how to change CPU, Graphics Card and RAM speed.
7) Temporarily disable Windows updates
When we play online there is nothing worse than seeing Windows updates start while we play! Fortunately are Windows 11 and on Windows 10 we can postpone updates for a few weeksset activity times (in this case during gaming hours) and block updates completely (although we recommend doing this only during the gaming session) using a program like Windows Update Blocker.
To learn more we can read our guide on How to block Windows Update automatic updates.
Conclusions
Using these simple tricks we can actually lower Windows ping while playing gamesalways obtaining a value lower than 50ms even when the Internet line is not very fast (you don’t need to have FTTH to play).
It is therefore possible, as also explained in another guide, reduce ping to play online without delays and lag.
If we want to optimize our entire Internet connection we can read our guides on how to improve internet speed in windows 11 and 10 come on how to use TCP Optimizer to optimize your internet connection.