Skip to content
RemoteAccessApp
Get Pro

Guide

How to check your ping and network latency

To check your ping, open Command Prompt (or Terminal on a Mac or Linux) and type ping followed by a site's name or an IP address. Each reply shows a time in milliseconds: that's your latency to that place. The summary at the end gives the average and how many replies were lost.

Below: how to run and read a ping test, how to find where the delay is with tracert, what counts as a good ping, and a latency test you can run in your browser.

Download freeCreate a free account
  • Ping, jitter and packet loss
  • tracert and pathping
  • What a good ping is

Updated · Commands for Windows, Mac and Linux

Ping, jitter, packet loss and bandwidth

What ping test results mean
TermWhat it means
Ping (latency)How long a small message takes to get there and back, in milliseconds (ms). Lower is better.
JitterHow much the ping changes from one message to the next. Steady is better than low but jumpy.
Packet lossThe share of messages that never come back. Anything above 0% shows up as stutters and freezes.
BandwidthHow much data per second the connection carries (Mbps). A different thing from ping.

How to run a ping test

  1. Step 1: Open a command line

    On Windows, click Start, type cmd and press Enter. On a Mac or Linux, open Terminal.

  2. Step 2: Ping your router first

    Replace the address with your router's (the Default Gateway in ipconfig):

    ping 192.168.1.1

    This measures only your own network, from your computer to the router.

  3. Step 3: Ping a server on the internet

    ping -n 20 example.com     # Windows: 20 replies
ping -c 20 example.com     # Mac and Linux

    Use the name of a site or server you actually use. Windows stops after 4 replies unless you add -n; Mac and Linux keep going until you press Ctrl+C unless you add -c.

  4. Step 4: Read the summary

    Look at Average (on Mac and Linux, the middle of min/avg/max) for latency, the gap between minimum and maximum for jitter, and Lost or packet loss for lost replies.

No replies at all?

Many servers and PCs are set not to answer ping, so "Request timed out" doesn't always mean they're offline. Try another address before drawing conclusions.

Find where the delay is: tracert and pathping

tracert (Windows) and traceroute (Mac and Linux) list every router between you and the destination, with the time to each one:

tracert example.com
traceroute example.com

Time that jumps at one hop and stays high for every hop after it shows where the delay is added. A single slow hop followed by normal times usually isn't a problem: some routers are just slow to answer these tests. On Windows, pathping runs for a few minutes and then shows the packet loss at each hop:

pathping example.com

What is a good ping?

  • Your own network (ping to the router): a few milliseconds on a cable, often a bit more and less steady on Wi-Fi.
  • Remote desktop: as a rough guide, under 80 ms feels instant, and from about 200 ms you notice the pointer trailing behind your mouse.
  • Fast online games: people generally aim for under about 50 ms.
  • Packet loss: 0% is what you want; any steady loss is worth looking into.

Ping depends on distance as well as on your connection: a server on another continent always takes longer to answer than one nearby.

Test latency in your browser

Our remote desktop latency and speed test measures latency, jitter and download speed from your browser to RemoteAccessApp, with no command line. Run it on the device you connect from and, if you can, on the PC you connect to.

During a RemoteAccessApp session, press Ctrl+Alt+Shift+I in the RemoteAccessApp app to see the live delay, frame rate and speed. For PCs in your account, the relay location setting shows the ping to each relay. If a session feels slow, remote desktop lag has the checklist, and remote desktop latency explained covers the ideas behind it.

Questions, answered

Related