What Is a Decent Internet Speed for Gaming?

What is a good internet speed for gaming?

As a certified Duelist in Valorant, it grinds my gears when I have to switch to a Sentinel character just because I have a crappy internet connection. Not just that, when my girlfriend starts to stream her favorite show on Netflix, my internet connection slows down to a crawl.

This means that I end up being screamed at by my teammates for not doing well, which usually results in a loss. Tired of all these shenanigans, I embarked on an epic journey to find out about the best internet speeds for gaming.

This led me down a rabbit hole where I learned about types of internet connections, how I can get the best out of my internet, and finally the best internet for gaming.

To save you from the same torture I endured, here is a guide to help you find the best internet for gaming. Let’s dive right in.

Finding the Right Speed for Online Gaming

While faster is always better, you don’t need NASA-type internet to play games smoothly. You can have a great gaming experience, even on a 5 Mbps connection.

However, some games need higher bandwidth. Games like Destiny 2, Counter-Strike 2, and Halo: Infinite can use around 1,000Mb per hour.

If you’re a competitive gamer and have a lot of devices in your home, I recommend getting an internet connection of at least 100Mbps. While this speed should be more than enough for multiplayer gaming, it might not be great if you frequently download a lot of games.

One more thing to keep in mind is data caps, which can limit your data usage per month. Try getting an internet plan with no data caps, since it ensures that you can download as much content as you want, without any additional cost.

Factors Influencing Your Gaming Experience Online

There are a lot of factors you need to keep in mind when choosing an internet connection. While most of these factors won’t matter much if you’re streaming movies and shows, they make a lot of difference when playing online multiplayer video games.

Some of these factors are:

i). Ping and Latency

These can be the biggest enemies of a smooth gameplay experience. These are essentially two different words for the same thing: the response delay you experience during gaming.

A high ping rate means that your actions are delayed which can make your gaming experience less enjoyable. You should aim to get the least amount of ping possible.

ii). Jitter

This is the difference between the changes in your ping every second.

Let’s say that you’re getting 10ms ping one second and suddenly it shoots up to 150ms. This means that you’re going to experience inconsistent gameplay, where some of your shots hit, and some miss entirely.

iii). Bandwidth Usage

Every time you play an online game, your preferred gaming machine is going to send out and receive packets of data to and from the game servers. These use up your bandwidth.

While games don’t use a lot of bandwidth, if the bandwidth available is lower than the game’s requirement, you’re going to experience lag. We recommend getting higher-speed internet if you have a lot of devices in your home.

Choosing the Best Internet Connection Type for Gamers

Depending on your location, there are only a handful of internet providers to choose from. A lot of these are going to be using different infrastructures which can be a factor for your gaming needs.

Here are some of the popular connection types and which ones you should go for:

Fiber Optic

This is currently the best type of internet you can get as a gamer. While it is a little more expensive than the usual internet types, it’s worth getting if you play competitive multiplayer like Call of Duty or Valorant.

You can get high speeds that are up to a Gigabit per second or more, which is great for downloading. It’s also more energy efficient and sustainable as well as more reliable. 

Most internet providers offer a higher download speed than upload speeds. However, this means that data packets are sent out slower than they are received. Using fiber internet eliminates this problem since you get equal upload and download speeds.

Some of the best providers you can go for include Google Fiber, Verizon, and AT&T.

Cable Internet

One drawback of fiber internet is that it’s not available everywhere. If you can’t get fiber internet in your area, then cable internet is the next best option.

It uses coaxial cables which are the same ones used for cable TV. Depending on your budget, you can get speeds ranging from 50Mbps to 500Mbps. If you’re not going to be downloading a lot of games, or don’t need high-speed internet, then this option can be great for you.

It’s widely available all across the U.S. and is more reliable compared to some other options like satellite and DSL internet. Cable internet is also easier to install compared to other internet options due to its availability.

You can check out WOW Internet plans if you’re looking for a reliable internet provider that offers cable internet services for gamers.

Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)

We don’t recommend getting DSL internet for gaming, since it’s very slow for modern gaming requirements, especially if you play fast-paced shooters like Counter-Strike or Apex Legends.

Most DSL internet plans top out at 30 Mbps, which isn’t the best for downloading large games, especially in a world where games like Call of Duty: Warzone can take around 175GB of your hard drive space.

However, if you live in an area where you can’t get either fiber or cable internet, then DSL internet can be a good budget-friendly option for you.

Tips to Get the Best Internet Experience When Gaming

Your internet won’t matter a lot if you’re not utilizing it properly. Here are some of the ways to ensure you always get the best multiplayer gaming experience:

1. Pause Any Downloads or Video Streaming

Downloading a file or streaming a video consumes a lot of bandwidth. This can cause network congestion and stutters in your gameplay which can be extremely frustrating.

It’s always a great idea to pause any downloads or streaming to ensure that the game can utilize the bandwidth properly. This will also keep your latency stable which, in turn, will improve your overall gaming experience.

If you can’t pause a download, we suggest limiting the speed at which you download the file or reduce the quality of the video you’re playing.

2. Use a Wired Connection

Most people tend to use Wi-Fi for their game consoles and computers since it’s just easier to connect to. 

We get it, wires can be a hassle to deal with. However, a wired connection is always a good idea since it’s more stable compared to a wireless connection which can have issues with fluctuating speeds, radio noise, network congestion, and the distance from the router.

Consoles and computers usually have an Ethernet port where you can directly connect your router. For portable consoles like the Nintendo Switch, and the Steam Deck, you can use a USB-C to Ethernet adapter.

3. Choose the Closest Server

No matter how much bandwidth you have, the distance from your home to the game server always dictates how much latency or ping you’re going to get when gaming.

If you’re in the USA and experience high latency, chances are that you might have connected to a European server. You should generally choose North America or South America. You can always try out both servers in different matches to see how much ping you get.

4. Power Cycle Your Router

Power cycling your router once a week can help you eliminate any performance issues and connection problems.

Even micro-stutters during gaming can greatly impact your gameplay, so it’s a good idea to power cycle your router, especially before those ranked matches with your whole clan. To do this, turn off the power or unplug your router. Then, please wait for a minute or so and plug it back in. If you have a chain of routers, make sure to power cycle all of them at least once a week.

What is a Good Internet Speed for Gaming?

The ideal internet speed for gaming depends largely on the type of game you play.

• Basic Gaming: For casual or single-player games, a minimum of 3 Mbps download speed is usually sufficient. This allows for basic online interactions and game updates.

• Multiplayer Gaming: If you enjoy competitive online multiplayer games, a faster connection is recommended. Aim for at least 10-25 Mbps download speed for a smooth gaming experience without significant lag. 

• High-Performance Gaming: For gamers who demand the best performance, especially in fast-paced or competitive games, a speed of 50 Mbps or higher is ideal. This ensures minimal lag, supports high-resolution graphics and allows for smooth gameplay even with multiple devices connected to the network.

These are just general guidelines. Your experience may vary depending on factors like game server location, network congestion, and the quality of your internet connection.

Getting the Best Internet for Gaming

Gaming doesn’t take as much bandwidth as streaming or downloading. However, it’s important to get a fast internet connection to make sure you get the best internet performance when gaming, especially if there are a lot of devices in your household.

After you get an internet plan, it’s also crucial to ensure that you optimize your internet for gaming by using a wired connection and disconnecting any other devices that use WiFi, to ensure that your gaming device isn’t limited by bandwidth.

After using both fiber and fiber-backed cable internet, I didn’t notice too much of a difference in my gaming experience.

As long as your internet is stable and around 100 Mbps per hour, online gaming should be smooth for you. Just make sure to disconnect any other devices that may steal away your much-needed bandwidth.