Welcome to our comprehensive guide on fixing Minecraft server lag, high ping, and packet loss. If you're a Minecraft player, you know how frustrating it can be to experience delays and connectivity issues while playing your favorite game. Whether you're a newbie or a seasoned player, server lag, high ping, and packet loss can ruin your gameplay experience.

Fortunately, we've got you covered with this informative guide. In this article, we'll provide you with step-by-step instructions on how to troubleshoot and fix these common Minecraft issues. From optimizing your network settings to tweaking your game configurations, we'll cover everything you need to know to ensure smooth gameplay and reduce latency.

Verify the Minecraft Server Status

Before making any tweaks to your system, we recommend verifying the Minecraft server status to see if the issue is related to the server or your connection. Click here to test the Minecraft server status. You can get trivial information about the server you’re trying to play on. Enter the IP address, click on “Get Server Status” and you will be presented with the player count, current version, etc.

1 server status.jpg — Minecraft Server Status

Test & Improve your Network Connection

If the issue is related to your network connection, test your connection by visiting this page. A normal up & download speed, without interruption, is vital for a stable gaming experience. Especially your ping should remain below 100ms. It would be best if you also accounted for any VPN service which could be running on your system. Or turn off your VPN while in-game.

Use a hardwired (Ethernet) connection while playing the game
Reduce the amount of devices using the same network connection
Restart your router or modem if you haven’t done this in a while

Command Prompt

Search for CMD or Command Prompt in your taskbar to open it up. Use the following commands:

ping google.com
- This command will test your latency to Google’s servers and will check if you experience any packet loss
- In case your ping / latency is higher than 100 ms, or if you encounter any packet loss, then the issue is related to your network connection
ipconfig /flushdns
- Use this command to flush and reset the content of your DNS resolver cache

End Network-Intensive Processes

Access your Resource Monitor by opening up your Task Manager. Right-click your taskbar to open up your task manager. Under Performance, select Open Resource Monitor. On the new resource monitor window, open the Network tab, where you must open the Processes with network activity.

Task Manager > Performance > Resource Monitor

After a few seconds, you will see every process using your network connection on your system. This might be your browser running in the background, Steam, or a download bottlenecking your connection. We suggest you only end the processes you know won't break your operating system. In the tab below, you can preview your network utilization in percentage.

Resource Monitor > Network > Processes with Network Activity

Disable VPN & Proxy Connection

Since the game has many simultaneous players on the same server, you can also fix server problems by trying to change the server region in the game. This will help you depending on where you are trying to connect from. You should also ensure you are not using a VPN service, as this will cause latency and packet loss when you try to play Minecraft. If the servers aren't affected, the problem could be on your end.

Change DNS Server Addresses

Your DNS server address connection can cause network-related issues. We will change this step, as it should help many users with network problems. Use the shortcut Windows Key + R, and in the dialogue box enter Control and hit enter.

This will open up your control center. From there, navigate to Network & Internet, Network & Sharing Center, and here select your connection. Navigate to Properties, and lastly, double-click the Internet Protocol Version 4 as you can preview on the screenshot below.

Network and Internet > Network and Sharing Centre

Select to Use the following DNS server addresses option, and as your preferred DNS server, use: 8.8.8.8. As your alternate DNS server, use: 8.8.4.4.

Malware & Other Applications

We suggest removing malware and preventing applications from running that could use up your available resources or change your game files.

Verify Connection to ISP

In case you still experience latency or lag issues, then make sure to verify your connection to your Internet Service Provider. You can troubleshoot this step by changing your connection.

Delete Temporary Files

If you have issues loading maps or downloading other content, then make sure to delete your temporary files. Search for %temp% in your taskbar search to open up your temporary files folder. You can safely delete everything in the folder, some files might remain, so just leave them there. This can help you reduce some clutter on your hard drive.