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Network jitter: what it is and how to reduce it for smoother connections

October 17, 2024

October 17, 2024

2 minutes

Network jitter is a crucial factor that can significantly impact your internet performance, especially in real-time applications like gaming, video calls, and VoIP. It refers to the variation in packet delay, which can cause lag, disrupted communications, and overall instability.

Understanding how to reduce jitter is essential for maintaining network stability and ensuring optimal performance. In this complete guide, we’ll dive deep into what network jitter is, its causes, and effective strategies for network optimization, so you can minimize interruptions and enhance your connection’s reliability.

network jitter

What is network jitter?

Network jitter is the inconsistency in the time it takes for data packets to travel across a network. It causes disruptions like lag in gaming or delays in video calls. 

Reducing network jitter is particularly important for applications that rely on real-time communication, such as online gaming, VoIP calls, and video conferencing, where even small delays can cause noticeable disruptions.

Jitter can result from various factors, including network congestion, poor routing, or hardware limitations. Addressing these issues often involves optimizing network infrastructure, prioritizing data traffic through Quality of Service (QoS) settings, or using more stable and faster connections.

By minimizing jitter, users can experience more reliable, consistent connections, improving the quality of interactions and enhancing the overall network performance for time-sensitive tasks.

How does network jitter affect performance?

Network jitter disrupts real-time applications like gaming or video calls, causing delays, lag, and poor communication quality:

  • Increased latency leads to lag and delayed responses: jitter increases latency, causing noticeable lag and delayed reactions in gaming and video calls, impacting real-time communication.
  • Unstable connections cause audio/video stuttering: jitter creates unstable connections, leading to stuttering or freezing in audio and video, disrupting smooth communication.
  • High jitter can degrade streaming or VoIP call quality: excessive jitter degrades streaming and VoIP quality, causing choppy audio, video pixelation, and buffering issues.

Common causes of jitter and how to fix it

Jitter often results from network congestion, outdated equipment, or interference. Addressing these issues can improve performance:

  • Prioritize network traffic with Quality of Service (QoS) settings to ensure critical applications like gaming or video calls receive the bandwidth they need for smooth performance.
  • Upgrade outdated routers or network hardware to improve overall network speed and stability, helping to reduce issues like jitter and latency.
  • Reduce wireless interference by switching to a wired connection, which provides a more stable and consistent data flow, minimizing interruptions in real-time applications.

Best practices for maintaining stable network performance

To ensure smooth connections and minimize jitter, follow these network optimization strategies:

  • Regularly update your router’s firmware.
  • Use Ethernet instead of Wi-Fi for critical devices.
  • Limit bandwidth-heavy applications during important tasks.

Tools to measure and reduce network jitter

Several tools can help you measure jitter and take steps to reduce it for better network performance:

  • Use ping and jitter testing tools like PingPlotter or SolarWinds.
  • Apply network monitoring solutions to detect packet delays.
  • Set up Quality of Service (QoS) to prioritize essential traffic.

Network jitter can cause lag in online games, affecting your performance, but using tools like ExitLag can help reduce this problem, ensuring smoother gameplay.

About The Author

Leandro Sandmann, graduated in Computer Science from FEI, is the co-founder of ExitLag, a company created to improve stability and internet connections for online games. He has been sharing his knowledge about games and technology through various channels, contributing to the Blog's articles.

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