Bufferbloat is one of those sneaky internet problems that can ruin your online gaming experience without you even realizing what’s happening.
You might have a super fast internet connection and a high-end gaming rig, but still, your shots feel delayed, or enemies teleport across the screen. If that sounds familiar, bufferbloat might be the culprit.
Let’s break it all down in plain language: what bufferbloat is, how it works, how to check if you have it, and most importantly, how to fix it so your games run smoother and respond faster.
What is Bufferbloat?
Bufferbloat is a networking issue that happens when there’s excessive buffering in your internet connection, especially in your router or modem.
Basically, it’s when your network devices hold onto data packets for too long before sending them out, trying to “help” with congestion, but actually making everything worse.
Think of it like this: Imagine you’re waiting in line at a fast-food restaurant. The kitchen decides to prepare every order in advance, so they take everyone’s request, pile up the food on the counter, and only then start handing them out.
Source: blog.erik.is
What was supposed to be fast service turns into a backlog, and everyone waits longer. That’s bufferbloat.
In networking terms, this causes high latency (lag) and jitter (inconsistent latency), even if your internet speed looks great on a speed test. And for online gaming, where split-second reactions matter, this is a real problem.
How Does Bufferbloat Work?
To understand how bufferbloat works, you need a basic idea of how data travels across the internet. Data, like game inputs, voice chat, and video streams, is broken into small chunks called packets.
These packets get sent through your home network and out to the internet via your router and modem.
Normally, when there’s a bit of congestion, devices might hold onto some of these packets briefly. Routers have buffers, which are just small memory areas used to temporarily store data during this process.
That’s totally normal, until those buffers get too big.
Here’s where things go wrong: Some modern routers or modems are designed to not drop any packets. Instead, they keep buffering more and more data, thinking that it’s helpful. But this delays real-time packets (like your game inputs), because they get stuck behind less urgent packets (like a YouTube video download or a big file transfer).
So, your router is basically saying: “Hold on, I need to finish sending this 500MB software update before I can let your game action go through.” That delay can be just a few hundred milliseconds, but that’s enough to throw off your game.
How to Check for Bufferbloat?
If you’re wondering whether bufferbloat is the reason your games feel off, there’s good news: It’s actually pretty easy to test for it.
The most common method is using an online bufferbloat test. One of the most popular is the DSLReports Speed Test (when it’s available), but other tools like Waveform’s Bufferbloat Test or Flent (for more technical users) work well too.
Here’s how to check:
- Connect your PC or gaming console to your router via Ethernet for the most accurate results.
- Close all other apps and devices using bandwidth.
- Run the test. It will simulate network load (like downloading or uploading a file) and then measure how your latency behaves during that.
What you’re looking for: If your ping skyrockets during the upload or download portions of the test, you likely have bufferbloat. Ideally, your latency should stay relatively stable.
For example, if your base ping is 20ms and it jumps to 200ms during the test, that’s a clear sign of bufferbloat. And if you’re a gamer, that spike is probably happening while you’re trying to dodge bullets or time a perfect parry.
How to Fix Bufferbloat?
Luckily, bufferbloat is a fixable issue. The key is to manage how your router or modem handles network traffic, specifically through smart queue management or quality of service (QoS).
Here are a few effective ways to reduce or eliminate bufferbloat:
1. Use a Router with SQM (Smart Queue Management)
This is the gold standard. Routers with SQM (such as those running OpenWrt, pfSense, or Ubiquiti EdgeRouter systems) can intelligently control how packets are handled. They’ll prioritize important traffic like game packets and limit buffering so that everything flows smoothly.
Some popular SQM algorithms include:
- FQ_CoDel (Fair Queuing Controlled Delay)
- Cake (Common Applications Kept Enhanced)
These tools help keep latency low even when your network is under load.
2. Enable QoS Settings on Your Router
If your router doesn’t support SQM, it might still have basic QoS settings. While not as effective, QoS can let you prioritize gaming traffic or limit bandwidth for devices doing large downloads or video streaming.
You can usually find this in your router’s admin panel under something like “Traffic Control” or “QoS Settings.”
3. Limit Upload/Download Speeds
Another workaround is to manually cap your upload and download speeds slightly below your maximum bandwidth, say, 85–90%. This leaves room for your router to breathe and helps reduce bufferbloat.
This can be done through your router or even on individual devices using third-party tools.
4. Upgrade Your Router or Firmware
Older routers often have terrible buffer management. If you’re using the one provided by your ISP, consider replacing it with a third-party router that supports advanced traffic shaping or allows you to install OpenWrt firmware.
How Bufferbloat Affects Gaming?
Now let’s talk about the real reason you’re probably reading this: gaming.
Online games, especially competitive ones like Valorant, Call of Duty, Fortnite, or Rocket League, depend on extremely low and consistent latency. Even a 100ms delay can make it feel like your shots don’t register or like you’re always one step behind your opponent.
Here’s how bufferbloat wrecks your gaming experience:
1. Increased Latency
Bufferbloat increases your ping, especially when someone else in your house is watching Netflix, uploading videos, or doing cloud backups. Even if your raw internet speed is great, your ping might spike to unacceptable levels when your connection is “bloated.”
How to easily lower latency in games
NoPing is a service designed to optimize your route to games’ servers. Sometimes, the normal path your internet provider uses isn’t the fastest. NoPing reroutes your data through a better, more direct path.
Here’s how to use NoPing to lower latency in online games:
- Sign-up through the website and download NoPing (you can test it for free).
- Open NoPing and search for your game inside the software
- Once you find it, click on it and, on the next screen, select “Choose automatic” or “Choose manual” and click “Continue”. We recommend choosing automatic, as NoPing’s technology analyzes all routes on a global scale and automatically selects the best option for you.
- On the next screen, click on “Optimize Game”.
- And that’s it, you can start playing with optimized ping!
You can test different servers within NoPing to see which gives you the lowest latency.
2. Jitter
Jitter is the variation in latency. Games need stable connections. If your ping jumps from 30ms to 120ms to 40ms and back again, that unpredictability makes aiming, dodging, and timing difficult, especially in games where every frame counts.
3. Input Lag and Delayed Responses
Because your game packets are stuck behind other data, your inputs (like moving or shooting) take longer to reach the server.
So what you see on screen might be slightly out of sync with what’s happening on the server.
4. Desync and Hit Registration Issues
Ever land a perfect shot that doesn’t count? Or get killed by someone who didn’t appear on your screen until it was too late? That could be bufferbloat at play, making the server and your client disagree on what’s really happening.
5. Poor Voice Chat Quality
Online games often rely on voice chat. Bufferbloat can introduce lag, robotic voices, or dropped phrases; just more distractions when you’re trying to coordinate with your team.
Bufferbloat is one of those hidden problems that doesn’t get enough attention, but can have a massive impact on your online gaming performance. It’s especially frustrating because it often strikes when your internet seems “fine” on paper.
You’ve got good download speeds, maybe even low ping when idle, but your gameplay still feels inconsistent or laggy.
The good news is that once you understand what bufferbloat is and how it works, you can take real steps to fight it. Whether it’s upgrading your router, turning on SQM or QoS, or just tweaking your bandwidth settings, small changes can make a big difference.
Download NoPing now and play more than 3000 games with lower latency. Test it for free!
