How to Reduce Xbox Live Packet Loss

Xbox One Packet Loss - How to Reduce Xbox Live Packet Loss

Any Xbox gamer will likely know the sinking feeling that comes when the ‘You have high packet loss’ error message flashes onto their screen. It’s a confusing message that has ruined many a gaming session.

If you frequently get this message and want to know the best way to solve this problem, please read on.

Xbox 100% Packet Loss, What Is It?

Packet loss is when data traveling across a computer network, and/or the internet, fails to reach its destination.

In small amounts, this isn’t necessarily a problem, however, when the packet loss percentage starts to increase it can cause problems in the reliability of your network.

This can eventually stop your games from working properly and cause the ‘You have high packet loss’ error message.

How to Reduce Xbox Live Packet Loss

There are many solutions you can use to try to fix packet loss. Each solution will depend on what is causing your packet loss in the first place.

Packet loss problems usually come down to the reliability of your internet connection, especially as these days many of us have connections more than fast enough for internet gaming.

If you want to check the speed of your connection however, the following link explains the internet speeds recommended by Microsoft.

Luckily, unless your wireless router is faulty, the only extra equipment you will need to test out these solutions is an Ethernet cable.

Power cycle (reboot) the console and/or wireless router

The first and easiest thing to do is to quite simply power cycle (turn off and turn on again) where your console and wireless router.

This is because sometimes there is just a problem, or bug, with the network that can be solved by resetting your network connection.

It is probably easiest if you disconnect then reconnect the Xbox connection first. To do this you simply need to open your network settings and choose ”Go offline”.

If this doesn’t work, you can try resetting your modem and/or router by unplugging it and leaving it off for a few minutes (do the same with your Xbox). Once you have done this, turn on your Xbox and test out the connection. 

Disconnect third-party headsets (if you use Wi-Fi)

If resetting your connection doesn’t work, the problem could be to do with interference from another device. One of the main culprits for this is third party headsets that broadcast on the same frequency as your wireless router.

To test if this is the problem turn off your third party headset and check your network to see if the problem has stopped.

Check for other interference (if you use Wi-Fi)

If third-party headsets aren’t the problem, you could still be getting interference from some other type of electronic device or even a static object.

Interference can be broken down into active and passive interference.

Active interference is from electronic devices such as microwaves, baby monitors, and other wireless networks while passive interference comes from objects that may disrupt the wireless signal. This can include walls, filing cabinets, and mirrors etc.

10 ways to improve your wireless signal

To check if this is the problem try to turn off/remove any objects that could be interfering with your wireless signal and move any objects out of the direct line between your Xbox and your router.

Use Cables!
ethernet cable - Xbox packet loss

Another option for eliminating interference as the problem is to try using an Ethernet cable instead of wifi if at all possible. This will take any likelihood of wireless interference out of the equation.

We actually recommend using Ethernet cabling when at all possible. Wifi, aside from being half-duplex (which isn’t ideal for online gaming), as opposed to Ethernet’s preferred full-duplex option, most often ends up the second best media for data sensitive traffic.

Check the distance (if you use Wi-Fi)

Distance can be a problem as even if you are able to connect to your wireless network, the signal will degrade and become weaker as the distance increases.

As well as this, even being too close to the router can be a problem due to interference.

According to Microsoft, the perfect distance between your Xbox console and your router is between 1.5 and 15 meters, so try to set your Xbox up at around this distance if possible.

Check For Xbox Live Problems

If none of these solutions work for you, it is also possible that your packet loss could be caused by a problem with Xbox live itself.

If this is case there unfortunately isn’t much you can do except wait for Xbox to fix the problem.

Pro Tip

If none of these solutions work for you, it is also possible that your packet loss could be caused by a problem with Xbox live itself.

Check Your Router:

Not Xbox Live? If none of these solutions work the problem and you are ready to get a bit more technical then try out our pro tip!

The reason for your packet loss problem could be to do with your router. To check if this is the case, you should:

  • First plug your Xbox straight into your router with an Ethernet cable, and do a speed test.
  • Then plug your Xbox into your modem and test the speed.

Use Speedtest.net to run the speed test...

When you are connected directly to your modem, a slight speed increase is expected compared to when you are connected to your router.

However, if there is a large increase in speed between your connection to the modem and your connection to the router, you may have a problem with your router.

If you know the problem is with the router and your ISP can't or won't help you out, then you can reset your router to the factory default. 

Be warned that you will lose all your configuration settings! Always contact your ISP/Service provider first! 

To learn more about resetting your router read here

Here is a short video that goes through some of the potential fixes we've talked about. It also goes more in-depth if any of the above tricks don't work...

Remember to check out our post on Xbox routers if you need an upgrade!

If you have any questions about the solutions in this article please let us know in the comment section below!

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