Minecraft Packet Loss: What is It & How to Fix It? [Tested] (2024)

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Minecraft is an awesome building/survival game that’s taken the world by storm 9 years ago. Yeah, that’s right, Minecraft was released in 2011, and it still doesn’t cease to amaze us.

It’s heavily based on procedural generation to create the environment around you automatically, as you advance. You get to gather materials, and craft tools and build intricate shelters for when the night comes.

If you’re not familiar with Minecraft, nightfall brings along various mobs that are out to get you. They’ll bite you, scratch you, and even fire arrows at you or explode nearby. The hissers are the most annoying ones, by the way.

Aside from damaging your characters really well, they also ruin your constructions and the terrain. Awful.

But let’s get back to our sheep. Although you can play Minecraft in single-player, many players prefer teaming up with their friends. It’s only fair considering that mobs never end spawning each night.

Here’s where things get hairy: playing Minecraft in multiplayer might make you face some technical challenges that simply aren’t there in the single-player version. Some of them include high latency, jitter, and even packet loss.

What is packet loss in Minecraft?

As with any online game or service, packet loss in Minecraft happens whenever packets you send or are sent to you never reach their destination.

If you are unable to send a packet to the server while not in-game, just logged in to the main menu, then the issue is most likely caused by ISP throttling.

As a result, you might experience some more visible issues such as rubberbanding, sluggish movement, desyncs, or disconnections.

However, with Minecraft, things are a bit different. For starters, most of the servers are player-hosted. So losing packets might take some team effort to fix if the other party (client, host) is up for the task.

Nevertheless, if you choose to play on Minecraft Realms, the servers are hosted by Mojang. So everything you previously knew about packet loss still applies.

How to fix Minecraft packet loss?

1. Use a VPN

1. Get a fast and reliable VPN like ExpressVPN to get the best Internet speed and fix packet loss.
2. Download and install the dedicated ExpressVPN app on your PC.
3. Log into your account using your ExpressVPn credentials or activation code.
4. Connect to a server of your choice.
5. Launch Minecraft.
6. Try joining the server where you experience packet loss.
7. Check if the problem still persists.

ExpressVPNi s a great all-around VPN that’s brought to you by Kape Technologies.

It can help you tackle all sorts of challenges, ranging from packet loss to high ping, and even privacy concerns, connection security, and geoblocking.

It’s worth mentioning that using a VPN won’t work every time, except if your ISP is the one throttling your bandwidth and causing packet loss.

The VPN is capable to fix packet loss in many instances, especially when your ISP is the one throttling your bandwidth and causing packet loss.

It can also offer more network stability and speed which also helps a lot with packet loss.

However, it’s still wise to invest in a trustworthy VPN for security/privacy concerns.

If you want to keep your privacy safe and secure your connection while playing the game, ExpressVPN is one of thebest VPNs for Minecraft.

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2. Troubleshoot your connection

1. Launch CMD
2. Run a packet loss test using pathping x.x.x.x (x.x.x.x = IP address of the Minecraft server)
3. Depending on your findings, take any of the following actions:

• Check/repair/upgrade/update any faulty component on your network
• Ask the host to perform a packet loss test and see where the leak is
• Use wired connections instead of wireless (WiFi leaks packets more often)
• Contact your ISP and ask them to look into the matter
• Ask your ISP to contact the network company and inform them of any potential leaks

You can fix Minecraft packet loss

To wrap it up, even if you’re leaking packets in Minecraft, it’s not such a big deal. More often than not, it’s caused by network congestion and passes without your assistance.

However, sometimes the leak follows a pattern or keeps recurring, in which case stepping in can be a great idea.

You can even use a VPN for Minecraft, but note that sometimes you might not be able to log into Minecraft with a VPN.

Even if VPNs don’t seem to patch things up, investing in one isn’t such a bad idea.

For starters, it can greatly improve privacy, offer your connection a much-needed security boost, and even get you around geo-restrictions.

Vlad might have a degree in Animal Husbandry and Livestock Management, but he's currently rocking anything software related, ranging from testing programs to writing in-depth reviews about them.He spent 3-4 years as a software editor at Softpedia and another year as a VPN specialist before he landed his current job as an author at Windows Report.In his free time, Vlad enjoys playing guitar, doing jigsaw puzzles, researching cybersecurity, and even having a good read on rainy days.