# What is latency? Users expect a fast response time to their commands when gaming online, but also when doing simple tasks on the computer. But low latency doesn’t always work — long distances and other hardware and software problems can slow down the flow of data. There are, however, concrete measures you can take to reduce latency. ## Latency: Definition Latency, also known as response time, describes the time between a command and the **expected response**. There is always a delay caused by a wide variety of factors. Basically, a low latency or delay is desirable — a high latency should be avoided. ## Meaning of latency What sounds abstract at first has a concrete meaning for most of us, especially in **telecommunications**: When working on the computer, a program should start quickly after a double-click, when surfing a website should load immediately, or when [cloud gaming](https://www.ionos.com/digitalguide/server/know-how/what-is-cloud-gaming/ "What is cloud gaming?") the decisive blow against the opponent should occur as close to real time as possible. Especially when using **VR goggles**, too much latency is also physically noticeable: The digital environment does not reload fast enough, the realistic experience and immersion is destroyed. In the future, low latency will play a much more decisive role in autonomous driving. Here, latency should be as close to 0 as possible so that cars can safely react to accidents and other surprising events in road traffic. In addition to Internet latency and computer or **operating system latency**, **fiber optic latency** — how long a signal takes to travel through the fiber optic cable — is also often important for everyday users. But there is also latency in other contexts, such as operational or mechanical. ## What causes latency? Even though the goal is to produce low latency as **close to 0 as possible**, in most cases this is not realistic. For example, Internet or computer latency is affected by the following factors: - **Distance between sender and receiver:** For example, if you retrieve data packets from a server in Europe, the latency is significantly higher than if you retrieve data from US-based servers. - Transmission media: For example, there are different types of cable with different transmission speeds. But also the type and number of interconnected hardware (server, hard disks, switch, ...) increases the latency. - **Packet size:** The larger the data, the longer the transmission takes. - **Type of data processing:** Different components handle the processing of the data differently. - **Available bandwidth:** The bandwidth available to you can slow down the transmission. The signal strength can also have an impact, for example if it is particularly weak and/or needs to be amplified by a repeater. - **Queues at individual stations**, such as when an unusually large number of requests are made to a [server](https://www.ionos.com/digitalguide/server/know-how/what-is-a-server-one-term-two-definitions/) simultaneously. --- ### Tip To find out how high your Internet latency is, there are so-called **ping tests**. Here the test website sends data packets to your computer and measures the time for sending them back and forth. Which value is interpreted as a good ping or latency value depends on your Internet connection. --- ## Reduce / improve latency One of the most important factors for a good latency is a **short distance** between sender and receiver. At a higher level, this factor is processed via so-called [edge computing](https://www.ionos.com/digitalguide/server/know-how/edge-computing/ "Edge computing"), in which an IT architecture is set up that processes data as close to its source as possible. Beyond that, you can also make other **optimizations to your hardware and software** to improve latency: 1. When streaming or online gaming, make sure to select a server from the USA or at least one from **North America** in the settings of the gaming or streaming platform. 2. Use a **cable instead of WIFI** for particularly data-intensive applications. 3. Reduce the so-called **packet loss** via your **firewall**. The firewall checks incoming packets and even blocks some — this costs time and sometimes data is lost. To prevent both, you can configure the firewall to specify which pages or applications do not require such a check. 4. Reduce the load on your connection to have more bandwidth for the current application: Close programs **running in the background** on your computer, temporarily put other devices (smartphone or tablet) in **flight mode**, and **prioritize your computer** on the router. Unnecessary programs are best completely uninstalled. 5. Add more [**RAM**](https://www.ionos.com/digitalguide/server/know-how/what-is-ram/) to your computer. 6. **Defragment** your hard disk. This is a markdown version of: [https://www.ionos.com/digitalguide/server/know-how/what-is-latency/](https://www.ionos.com/digitalguide/server/know-how/what-is-latency/) for AI/LLM consumption.