Where packet loss hurts first
- Competitive online games
- Voice and video calls
- Cloud gaming and live streaming
- Remote desktop and other interactive tools
Packet Loss Guide
What is good packet loss?
In most internet speed tests, 0% packet loss is the ideal result. Once data starts getting dropped, real-time apps such as gaming, voice calls, and live streams can degrade quickly.
| Packet Loss | General Meaning |
|---|---|
| 0% | Ideal. Data is arriving reliably. |
| Below 1% | Often still usable, but sensitive apps may notice it. |
| 1% to 2% | Can start affecting gaming, calls, or live streaming. |
| Above 2% | Usually worth investigating because quality issues become easier to notice. |
Why even low packet loss matters
Packet loss does not need to be extreme to feel annoying. Small amounts can still create stutter, missing audio, or inconsistent game state updates.
How to judge your own results
- Run repeated tests instead of trusting one number.
- Compare results near the router and where the problem actually happens.
- Check whether packet loss appears on multiple devices.
- Compare packet loss with jitter and ping, not in isolation.
Check packet loss with context
LizSpeedTest helps you test packet loss together with ping, jitter, download speed, and upload speed so you can decide whether the connection is simply slow or actually unstable.