How Can I Lower My Ping on Counter-Strike?

Disable all outlet sources that are downloading or uploading Internet data. This includes anything hooked up to your home network, such as a video game console, laptop or Internet TV.

Navigate to your router's URL and log in as an administrator. If you have not altered your router's settings before, refer to your router's manual for the default login information.

Select port-forwarding on your router's home screen and enter the IP address of the "Counter-Strike" server you play on most frequently, or your clan's server. To find the address of the server, use the "rcon" status command located in the in-game menu.

Use an Internet search engine to locate servers in your geographic area. The competitive brackets of "Counter-Strike" are broken up into five sections: Northwest, Southwest, Central, Atlantic and Northeast. Most Central players ping well enough on Northwest servers and most Atlantic players ping well enough on Northeast servers. Both of these examples work the other way as well. Try out as many servers as possible, however. Backbones are a huge part of obtaining consistently good ping, so if you find a server where you have terrific ping, add it to your favorites list.

Ask players in-game for their preferred brands of servers and seek them out in your region. Some server companies pay extra money for Internet routing and backbones that favor hardcore gamers. These servers typically yield the lowest of pings for public servers.

Disable all downloads and uploads while playing "Counter-Strike."