How to Get Faster Internet & Reduce Lag on the PS4 via Port Forwarding

You finally managed to get time in front of your PS4. However, you find that your games are lagging, you can’t seem to connect to the gaming servers. When you do, you can’t even chat with your teammates as the voice comes and goes or doesn’t work at all. If you are experiencing these issues, then this PS4 Port Forwarding tutorialwill help you fix these issues and increase your internet speed!

While we are at it, if you are having trouble with buffering, check out the video at the end of this post too:

Your Network Setup

A typical household network is made up of a modem that connects to your ISP and a router that routes data to and from you’re various devices on your LAN (Local Area Network) so you can connect to the internet.

Each device on your network gets a unique IP address. This applies regardless if you are wired or wireless and without it, you can’t use the network.

When you open your web browser and connect to a website such as google.com, the name Google.com is translated into an IP address by the DNS server. Before beginning, ensure you have the right DNS setting which can be done here.

What is important to note is each connection to the internet not only uses an IP address but also uses a port. For example: when you open a web browser you are using port 80. FTP is on port 21, Email is on port 25 or 993.

Gaming servers also use ports. What we are going to do is set up a special rule on our router to instruct it so that anytime a request comes in on a specific port, it’s a game so send it over to our PS4.

Step 1. What’s the IP address so you can PS4 Port Forward

You need to find the IP address of your PS4. You can do that by going to the PlayStation, then select Settings Select Network, Select View Connection Status, You will see the IP address which is typically 192.168.1.x or 192.168.0.x

Make a note of that IP address.

You will also note the Default Gateway which should be something like 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1. That IP address is the address of your internet router.

Step 2. Log into the router

To access your router, open a web browser on your computer or on your phone or on a tablet. In the address bar type the Default Gateway IP number. In this case, it was 192.168.1.1 and hit enter.

You should see your router’s login screen. Enter the username and password which you set up when you installed the router. If you didn’t change it from the original one, look under the router for a sticker that has that info.

Step 3. PS4 Port Forwarding

Each router will be different but you need to look for Port Forwarding or Apps and Games or Virtual Servers.  If you can’t find any of these options, just Google “How to Port Forwarding on <insert your router make and model>.

I recommend a website called Portforward.com for all this info. The website has a comprehensive list of routers with step-by-step instructions on where to find the port forwarding.

Step 4. So how do you find the Game port?

Now that you know where to set up the port forwarding, next is to select the game you are going to play online as each game will have its own ports that need to be directed.

Go back to portforward.com/ site and click on List of all programs on the left-hand menu. Find the game you are playing and it will tell you which ports need to be open and forwarded to your PS4.

You will see TCP and UDP – you need to add both and forward them to your PS4’s IP Address as shown in the video above.

Congratulations – you have your PS4 Port Forwarding is done! When you play the game online you should have a faster internet connection and reduced lag.

Read this next:

• How to INSTANTLY boost your PS4 internet speed and fix that lag – Updated: 2020
• You can get faster Internet speed with a WiFi High-Gain Antenna
• Best way for your router antenna position to boost your WiFi
• Faster internet tips the pros use