How to Fix Sea of Thieves High Ping (2022 Guide)

2018’s Sea of Thieves is one of the popular action-adventure video games that offer an open-world multiplayer pirates kind of gaming experience by sailing ships, fighting, looting, & exploring everything you need in a so-called pirate life to make it legendary. Rare and Microsoft Studios have done a great job with this title. However, it seems that you’re one of the victims to face the Sea of Thieves High Ping delay issue. If so, you can follow this 2022 guide to fix it.

It’s highly recommended to follow this troubleshooting guide completely until the ping delay issue gets fixed for you. The chances are high that somehow the game servers aren’t working properly or you’re having issues with the internet connection. You should also keep in mind that in-game graphics settings or an outdated networking driver or issues with the installed game files or fullscreen optimizations & high DPI settings may cause higher ping delays.

1. Check Sea of Thieves Server Status

First of all, you should try checking out the Sea of Thieves server-status properly to ensure there is no issue with the game servers. Sometimes the game servers may go through a scheduled maintenance process or outage due to some technical issues. If you’re continually receiving the higher ping delay issue then make sure to check for the server status. You can also visit the third-party Down Detector Sea of Thieves webpage to check for the server info.

If in case, there is a server outage or maintenance then you’ll have to wait for a couple of hours and then try launching the game again. If the servers are operational then head over to the next method. At the time of writing this article, there is no server issue appearing.

2. Check your Internet Connection

It’s also worth mentioning to check the internet connection at your end because a poor or unstable internet network can eventually trigger multiple issues with connecting to the game servers. Meanwhile, issues with your specific IP address or even the DNS server address can also cause such conflicts with the game servers. If you’re using a Wi-Fi connection then try switching it to the wired network or vice versa to ensure there is no issue happening at your end.

If there is an issue with your network then make sure to contact your ISP (Internet Service Provider) for further assistance and troubleshooting. Try upgrading your internet plan or ask support to change your IP address.

3. Update Network Drivers

You should always update your networking drivers on the PC manually to ensure there is no connectivity issue happening due to the corrupted or missing network drivers. To do this:

Right-click on the Start Menu to open up the Quick Access Menu.
Click on Device Manager from the list.
Now, double-click on the Network adapters category to expand the list.
Next, right-click on the specific network adapter.
Select Update driver > Choose Search automatically for drivers.
If there is an update available, it’ll automatically download and install the latest version.
Once done, make sure to reboot your computer to change the effects.

4. Update Sea of Thieves

Sometimes an outdated game version or even the corrupted game files can trigger such ping delay issues at your end that need to be fixed by installing the latest game update on the PC. To do that:

Open the Steam client > Go to Library > Click on Sea of Thieves from the left pane.
It’ll automatically search for the available update. If there is an update available, make sure to click on Update.
Wait some time to install the update > Once done, close the Steam client.
Finally, reboot your PC to apply changes and launch the game again.

5. Optimize Networking Settings

Once you’ve installed the latest network driver on your computer that we’ve mentioned above, it’s time to adjust a couple of networking settings on the PC to optimize the networking stability or performance. To do so:

Right-click on the Start Menu to open up the Quick Access Menu.
Click on Device Manager from the list.
Now, double-click on the Network adapters category to expand the list.
Next, right-click on the specific network adapter > Choose Properties.
Then go to the Power Management tab > Uncheck the Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power option.
Head over to the Advanced tab and disable power-saving features such as Energy-Efficient Ethernet, Green Ethernet, Power saving mode, etc.
Once done, reboot the PC to apply changes.

6. Power Cycle the Wi-Fi Router

The chances are high that your Wi-Fi connection is working fine but somehow the router is having some issues with the connectivity like temporary glitches or DNS cache. It’s better to perform a power cycle on your Wi-Fi router to ensure there is no issue happening due to the router. Just power off the router and then unplug the power cable from the router. Now, wait for around a minute or so then you can connect the power cable again and turn it on.

7. Configure Windows Update Delivery Settings

Try configuring Windows Update Delivery Settings on your computer by following the steps below.

Open the Windows Start menu > Search for Windows Update Delivery.
Click on Windows Update delivery settings > Disable the ‘Allow downloads from other PCs’ option.
Head over to the Advanced options tab > Select Percentage of measured bandwidth. [Make sure to limit both percentages to 5%]
Now, scroll down to Upload settings > Set the first option to 5%.
Once done, play Sea of Thieves to check if the High Ping issue is bothering you or not.

8. Flush the DNS Cache

Make sure to flush the DNS cache on your computer to easily remove stored cache files related to the internet configuration. It can also help the PC and the internet settings to freshly connect with the game servers without any corrupted or older cache data. To do that:

Press the Windows key on the keyboard to open the Start menu > Type Command Prompt and search for it.
Now, right-click on Command Prompt > Select Run as administrator.
Click on Yes to run with the admin access > Once the command prompt window opens, type the following command and hit Enter:

ipconfig /flushdns

A successful message will appear > Close the command prompt window.
Once done, make sure to run the following command line by copy-pasting and pressing the Enter key one by one:

ipconfig /release

ipconfig /renew

netsh winsock reset

netsh int ip reset

netsh interface ipv4 reset

netsh interface ipv6 reset

netsh interface tcp reset

Once all is done, you should reboot the PC to apply changes.

9. Change DNS Servers

If the above methods didn’t work for you then make sure to change the DNS address properly on the PC manually to ensure there are no issues with the DNS server connectivity. If in case, your specific ISP has some issues with the DNS address then make sure to use the Google Public DNS address by following the steps below to fix the game server connectivity.

Press the Windows + R shortcut keys on the keyboard to open the Run dialog box.
Now, type control and hit Enter to open Control Panel.
Click on Network and Internet > Select Network and Sharing Center.
Go to your Connections to select Ethernet, Wi-Fi, or others depending on what you’re using.
Next, click on Properties > Double-click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP /IPv4) to open a new window.
Click on Use the following DNS server addresses and input 8.8.8.8 as a Preferred DNS server.
While you’ll have to enter 8.8.4.4 as the Alternate DNS server > Click on the checkbox of Validate settings upon exit.
Click on OK to confirm the changes > Launch the League of Legends game to check for the issue.

If in case, you want to be more specific to Sea of Thieves compatible DNS servers rather than using the Google public DNS server address then you can also use Cloudflare DNS for 1.1.1.1 (primary) & for 1.0.0.1 (secondary).

10. Deep Scan for Potential Virus or Malware

The chances are high that your PC system and its important files become corrupted due to a virus or malware attack. It’s highly recommended to properly scan all the drives and files on your PC to ensure there is no virus or malware present. If any, the antivirus software will automatically detect them and ask you whether to quarantine or delete them completely. Sometimes the default Windows Security software may not be able to do so professionally.

In that scenario, it’s recommended to use Malwarebytes software on your Windows PC to perform a deep scan process for potential virus or malware attacks. You can grab Malwarebytes here. If you really going to use it then make sure to disable Windows Firewall protection temporarily before running a deep scan. To do that:

Launch Malwarebytes > Click on Scanner > Go to Advanced Scanners.
Click on Configure scan > Select the Scan for rootkits option.
Now, select all your drives > Click on Scan to start the process.
This scan process may take a couple of hours or more depending on the drive sizes and file types. But it’ll be worth the wait.
Once done, make sure to quarantine or delete the risky files or applications without a second thought.
Finally, disable automatic scans from the Malwarebytes Settings menu.
You’re done.

11. Try Using a Dedicated IP Address

If none of the methods did come in handy for you then make sure to use a VPN service to play Sea of Thieves because sometimes connecting to the game servers from a different game server location may fix the issue. So, using a VPN service will let you provide a dedicated IP address that’s obviously different from your actual IP address. However, do keep in mind that VPN servers may increase ping delays more than usual but you should check once.

That’s it, guys. We assume this guide was helpful to you. For further queries, you can comment below.

How to Fix Sea of Thieves High Ping (2022 Guide)