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Latency · Measurement guide

How to Measure Your Actual Latency to Your Broker's Server

Your broker's advertised 'fast execution' tells you nothing about your latency. Your actual round-trip time to the broker's server is the number that matters — and it takes less than 2 minutes to measure it precisely.

TL;DR

Your broker latency is the round-trip time (RTT) between your computer and the broker's matching engine. You can measure it using the ping command with your broker's server hostname, which is visible inside MT4 under Tools > Options > Server. The result tells you your baseline — the starting point for any optimisation.

See the plansWhat your ping result means
2 min
Time required to get your actual broker RTT using the built-in ping command.
Server hostname
Found in MT4 under Tools ? Options ? Server tab.
Target
Under 50ms for active traders. Under 20ms for scalpers.

What you are actually measuring

When you ping your broker's server, you are measuring the round-trip time (RTT) for a packet to travel from your machine to the broker's server and back. One-way latency is half of RTT. In trading, what matters is the order's one-way travel time to the broker — but RTT is what you can measure, and it is a reliable proxy. A 40ms RTT means your order takes approximately 20ms to reach the broker. Note: ping uses ICMP protocol; MT4 uses TCP. ICMP RTT and TCP RTT can differ slightly on some networks.

Step 1: Find your broker's server hostname

Open MT4. Go to Tools > Options > Server tab. The server field shows something like 'ICMarketsSC-Demo01' or 'Pepperstone-Live02'. That is the display name — you need the actual hostname or IP. In MT4, look at the bottom-right corner — when connected, it shows the server name. To get the IP: in MT4 Journal tab, look for a line starting with 'Connected to' — the IP address or hostname is shown there. Note this down — you will use it in the ping command.

Step 2: Run the ping test

On Windows: Press Win + R, type cmd, press Enter. Type: ping YOUR_BROKER_SERVER.com -n 30 and press Enter. This sends 30 packets and shows the RTT for each. Look for: Average RTT (under Statistics at the bottom), Minimum RTT (best case), Maximum RTT (worst case), Packets lost. On Mac/Linux: Open Terminal. Type: ping -c 30 YOUR_BROKER_SERVER.com. On a VPS: SSH in and run the same command.

Step 3: Run a tracert to see the full route

Ping tells you the total RTT. Tracert (traceroute) shows you each hop along the route and the latency added at each step. On Windows: tracert YOUR_BROKER_SERVER.com. On Mac/Linux: traceroute YOUR_BROKER_SERVER.com. Look for: number of hops (fewer is better), where latency spikes appear (identifies congested or inefficient segments), final destination IP (helps identify which DC the server is in). See our broker DC reference for facility identification.

How to interpret your results

Under 5ms RTT: Excellent. You are on the same network as the broker or very close. 5–20ms: Good for scalpers. 20–50ms: Acceptable for most trading styles. 50–100ms: Starting to affect scalping quality. Over 100ms: Significant for any active trading style. Note: consistently high RTT with low variance (jitter) is better than a low average with high variance. A 60ms connection with 2ms jitter is more reliable than a 30ms connection with 50ms jitter. Learn more in our latency and jitter guide.

What to do if your latency is high

Option 1: Check if a different server hostname is available (ask your broker — some offer regional servers). Option 2: If the problem is your home ISP routing, a VPS near the broker's DC helps. Option 3: Configure TradersProxy SOCKS5 in MT4 — the proxy node sits near the broker's DC and provides a direct route. After configuring, run the ping test again from inside MT4 (Help > About) to confirm the improvement. See our MT4 setup guide for detailed instructions.

Execution Quality

Measure first. Then fix.

Run the ping test to your broker's server hostname. If the result is over 50ms, configure TradersProxy SOCKS5 and check again. Most traders see a 60–80% reduction in RTT.

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FAQ

You are. Brokers measure their internal execution speed from the moment they receive your order. Your 200ms is the network travel time before your order even arrives at their server. Both can be true simultaneously.

In MT4: Experts tab > look for 'Connected to IP_ADDRESS:PORT' in the connection log. The IP address is your broker's server. You can also use Wireshark to capture the connection target when MT4 first connects.

Yes, significantly. Network congestion varies. Weekday London session overlap (12:00–17:00 UTC) typically shows the highest latency due to internet backbone congestion. Run tests at different times to understand your variance.

Packet loss and disconnections are different. Zero packet loss on ICMP ping does not mean the TCP session is stable. MT4 disconnections can be caused by TCP keepalive timeouts, VPN interference, or firewall rules — none of which show up in a simple ping test.

Yes. In MT4, go to Help > About. The 'Ping' value shown is your live RTT to the broker's server measured via the MT4 protocol itself. This is more accurate than an external ping command because it uses TCP like your actual orders do.