Ping Test - Check Latency and Packet Loss

How do I ping a server online?

Reviewed by Prabath Thalangama · Last updated October 23, 2026

Enter a host name or IP address and the test sends four ICMP echo requests from our servers, waiting up to three seconds for each reply. It reports packet loss and average round-trip time, and flags total loss, partial loss, or an average above 200 ms, so you can see whether the host is reachable.

Ping runs from our servers in Sri Lanka, so the latency is the round trip from there to the target. Compare results over time, or against your own ping, rather than reading one number as absolute.

No replies does not always mean the host is down. Many servers, cloud security groups and firewalls drop ICMP while the actual service works fine.

How do I run a ping test?

Enter a host name or an IPv4/IPv6 address. Host names are resolved first, and private addresses are refused.
Read the packet loss and average latency, then any findings.
If every packet is lost, test the service's own port with the port checker before assuming the host is down.

How to read the results

Packets sent: Always 4.
Packet loss: Share of the four requests that got no reply. 100% is flagged as critical, anything above 0% as a warning.
Average latency: Mean round-trip time in milliseconds. Above 200 ms is flagged.
Raw output: The ping command's own output, for the per-packet times.

What ping results usually mean

100% packet loss

The host is down, unreachable, or blocking ICMP. Check a TCP port the service uses; if that answers, ICMP is simply filtered.

Some packets lost

Congestion, a faulty link or ICMP rate limiting on a router. Run traceroute to see where loss starts, and repeat the test to see if it persists.

High latency

Distance is the usual cause: about 1 ms of round trip per 100 km of fibre is the physical floor. A sudden rise compared with your usual numbers points to congestion or a route change.

Examples and command-line equivalents

The same test from your own machine

ping -c 4 example.com        # Linux / macOS
ping -n 4 example.com        # Windows
ping -6 -c 4 example.com     # force IPv6

Frequently asked questions

What is a good ping time?

Under 50 ms is excellent for nearby servers, 50 to 150 ms is normal across continents, and over 200 ms will feel slow for interactive use. Consistency matters as much as the average.

The host blocks ping. How else can I test it?

Use the port checker to test a TCP port the service listens on (for example 443 for a website or 22 for SSH), or the HTTP checker for a web server.

Should I allow ping on my servers?

Allowing ICMP echo is generally harmless and makes troubleshooting easier. Don't block all ICMP, though: blocking the packet-too-big and unreachable messages breaks path MTU discovery.

Ping