Fortnite fans are increasingly becoming stuck on the loading screen when attempting to play Epic Games’ battle royale title (fix here), but that doesn’t mean those able to access the game aren’t having a rough time as well. Some players have been left asking themselves “Why is Fortnite so laggy?” as we enter 2020, so we’re here to offer a few methods that should help you get back up and running without any more technical hitches.
Why is Fortnite lagging?
Lag is most often caused by a communication delay between your network and the game servers, which manifests on-screen as the pause you see between inputting a command and seeing it performed by the in-game avatar. The cause of lag can be due to a problem on the user end, developer end, or a combination of both.
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With reports of lag being widespread at the time of writing, it’s possible that the issue could lie with developer Epic Games, though the Fortnite status page does list the title as fully operational. With this in mind, here are some troubleshooting steps to perform in order to ensure that you have the best possible chance of mitigating lag.
How to fix Fortnite lagging on PC
Due to the PC platform offering players graphics options, the first step you should take is to ensure that the so-called “lag” isn’t actually a low framerate caused by running the game at high graphical settings.
- Boot up Fortnite
- Click the symbol with three horizontal lines in the top right corner of the menu
- Click “Settings”
- Scroll down to “Graphics Quality”
- Click “Auto-Set Quality”
This will configure the game to run properly on your PC hardware.
If you’re still having trouble, then the issue may lie with your internet connection.
You’ll want to try the following:
- Reset your internet router and after it reconnects, test whether or not the problem is fixed
- Switch the network you’re connected to for one with a stronger signal strength
- Be mindful of unwanted data charges that this may incur
How to fix Fortnite lagging on PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch
If you’re playing any of the console versions of Fortnite, you just need to follow the internet connection troubleshooting steps.
- Reset your internet router and after it reconnects, test whether or not the problem is fixed
- Switch the network you’re connected to for one with a stronger signal strength
- Be mindful of unwanted data charges that this may incur
If you’re still encountering lag and it isn’t usually an issue for you, the problem is most likely the result of some form of fault with the game servers. In this case, the best course of action is simply to wait for the issue to be addressed.
