Updated at: 24-03-2023 - By: Leo Hall

Thanks to technological progress, the possibilities open to us are infinite. Wisdom, originality, and inventiveness. We could also just play some games, if that’s what you’d prefer. Thanks to the efforts of other people’s imaginations, there are now more exciting video games available online than ever before. The proliferation of online gaming is a direct result of the widespread availability of high-quality internet connections and the success of those games. Simultaneously, the preferred game model has shifted from a single-player to a multiplayer setup, which, unless you’re playing on a Nintendo 64 or a PS1, you’re probably doing online.

Are you curious about how much bandwidth a game requires?

Online gaming naturally necessitates the utilization of network resources. Most popular online games only use between 30 and 300 MB per hour, despite the widespread belief that they will consume an entire month’s worth of data. An additional justification for investing in a WiFi Router for Gaming is that it will allow you to prioritize gaming traffic and prevent annoyingly high pings; for example, standard-definition Netflix streaming uses up a lot more bandwidth than online gaming. This article will go over the average values for the most popular games for PC, smartphone, Xbox One, and PS4 to give you a better idea of how much data online games use.

The average amount of data used by the most played online games has been compiled by WhistleOut. We added some extra games that might interest you. It’s important to remember, though, that many factors can influence these estimates. Data consumption can rise due to patches, updates, and phone calls. In addition, if you play games frequently, you can expect your monthly data usage to rise significantly. See below for an hourly breakdown of how much data is consumed by the most played online games.

How Much Data Does Online Gaming Use? - Domain Name Sanity Blog

In-Game Name Normal Hourly Data Consumption
Fortnite 100MB
Destiny 2 300MB
Overwatch 135MB
Minecraft 40MB-200MB
Diablo 3 (Single-Player) 16 MB 25 MB (Single Player) 26 MB (Multiplayer)
Warcraft, or World of Warcraft, 40MB
Playing League of Legends 45MB
A Digital Version of Grand Theft Auto V 60MB
Dota 2 120MB
It’s time for Team Fortress 2! 80MB
Global Offensive: Counter-Strike 250MB
Trench warfare in Call of Duty: World War II 40MB
Black Ops 4, the latest Call of Duty game 80MB

So even the most data-intensive online games don’t consume a huge amount of bandwidth. Voice chat and patches are two potential contributors to increased data usage per hour. Voice chat is a useful tool for strategizing and keeping tabs on teammates in multiplayer campaigns. This function is built into some games, while in others you’ll need a third-party program like Skype, TeamSpeak, or Discord. Skype calls can use anywhere from 13 to 45MB per hour, giving you a rough idea of how much extra data voice chatting occupies. This estimate is based on a call between two people; as the size of your team grows, so will your data consumption. Games’ online features, such as updates and patches, also eat up data. Whether you’re playing a solitary adventure or an offline game, your game will still require internet access from time to time in order to download updates.

How Much Data Does Online Gaming Use On Mobile Hotspot?

It has been found that playing games while connected to a mobile hotspot has no discernible effect on average data consumption levels. But be wary of fixes and upgrades. Patches, as we’ve mentioned, can easily consume several GBs of data in a single hour. Since many revisions are performed automatically, you might not even notice that this is occurring. The largest quantity of information is used during the game’s initial download.

How Much Data Does Downloading Games Use?

Some online games don’t use a lot of data while being played, but they can take up a lot of space on your hard drive. Purchasing a game online and having to download it can be a significant drain on data transfer speeds. It still is dependent on the gadget or gaming console and the game itself. It takes about 50GB to download some of the most popular games for the PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. For example, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 requires 45GB to 55GB, depending on the system you use. Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is 49 GB in size, while Red Dead Redemption 2 is a whopping 89 GB. On the other hand, Fortnite only needs 20GB. Games for portable systems like the Nintendo Switch also tend to be smaller in size, typically requiring less than 10GB of storage space. Games designed for mobile devices are typically lightweight, weighing in at under 1GB. Independent video games are another option because they typically weigh in at under 5 GB. Make sure you have enough space on your device before starting the game download. Massive downloads can cause internet problems, or just arguing problems, in a household where people share a limited internet plan. Also, remember that patches still require data even if you buy the game on disc rather than downloading it. Patches for games like Destiny 2 typically weigh in at around 5GB in size, though some patches can take up to 10GB. Most recently, the 1.14 update for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, which included a great deal of new multiplayer content, has a total average size of 60 GB. Again, this varies between consoles and computers (PS4: 51GB, PC: 67-68GB).

Does Online Gaming Really Use a Ton of Bandwidth?

How Much Data Does Online Gaming Use Vs. Streaming?

In terms of data usage, streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu actually consume more bandwidth per viewing hour than do online games. If anyone in your household complains that you’re using too much of the internet bandwidth by playing video games, remind them that they themselves are the ones consuming more data than you are by streaming videos. As opposed to the 300MB per hour required by even the most resource-intensive online game, the 7GB required by streaming video can quickly add up. For comparison’s sake, while Netflix HD uses around 3GB per hour, Netflix 4K can use up to 7GB per hour. Netflix standard definition streams at 1GB per hour, which is still 3–4 times more data than the most data-intensive online games. You are now free to enjoy your gaming experience without interference.

Gaming and Video Streaming – Myth vs. Reality

As a gamer who has had to share the internet with relatives or roommates, you may have found it frustrating to hear complaints that your online gaming was slowing everyone else down.

Online gaming actually uses significantly less data than other common online activities, such as watching high-definition videos on YouTube or streaming shows from services like HBO and Netflix. Not convinced? Think about the fact that Netflix can eat up to 7 GB per hour of 4K content, or 3 GB per hour in HD mode.

Just how much more data does gaming require? For the vast majority of games, a lot less than that. Games like Microsoft Flight Simulator and Destiny are extreme examples, as they can consume more than 300 MB of data in an hour. Most video games have a much lower budget than that. Keep in mind that first-person shooter tournaments use significantly more bandwidth than games like Minecraft, and that more graphically complex games will use even more. In this article, we will go over the typical amounts of data consumed by PCs while playing online games. The amount of data used by an Xbox or PS4 should be comparable, or even slightly lower.

Game Time-based data consumption (in megabytes)
Combat Arms V 100
A Virtual Trip to the Black Desert 60
“Call of Duty: Black Ops 4” 40
Games Like “Call of Duty: World War II” 40
Battlefield: Modern Call of Duty 80
CS:GO, or Counter-Strike: Global Offensive 250
Destiny 2 300
Dota 2 120
Diablo 3 40
The Final KO on the Losers 70
Fantasy XIV: Final Chapter 30
Fortnite 100
GW2: Guild Wars 50
Gwent 5
Multiplayer Mode in Grand Theft Auto V Online 60
Hearthstone 3
Battle Heroes 30
To play League of Legends 45
Minecraft 40
The World of Monster Hunting 30
An Evening in Neverwinter 60
Overwatch 130
PUBG stands for “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds.” 80
‘Rainbow Six: Siege’ 70
A Game of Rocketry 40
Runescape 15
Assault on the Stealthy Sea 40
Smite 100
The Old Republic – Star Wars 30
Battle Royale Game: Team Fortress 2 80
ESO: The Online Adventures of the Elder Scrolls 40
Valorant 290
Warframe 110
Warcraft, or World of 40

Note that these are, at best, ballpark figures for the average amount of data required to play an online game. Because of this, the actual figures can fluctuate widely. Consider a popular video game like Minecraft: Data usage can be anywhere from less than 40 MB per hour to more than 100 MB per hour, depending on the size of the server and the number of players online at any given time. This is particularly relevant to games that allow for a large number of simultaneous players, such as multiplayer ones.

In addition, the voice chat is a crucial feature that is frequently disregarded. Whether you use a third-party app like Discord or rely on the in-game voice chat, talking to other people online while gaming will significantly increase bandwidth usage. When playing games online, how much bandwidth does voice chat require? Again, this is contingent on the total number of players and those who wish to engage in voice communication. The best microphones on the market will use even more bandwidth to transmit high-quality audio, but even so, you can expect it to add 50 MB/h or more to your total.

How To Reduce Bandwidth Usage While Gaming

While it’s true that many people now have unlimited data plans, you still might only have so much monthly bandwidth at your disposal. Playing games while using a public Wi-Fi hotspot can quickly use up your allotted monthly data plan. So, how can you minimize the time and data required for gaming? To be honest, there are a few things.

How much data you use while playing a game is dependent on a number of factors beyond your control, such as the efficiency of the game’s code. Considerations like server population size and data complexity must also be taken into account. Lastly, the aforementioned voice chat can use up to fifty or more megabytes per hour, depending on the number of people participating.

How Much Data Does Online Gaming Use? Spend Your Bandwidth Wisely

The good news is that there are some variables over which you have complete control. In addition to improving the game’s performance, data-saving options have other advantages. Game launchers and similar background programs can significantly increase data consumption by downloading game updates and patches in the background while you play. In light of the foregoing, here are some suggestions for decreasing your game’s bandwidth requirements:

  • Silence the group chat.
  • Use a medium or small value for the texture size.
  • Lower the quality of shadows and post-processing.
  • Remove anti-aliasing by pressing the button.
  • Be sure no unnecessary processes, like game launchers, are running in the background and kill them if you find any.
  • If you’re on a tight monthly data plan, you might want to hold off on downloading those massive games and patches.

FAQs

How much internet do gamers use per month?

How much data is consumed monthly by online gaming? What about streaming video games? Without knowing each person’s unique pattern of gameplay, it is impossible to provide meaningful answers to these questions. Depending on the game, an hour of online gaming can use anywhere from 3 MB to 300 MB or more of data. The typical gamer spends about 3.2 GB per month on online gaming, based on usage statistics that assume they play for four hours per day, twenty days per month. This assumes that each game uses 40 MB per hour.

What uses more data: streaming or gaming?

When compared to other forms of streaming media, such as 4K video on Netflix or similar services, online gaming typically uses much less bandwidth. However, some games, such as Destiny 2 and Microsoft Flight Simulator, use your internet bandwidth like a torrent download or streaming a 4K movie. In addition, if you intend to play games while streaming, you should anticipate significantly higher data usage, as streaming video from your computer will consume as much as, if not more than, your gaming session itself.

Is a mobile hotspot good for gaming?

If you can’t get anything else, it’s great; otherwise, stick with dial-up or optical. While today’s mobile internet is undoubtedly fast and dependable, the massive amounts of data required for online games can quickly deplete even the most generous of data plans, forcing users to shell out a lot more money for higher limits or unlimited access. It’s also important to keep in mind that wired solutions tend to be faster and more reliable than wireless and gaming hotspot internet.

Can I play PS4 online with a mobile hotspot?

Definitely. Connect your PS4 to your phone’s Wi-Fi hotspot and you’ll be good to go. Even though mobile internet is typically inferior to wired solutions until 5G becomes widespread, it is a great choice for mobile gaming and areas without wired internet. When your PS4 is online, it may want to do some large downloads, such as automatic game updates or other large downloads, but keep in mind that these can quickly deplete your monthly data limit.

Is 50GB enough for online gaming?

The vast majority of gamers, though perhaps not all, should enjoy it. To learn more about how much data popular games typically use per hour, check out our “How Much Data Does Online Gaming Use?” guide above. Next, think about how many hours a day you spend gaming, and then multiply that number by 30 to get the total number of hours you spend gaming in a month. A 50 GB monthly cap should be sufficient unless you plan on streaming Destiny 2 or playing other demanding games like Microsoft Flight Simulator.