What does NAT type mean for online gaming?

If you regularly play online games, you may have noticed a setting called NAT type or even got an alert about it. Here's what it means and why it matters.

NAT type isn’t always an issue, and depends on how your network is configured.

Inside an online game's settings or on your console you may have seen the NAT Type field and wondered what it meant. In some cases, you might even get a warning that your NAT type is strict and that matchmaking will be affected.

In many cases, this is more informational than anything you need to act on. If your game is working fine in matchmaking and voice chat, then adjustments shouldn't be necessary. But if your network is configured poorly for gaming and you keep getting disconnected or seeing errors, you should make some changes to avoid performance issues. Let's look over what NAT type means, how it affects you and what you can do to adjust it.

Understanding NAT

NAT stands for network address translation and is a key part of how the internet has worked for some time. IPv4, the original scheme for IP addresses, only has enough room for about four billion unique numbers. That was plenty when the standard was developed in the '80s but it quickly became stretched once everyone got online and started adding dozens of smart devices.

ISPs came up with NAT as a solution. With this, each home has one public IP address and its router translates incoming and outgoing traffic so all devices within it work under a single public IP. It's not a significant roadblock to most network traffic, but for real-time applications like gaming small bits of inconsistency and these layers of translation can have a big effect.

The newer version of the internet protocol, IPv6, has enough possible IP addresses for every grain of sand on Earth to have billions of their own. It thus doesn't require NAT because every device can have its own IP address.

Many modern devices support IPv6, but the transition hasn't fully completed yet. Some devices work in a hybrid mode where they can take advantage of IPv6 but fall back to IPv4 if there are issues or another device along the chain isn't compatible.

How NAT type affects games

NAT type in a game explains how well your device can communicate with the wider internet. On Xbox and PC, you'll see three types: Open, Moderate and Strict. On PlayStation, these are respectively known as Type 1, Type 2 and Type 3. The Nintendo Switch uses A, B and C, with D for connections that are heavily restricted and F if your console can't connect at all. NAT types are not an official network specification, which is why they vary across platforms.

An Open NAT means your gaming console or PC is directly connected to the internet and has no restrictions on what it can communicate with. (As explained above, this isn't actually NAT, but games still designate it as such.) Moderate indicates that your system is behind a router for its internet connection but is still able to communicate as needed. Finally, Strict means your system has necessary ports blocked and can't communicate normally.

What this means for your connections

Although Open sounds like it should be the goal, that's not really the case. Having your console or PC directly connected to the internet is impractical, as it would require you to connect your machine to your modem, preventing you from using a router to get every other device online unless you used a network switch. Importantly, it would also be insecure since you wouldn't have the firewall or other security features of your router protecting your network traffic.

With an Open NAT type, you can connect to anyone else; and with Moderate you can connect to other Moderate or Open players. Strict is the least compatible, as you can only play with those who have an Open NAT. Usually, someone with an Open NAT is chosen as the game host, while having a Strict NAT means you're more likely to see matchmaking errors, won't be able to join friends and similar.

Your experience is most affected by NAT type in games with peer-to-peer (P2P) connections rather than dedicated servers provided by the developer. However, even in games with their own servers, elements like in-game voice chat, custom lobbies, co-op campaigns and similar might still rely on P2P connections.

NAT type doesn't change your network speed or ping; it only affects who your console can talk to. Improving your router's download speeds is another matter.

Checking and improving your NAT type

To check your NAT type on PS5, go to Settings > Network > Connection Status > Test Internet Connection, and there you'll be able to see your NAT type. On Xbox Series X|S, go to Settings > General > Network Settings and check under Current Network Status. On a Switch or Switch 2, go to Settings > Internet > Test Connection. Some games will also show your NAT in their network settings or on the multiplayer main menu.

If your NAT type is Open/Type 1/A or Moderate/Type 2/B, you're in good shape for multiplayer games. In case you see a worse rating, you can make a few adjustments on your network, but there isn't a simple toggle to flip.

First, make sure you aren't using two routers. This creates a problem called double NAT where there are two layers of address translation happening. If you have a router connected to your ISP's gateway, putting the gateway in bridge mode will prevent double NAT. Anyone who uses a second router as an access point should put it in AP mode so it's not doubling up on router functionality.

Other common causes of Strict NAT

Aside from that, the most common fix for a Strict NAT type is enabling UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) on your router. NAT type problems occur because games and online services can't communicate with your console over the relevant ports. Fixing this involves logging into your router and forwarding the relevant ports to your console or gaming PC to unblock relevant communication from the outside, but doing so for every game is inconvenient.

When UPnP is enabled, any device on your network can request ports that it needs forwarded from your router and they will be granted. This is convenient but also creates security risks. If someone malicious gained access to your network, they could abuse UPnP to request ports be opened that give them more control. You can try a UPnP test to see if your network listens for UPnP requests outside your home LAN; if so, it's even more dangerous. Especially if you don't play a lot of different games, spending a bit of time port forwarding is probably worth the security benefit. Port Forward is a good resource for getting started.

Failing all this, the problem can be caused by CGNAT, or carrier-grade NAT. This is when ISPs apply NAT to entire areas that they service, meaning the public IP address of your router goes through its own layer of translation by your ISP. Using IPv6 is a workaround for this, though Xbox is the only console that uses it fully. The PS5 and Switch 2 support IPv6 but require IPv4 alongside it. If enabling IPv6 on your router isn't enough, try contacting your ISP and requesting a dedicated public IP.