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Optimizer or ping booster? NOVA and ExitLag

They fix different things. An optimizer such as NOVA changes settings on your PC. A routing service such as ExitLag carries your game's traffic through its own servers on the way to the game server. Which one can help depends on where your lag starts.

This isn't a test of either product. It explains what each kind of tool can and can't reach, so you can work out which one your problem needs before you pay for anything.

01What each one does

NOVA, an optimizer
  • Changes your PC. Windows, graphics driver, network adapter and controller settings, each backed up before it changes.
  • Leaves your route alone. NOVA runs no servers, so your game's traffic still goes straight to the game server.
  • Diagnoses the connection. A live monitor for the game you're playing, a route trace and a lag-under-load test show where lag starts.
ExitLag, a routing service, in its own words
  • Picks a route. It "analyzes multiple network paths in real time" and sends your game's traffic the fastest, most stable way, through its own network of 1,500+ servers in 190+ countries.
  • Uses more than one path. It can send packets over several routes, so one weak path doesn't sink the match, and use up to four internet connections.
  • Extras on your PC. Traffic Shaper gives your game priority over downloads and streaming, and PC Boost reduces background load.
  • Not a VPN. It says it only touches the traffic of the game you select.

02Where your lag starts, and what helps

A routing service joins your connection after it leaves your home and your internet provider, so it can only change the part beyond them. Everything before that, and everything inside your PC, is the optimizer's side.

The problemWhat helpsCan a routing service help?
Low FPS or stutterYour PC: drivers, Windows and the game's own settings. This is what an optimizer is for.No. ExitLag says so itself: "Routing cannot raise your frame rate."
Ping jumps when someone uploads or streamsYour router's queue is filling (bufferbloat). Smart queueing on the router, or capping uploads on your PC while you play.Not past your PC. ExitLag's Traffic Shaper and NOVA's upload cap both put the game first on the PC they run on; other devices still share the line.
Packet loss on Wi-FiA cable, a clearer channel, or less distance to the router.No. The loss happens before your traffic leaves home.
Loss or delay inside your provider's networkYour provider. NOVA's connection log gives them the evidence.No. A routing service joins the route after your provider.
A detour or a busy link between your provider and the gameA different path, or a different server region.Maybe. This is the part a routing service goes around. A new path can be better or worse, so test it.
The game server is strugglingNothing on your side; another server or region.No. No route changes what happens at the server.
The server is far awayA closer server region.Only if your route takes a detour. Nothing shortens the distance itself.

03How NOVA tells you which one you have

  1. Game connection. While you play, NOVA watches the game's own connection every second: ping, jitter, loss and stalls. Its route trace shows where trouble starts: at home, inside your provider, between your provider and the game's network, or at the server.
  2. "Would a ping booster or routing service help?" The same card answers No, Maybe, test it or Can't tell yet, with the reason. For games that already run on Valve's relay network, it says so.
  3. Lag under load. NOVA pings while your connection downloads and uploads at full speed and grades the rise from A+ to F. A poor grade points at your home connection, which no route can fix. During games, Autopilot can then cap uploads from cloud sync, browsers and torrent apps below that measured speed.
  4. With and without. If ExitLag or another routing client is running, NOVA notices, keeps showing the direct route for comparison, and on the Games page compares your sessions with it and without it once there are two of each. It only calls it a difference when your typical ping moves by at least 5 ms and 10%. Sessions on different servers get mixed in, so read it as a trend, not a lab result.

NOVA doesn't reroute traffic. If its answer is "Maybe", a routing service is the right thing to try: ExitLag has a free trial, and NOVA will compare your sessions with it and without it.

04Using both

They work on different layers, so they can run side by side. NOVA doesn't touch ExitLag's traffic, and its route trace keeps showing the direct path. If you also use ExitLag's PC Boost, check what it changes before you apply NOVA's tweaks, so you know which tool changed a setting.

On price: ExitLag is a paid service with a free trial; its site has the current plans. NOVA is $24.99 once. More on why some network tweaks don't help: Myths we don't do: network.

Features as listed on each vendor's site on November 1, 2026. ExitLag: blog.exitlag.com/games, which links to its pricing and free trial. Its main site and help pages ask browsers to pass a bot check, so we couldn't read them, and this page quotes no ExitLag price or trial length. NOVA: novatuned.com and help.

ExitLag is a trademark of its owner, and NOVA isn't affiliated with it. Something here out of date? Write to and we'll correct it.

NOVAFind where your lag starts, then fix the part on your PC. One price, no subscription.
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