There’s nothing more frustrating than trying to play a ranked League of Legends game with 200+ ping because your friend moved to another country and you’re stuck playing on your home server. Or maybe you’ve been seeing clips of a wild new meta popping up in a different region and want to try it out for yourself, without starting from scratch on a new smurf account. Whatever your reason, learning how to switch servers on league of legends doesn’t have to be a confusing process full of hidden fees or lost progress. This guide walks you through every step you need to take, what to check before you commit, and the most common mistakes that cost players hundreds of dollars and hours of progress every year.
Prerequisites Before You Switch Servers on League of Legends
Before you even think about clicking any transfer steps, you need to make sure your account is eligible and you understand exactly what you’re getting into. Riot has strict rules around server transfers to prevent fraud and account theft, so skipping these checks can lead to your transfer being denied entirely. First, make sure your account is in good standing, with no active bans, restrictions, or unresolved reports against it. You also need to be logged into the correct Riot account, not a secondary smurf if you have multiple accounts, to avoid transferring the wrong one by mistake.
Next, you need to know what will and won’t move with you to the new server. A lot of players assume all their account data transfers, but that’s not the case. Riot keeps a lot of region-specific data locked to each server to keep regional economies fair for all players. Here’s a quick breakdown to help you plan:
- Items that move with you: All owned champions, skins, chromas, emotes, summoner icons, ward skins, blue essence, orange essence, and permanent loot items in your inventory.
- Items that stay on your original server: Riot Points (RP), ranked stats, match history, Clash rewards, your existing friends list, and any ongoing event progress tied to that region.
- Items that reset entirely: Your ranked rank, placement match progress, and summoner name (you’ll get to pick a new one if your existing name is already taken on the new server).
You also need to have the transfer fee ready. As of the latest Riot policy, server transfers cost 2600 RP, which is roughly $20 USD depending on your region. You can buy the RP on your original server right before you transfer, or use any leftover RP you have there. Just don’t buy extra RP for your new server on your old account, because it won’t carry over.
Simple Step-by-Step Process to Complete Your Server Transfer
Once you’ve checked all the prerequisites, the actual transfer process only takes a few minutes to complete, though you may have to wait up to 24 hours for Riot to process it. First, log into your official Riot account through the Riot Games website, not through the League client. The client doesn’t have the transfer option built in, so you have to use the web portal.
Once you’re logged in, navigate to the “Account Management” section, then find the “Server Transfer” tab. You’ll see a list of all available regions you can transfer to, along with the ping you can expect to get to each one based on your current location. That ping test is a great quick check to make sure you won’t end up with unplayable lag on the new server.
After you select your desired region, you’ll be prompted to pay the 2600 RP transfer fee. If you’re new to learning how to switch servers on league of legends, this step is the easiest to miss, so take an extra second to confirm the region is correct. Double check the region you select twice, because you can’t cancel the transfer once you confirm it.
After you confirm the payment, you’ll get a confirmation email from Riot with an estimated processing time. Most transfers are done in 5 to 30 minutes, but if Riot is processing a lot of transfers around a big event, it can take longer. You won’t be able to log into your account on any server while the transfer is processing, so don’t plan to play right after you submit it.
When the transfer is done, you’ll get another email letting you know it’s complete. You can then open the League client, select your new region from the server dropdown, and log in. If your summoner name is already taken on the new server, you’ll be prompted to pick a new one right before you load into the client for the first time.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Switching Servers
Even though the transfer process is simple, there are a lot of small mistakes that can ruin your experience or cost you money. One of the most common mistakes players make is forgetting to spend all their leftover RP on their original server before transferring. Since RP doesn’t carry over, any unspent RP will just sit on your old server until you transfer back, which can be months later if you have to wait out the transfer cooldown.
Another common mistake is transferring right before a big event ends, or right after you’ve spent weeks grinding for event rewards. All event progress is tied to your original server, so you’ll lose all of it if you transfer before you claim your rewards. If you’re close to finishing an event pass, wait until you’ve claimed all your rewards before you submit your transfer request.
You can only transfer servers once every 90 days, so don’t transfer on a whim if you think you might want to go back soon. A lot of players transfer to play with a friend for a weekend, then realize they want to go back to their original server to play ranked with their old friends, and end up stuck waiting 3 months to transfer back.
You also want to test the ping on the new server before you pay for the transfer. Make a free smurf account on the region you want to move to, play a few normal games, and see what your average ping is, if the queue times are reasonable, and if you can understand the chat if the region speaks a different language. That 10 minutes of testing can save you $20 and a lot of frustration later.
Is Switching Servers the Right Choice for You?
Before you commit to paying the transfer fee and giving up your ranked progress on your original server, you should weigh the pros and cons to make sure it’s worth it. The biggest benefit of switching servers is being able to play with friends who live in other regions, without dealing with the unplayable ping that comes with playing on a server across the world.
Other benefits include getting to try new meta strategies that are popular in other regions, accessing region-exclusive events and promotions, and getting lower ping if you’ve recently moved to a new country permanently. If you’re a content creator, switching servers can also give you access to a whole new audience of players to play with and make content about.
There are also some big downsides to consider though. You’ll lose all your ranked progress on your original server, so if you’ve spent months grinding to get to Diamond, you’ll have to start over in placements on the new server. You also have to rebuild your entire friends list from scratch, and you may face longer queue times if you switch to a less populated region.
I learned this the hard way a few years ago when I transferred to the OCE server to play with a friend who moved there for work. I didn’t test the ping first, ended up with 190 average ping every game, and the queue times for ranked were 20+ minutes at peak times. I ended up waiting 3 months to transfer back, and wasted $20 on the transfer fee. So take it from me, don’t make that mistake.
At the end of the day, learning how to switch servers on league of legends is a straightforward process as long as you take the time to check the prerequisites, follow the steps, and avoid the common mistakes most players make. If you’ve weighed the pros and cons and decided it’s the right choice for you, the process will go smoothly, and you’ll be playing on your new server in no time. Just remember to test the ping first, spend your leftover RP, and claim all your event rewards before you hit that confirm button.