If you’ve ever sat through a LoL stream or played your first few ranked matches and heard teammates yell about missing CS, you’ve probably wondered what is CS in League of Legends, and why it matters so much. Many new players write off CS as a weird term only pro players care about, but it’s one of the core mechanics that separates casual players from those who consistently climb ranks. I’ve been playing LoL for 8 years, and I still make CS mistakes in low elo games every now and then, so I know how overwhelming it can feel to learn when you’re also juggling champion abilities, map awareness, and enemy ganks. This guide breaks down everything you need to know to start farming better, no matter what role you main.
What Exactly Counts as CS in League of Legends?
CS stands for creep score, and it refers to the total number of non-champion enemy units you land the killing blow on during a match. You only get credit for CS if you are the one to land the final hit that takes the unit out; if your minion, turret, or teammate gets the kill, it won’t count towards your total, and you won’t get the gold reward for that unit either. It’s a simple concept on paper, but mastering it takes practice, especially when you’re also trading with your lane opponent or watching for jungle ganks.
CS doesn’t only apply to lane minions, either. You’ll get CS credit for killing jungle monsters, Rift Scuttlers, enemy summoned units like Yorick’s ghouls or Zyra’s plants, and even epic monsters like Dragon and Baron Nashor. The only enemy units that don’t count towards your CS are wards, traps, and short-lived summons like Teemo’s mushrooms. I’ve seen new players get confused when their CS number doesn’t go up after killing an enemy ward, so don’t worry if you made that mistake too when you first started.
10 CS per minute is considered the benchmark for perfect farming, even pros only hit that 80% of the time in competitive matches, so don’t stress if you’re at 5-6 CS per minute when you’re starting out. Even small improvements to your CS total will make a huge difference in your performance, so you don’t have to chase perfection right away.
Why CS Matters More Than Kills for Most Roles
A lot of new players fixate on getting kills to get gold, but CS is a far more reliable, low-risk way to build your item lead over the enemy team. The average kill gives around 300 gold, which is the same amount you get from killing 15 regular lane minions, and you don’t have to risk dying to get that gold. Even if you never get a single kill in a game, consistent farming will let you hit your item spikes faster than an opponent who chases kills and misses half their minion waves.
Even a 2 CS per minute gap between you and your lane opponent translates to a full item advantage by 20 minutes. That means if you’re farming 7 CS per minute and your opponent is only farming 5, you’ll have a free Infinity Edge or Rabadon’s Deathcap before they do, which is enough to win almost any team fight on its own. This is especially important for ADCs and mid laners, who rely on expensive core items to deal damage in the late game.
If you’re curious exactly how much gold you’re getting from each CS unit, here’s a quick breakdown of standard values:
Last season I played a Jinx game where I only got 2 kills the whole match, but I had 9 CS per minute at 25 minutes, and I was still the highest damage dealer on my team because I had my full build 5 minutes earlier than the enemy ADC. Kills feel good, but consistent CS wins games far more often.
Easy CS Tips You Can Start Using in Your Next Game
The first and most important tip for better CS is to practice last hitting without using abilities first. Many new players spam abilities to clear waves fast, but that wastes mana and pushes the wave into enemy turret range, making you an easy target for ganks. Instead, wait until a minion is low enough to die from one auto attack, then land that hit to get the gold and CS credit. Turn on "show last hit attack range" in your settings to see exactly when a minion is low enough for you to kill, which takes all the guesswork out of timing your hits.
You should also learn basic wave management to make farming easier. If you freeze the minion wave just outside of your turret range, your opponent will be forced to walk far from their own turret to farm, making them vulnerable to ganks from your jungler, and you’ll be able to farm safely without worrying about getting jumped. Only push the wave fast if you need to roam to help another lane, or you know the enemy jungler is on the opposite side of the map.
Spend 10 minutes a day in the practice tool farming minions without using abilities, and you’ll see a huge improvement in your CS in less than a week. It’s boring, but it’s the fastest way to build muscle memory for last hit timing, so you don’t have to think about it as much when you’re playing real matches against real opponents.
That said, don’t be afraid to skip CS if it means staying alive. If the enemy jungler is missing from the map and you don’t have vision in the river, it’s better to miss 3 minions than to get ganked, die, and lose 3 full waves worth of gold and XP while you’re waiting to respawn. I used to chase every single minion even when I knew the jungler was nearby, and I’d die at least once per lane phase because of it. Once I started prioritizing survival over perfect CS, my win rate went up 12% in a single month.
Common CS Mistakes New Players Make (and How to Fix Them)
The most common mistake new players make is using abilities to clear waves too early in the lane phase. This not only wastes mana you need for trading with your lane opponent, but it also pushes the wave to the enemy turret, where you’ll have a much harder time last hitting minions under turret fire. Only use abilities to clear waves if you’re going to roam, or you need to crash the wave before you back to buy items.
Another big mistake is ignoring cannon minions to farm regular minions. Cannon minions give more than 3x the gold of a regular melee minion, and they’re harder for turrets to kill fast, so always prioritize last hitting cannons before you go for regular minions. Missing one cannon minion is the same as missing 3 regular melee minions, so it’s worth taking a small bit of damage to get that kill if you can do it safely.
If you play a roaming role like mid lane or jungler, don’t forget to pick up stray CS when you’re moving around the map. A lot of players will walk past a free Rift Scuttler or a small jungle camp after a successful gank, and that’s 100+ free gold you’re leaving on the table for no reason. Just make sure you don’t steal CS from your laners if they’re still in lane, that will just tilt your teammates and make them play worse.
The last mistake a lot of new players make is comparing their CS to pro players immediately. Pro players have thousands of hours of practice, and they have supports and junglers watching their backs so they can farm without worrying about ganks. If you’re hitting 5-6 CS per minute in your first 100 games, you’re doing perfectly fine. Focus on small improvements instead of chasing the 10 CS per minute benchmark right out of the gate.
At the end of the day, learning what is CS in League of Legends is one of the first big steps you’ll take to move past casual play and start climbing ranks. You don’t have to be perfect at it right away, and small improvements add up faster than you think. Next time you load into a game, focus on hitting 6 CS per minute first, then work your way up to 7, 8, and beyond as you get more comfortable. Before you know it, you’ll be the one carrying your team even if you don’t get a dozen kills every game.