If you’ve scrolled TikTok of pro LoL esports plays, laughed at your friend’s rage clips from ranked, or just want to join the more than 180 million monthly active players around the world, your first step is figuring out where to get league of legends safely. I’ve helped more than 30 new friends set up their LoL accounts and clients over the last 8 years, and I’ve seen every mistake you can make, from downloading malware-infested files from random sites to accidentally picking the wrong region and being stuck with 200ms ping for months. This guide cuts through all the noise to give you only verified, safe methods to get the game, plus tips to avoid common headaches before and after install. You won’t have to waste hours troubleshooting broken files or worrying your account will get hacked before you even play your first match.
Official, Safe Sources Where to Get League of Legends for Every Device
There are tons of sketchy sites online that claim to offer “faster downloads” or “pre-modded LoL clients” but almost all of them come with hidden risks. If you're wondering where to get league of legends without risking your device or account, these are the only sources you should trust. Riot actively blocks unapproved download sources, so even if you do get a working file from a third party, you’ll likely get locked out of your account or face permanent bans down the line. If you're still not sure which source works for your specific device, the official Riot support pages have clear, step-by-step instructions for every supported platform.
- Official Riot Games website for PC and Mac downloads: This is the most direct, reliable source for the full PC version of the game.
- Riot Client app: If you already play other Riot titles like Valorant or Teamfight Tactics, you can download LoL directly through the existing client without visiting the website.
- Apple App Store and Google Play Store for League of Legends: Wild Rift: This is the official mobile version of the game, optimized for touch controls and shorter match times.
- Official console storefronts for League of Legends console ports: For PlayStation and Xbox users, only download the game directly from your console’s first-party store to avoid fake copies.
Never download League of Legends from peer-to-peer file sharing sites, random blog links, or Discord attachments. These files almost always contain keyloggers, adware, or ransomware that can steal your personal information or lock your device. Always double check you are on the official Riot Games domain before clicking download, even if you clicked a link from a social media ad or friend’s message. Scammers often make near-perfect copies of the Riot site to trick people into entering their account details.
Key Pre-Download Checks to Avoid Headaches Later
Before you hit the download button, there are a few quick checks you can do to make sure your install goes smoothly, no restarts or troubleshooting required. You don’t need a fancy gaming PC to run LoL, but there are a few minimum specs you should confirm first to make sure the game runs well.
Minimum PC requirements for smooth 60fps gameplay at 1080p include an Intel i3-530 processor, 4GB of RAM, and 16GB of free storage space. Most laptops made after 2017 will meet these requirements easily, even if they don’t have a dedicated graphics card. If you have a Mac, you’ll need macOS 10.13 or higher, and the same 16GB of free space. If you have less than 16GB of space available, delete old files or install the game on an external drive to avoid corrupted install errors.
Turn off third-party antivirus temporarily during download if you use tools other than Windows Defender. Many third-party antivirus programs flag Riot’s anti-cheat software, Vanguard, as a suspicious file, and will delete it mid-install. This leads to constant error messages when you try to launch the game, and you’ll have to reinstall the entire client to fix it. Just remember to turn your antivirus back on once the install is complete, and mark Vanguard as a trusted file if you get a pop-up.
You’ll also need a valid email address to create your Riot account during the install process. Pick a strong, unique password that you don’t use for other accounts, and enable two-factor authentication as soon as you make your account. This prevents hackers from accessing your account even if your password gets leaked, which is a common issue for players who reuse passwords across multiple gaming sites.
Common Download Mistakes New Players Make (And How to Fix Them)
Even if you download the game from the official source, there are a few common mistakes that can ruin your first experience with LoL. Most of these are easy to avoid if you know what to look for before you finalize your setup.
The most common mistake I see is new players picking the wrong region during account creation. If you live on the east coast of the US, picking the EU West region will leave you with 180-220ms ping, which makes it almost impossible to land skill shots or react fast enough to enemy plays. Double check your selected region before finalizing your account creation because region transfers cost $20, and Riot almost never gives free transfers for accidental picks. If you already made the mistake, you can either pay for the transfer or make a new account on the correct region, which is usually faster for new players who haven’t unlocked any champions yet.
Another common issue is download speeds dropping to zero mid-install. This usually happens if you have other large downloads running in the background, like streaming 4K content or updating other games. Pause all other downloads, restart your router, and restart the Riot Client to fix the issue. If it still doesn’t work, try connecting your device directly to your router with an ethernet cable instead of using Wi-Fi, which is usually less stable for large file downloads.
Don’t try to download the PC version of LoL on a Chromebook, either. The full PC version doesn’t natively support Chrome OS, and most workarounds will either be extremely laggy or not work at all. If you want to play LoL on a Chromebook, you can download Wild Rift from the Google Play Store if your Chromebook supports Android apps, which most newer models do.
Post-Install Steps to Get You Ready for Your First Match
Once the download and install is complete, you’re not quite ready to jump into a match yet. There are a few quick steps you can take to make your first few games much more enjoyable, and avoid making silly mistakes that frustrate your teammates.
First, you’ll have a small post-install patch to download, which is normal. This patch usually includes the latest champion updates and bug fixes, so it’s important to let it run fully before you try to launch the game. Once the patch is done, you’ll be prompted to pick a summoner name, which is the name other players will see in matches. Summoner names are unique per region, so you might have to get creative if your first pick is already taken.
Complete the in-game tutorial first even if you’ve played other MOBAs like Dota 2 or Smite. LoL has unique mechanics like last hitting minions for gold, jungle pathing, and objective timers that work differently than other games in the genre. The tutorial only takes 15 minutes, and it gives you free in-game currency to unlock your first champion when you finish it.
Next, go into the settings menu and adjust your graphics and control settings to fit your device. If you’re running the game on an older laptop, turn down shadow and effect settings to get higher frame rates, which makes the game feel much more responsive. You can also adjust your keybinds to match what you’re used to from other games, instead of sticking with the default controls. Most pro players adjust their keybinds to make abilities easier to reach quickly, so don’t be afraid to experiment to find what works for you.
New players get a rotating set of 15 free champions every week, plus 10 permanent free champions when they first make their account, so you don’t have to spend any real money to try different roles. Start with simple champions like Garen, Ashe, or Annie first to get the hang of the game, before you try more complex champions like Zed or Akali that require a lot of practice to play well.
Figuring out where to get league of legends safely is the first step to joining one of the biggest, most active gaming communities in the world. Stick to the official sources we covered, run through the pre-download checks, and avoid the common mistakes we listed, and you’ll be playing your first match in less than an hour, no troubleshooting required. It’s normal to lose your first few matches, even if you’re an experienced MOBA player. LoL has a steep learning curve, but that’s part of the fun, and every match teaches you something new that will make you a better player down the line.