# League of Legends Ranks Explained: Tiers, LP and MMR
> Every League of Legends rank from Iron to Challenger, how LP and hidden MMR decide your gains, and where players actually sit in 2026. Includes demotion shields, decay, placements, the 2026 season resets and dodge penalties.
- **Game:** League of Legends
- **Category:** Ranked
- **Author:** ItzMaze (https://guides-factory.com/authors/itzmaze)
- **Difficulty:** Beginner
- **Reading time:** 18 min
- **Published:** 2026-10-23
- **Updated:** 2026-10-23
- **Tags:** Ranked, league-points, matchmaking, rank-distribution
- **Adapted from:** [All League of Legends Ranks Explained Distribution, LP, MMR and Every Tier](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnq5ryvDgxk)
- **Canonical URL:** https://guides-factory.com/guides/lol-ranks-guide
---
## π― The core idea
> League of Legends has 10 ranks, from Iron to Challenger. Iron through Diamond each have four divisions of 100 LP, and Master, Grandmaster and Challenger share one LP ladder. Your visible rank follows a hidden MMR: when the MMR is above your rank you gain more LP than you lose, and when it is below you lose more. In 2026 most ranked players sit in Silver, Gold or Platinum, and the middle of the ladder is Gold.
- free costs nothing
- cheap small cost
- setup needs preparation
- grind pays off slowly
- skip the thing to stop doing
This page explains League of Legends ranks for patch 26.21 (October 2026). It starts from a short May 2026 explainer by ExitLag Tips, the YouTube channel of the ExitLag connection-booster company, so the video opens with an ad for its own product. We checked every claim against the official League of Legends Wiki, the 2026 patch notes and Riot's /dev: Ranked 2026 blog. Some of the video's rank percentages are out of date for 2026, and we correct them below. If you want to climb rather than understand the system, read our [ranked climbing guide](/guides/lol-ranked-climb-guide). For everything else that changed this year, see the [Season 2026 changes guide](/guides/lol-season-changes-guide).
## The LoL rank order from Iron to Challenger
free The LoL rank order, lowest to highest, is: Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Emerald, Diamond, Master, Grandmaster, Challenger. That is the whole ladder from Iron to Challenger: ten tiers, and the video gets this part right. Emerald is the newest tier. Riot added it between Platinum and Diamond in 2023, so older guides that list nine ranks are out of date.
| Group | Tiers | How progress works |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Divided tiers | Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Emerald, Diamond | Four divisions each (IV, III, II, I), 100 LP per division |
| Apex tiers | Master, Grandmaster, Challenger | No divisions. One shared LP leaderboard per server |
You need summoner level 30 and at least 20 champions you own to play ranked. There are two ranked queues. Solo/Duo lets you queue alone or with one friend. Flex accepts parties of 1, 2, 3 or 5 players, but not 4. Each queue has its own rank. Since 2026, your Flex rating is pulled toward your Solo/Duo rank, but Flex never pulls your Solo/Duo rank up.
## Divisions and promotion: 100 LP per step
free Inside a tier, division IV is the lowest and division I is the highest. When you reach 100 LP you move up one division right away, and the extra LP carries over. There are no promotion series any more. At 100 LP in division I you move to division IV of the next tier, for example from Silver I to Gold IV. If a promotion would leave you at exactly 0 LP, the game adds one point.
Going down works the same way. If you lose LP while at 0 LP, you drop a division and the leftover loss carries over. Dropping out of a whole tier is harder, because the game has extra protection there (see the demotion shield section below).
## Master, Grandmaster and Challenger: the apex ladder
grind Master, Grandmaster and Challenger are the apex tiers. They have no divisions. Everyone in them is on one LP leaderboard, and your tier depends on where your LP puts you on that board. Master starts at 0 LP. The wiki gives two conditions for the higher tiers. You need at least **200 LP for Grandmaster** and **500 LP for Challenger**, and you also need one of a limited number of seats. In practice the real cutoff is the LP of the lowest player still holding a seat, so it is usually well above those minimums.
| Server (Solo/Duo) | Grandmaster seats | Challenger seats |
| --- | --- | --- |
| EUW, NA, KR, VN, SEA, PH | 700 | 300 |
| EUNE, BR, TR, LAN, LAS, TW | 500 | 200 |
| OCE, JP, RU, TH | 100 | 50 |
The leaderboard, and with it who is Grandmaster or Challenger, updates once a day at 23:45 UTC. Duo rules are stricter here than in the other tiers. Since patch 26.15, Master players can only duo with players close to their rank, and Grandmaster and Challenger players (or anyone with that MMR) cannot duo at all. Our [Season 2026 changes guide](/guides/lol-season-changes-guide) has the full history of that change.
## LoL rank distribution in 2026
free **Rank distribution changes every day, so treat any percentage, including ours, as a snapshot.** The table below uses the August 2026 solo queue data from Esports Tales (published 12 August 2026, all regions, built from Riot API data). For live numbers by region, check [League of Graphs' rank distribution page](https://www.leagueofgraphs.com/rankings/rank-distribution) or the [monthly Esports Tales tracker](https://www.esportstales.com/league-of-legends/rank-distribution-percentage-of-players-by-tier).
| Tier | Share of ranked players (Aug 2026) | Video's figure | Bottom division puts you in the top⦠|
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Iron | 3.4% | 35β40% (with Bronze) | 100% |
| Bronze | 16% | 35β40% (with Iron) | 96.6% |
| Silver | 21% | ~19% | 80.8% |
| Gold | 24% | 16β20% | 59.7% |
| Platinum | 18% | 11β15% | 36.2% |
| Emerald | 13% | 7β12% | 17.8% |
| Diamond | 4% | 3β5% | 4.9% |
| Master | 0.83% | under 1% (Master+) | 0.90% |
| Grandmaster | 0.054% | | 0.077% |
| Challenger | 0.023% | | 0.023% |
**The video's low-end numbers are wrong for 2026.** It says Iron and Bronze together hold about 35β40% of players. In the August 2026 data they hold about 19%, and the February, April and June 2026 snapshots from the same tracker are close to that. This is no accident. In the /dev: Ranked 2026 blog, Riot said it was recalibrating the lowest tiers because today's Bronze players play much better than Bronze players did years ago. The video's Gold, Platinum and Emerald shares are also a few points too low. Its Diamond and Master+ figures still match.
## What rank is average in LoL, and where Emerald sits
free So what rank is average in LoL? In the August 2026 data, half of all ranked players are at Gold III or higher (Gold III is the top 51.4%), so the median player is in Gold III. The video puts the average player between Silver II and Gold IV. That was closer to the truth before the 2026 recalibration, but it is a little low now.
The video makes a second mistake with Gold. It says reaching Gold puts you above about 60% of players. It is the other way around. Gold IV is the **top 59.7%**, which means only about 40% of players are below it. Gold is still a good first goal, but now it means "average", not "top 40%". In this data you are above about 64% of players at Platinum IV.
Emerald rank in LoL is where "above average" starts. Emerald IV is about the top 18%, and Emerald I is about the top 8%. The video's "Emerald puts you in the top 10%" is only true near Emerald I. Riot sorts players into skill brackets when it balances champions. It counts Iron IV to Emerald III as "Average", Emerald II to Diamond II as "Skilled" and Diamond I and above as "Elite". So by Riot's own definition, most of Emerald is still average play.
## How LP works in LoL: how many LP per win
free This is how LP works in LoL. You gain League Points (LP) for a win and lose LP for a loss. So how many LP per win? The 2026 baseline is **about +20 for a win and β20 for a loss when your hidden MMR matches your rank** (League system page, 2026 Annual Cycle). Our [ranked climbing guide](/guides/lol-ranked-climb-guide) uses the same Β±20 figure. Three things move your LP gains away from that baseline:
| Factor | Effect |
| --- | --- |
| MMR above your rank | More LP per win, less per loss (the big one) |
| MMR below your rank | Less LP per win, more per loss |
| Large gap between the two teams' average ranks, map side | Small adjustments only |
| Aegis of Valor (autofill or often-filled roles) | Double LP on a **win**. Since 26.15 it no longer protects losses and has no mastery-grade requirement |
| Consolation LP | Gives back LP lost to a flagged griefer, once per week, never enough to promote you |
Two more LP rules came in this year. In patch 26.10, if a match-termination vote passes against a disruptive player, that player's team loses no LP or MMR. If the vote fails, that team can still win LP but cannot lose any. The video does not mention either of these, or Aegis of Valor. It came out in May, before the 26.15 change, and the [Season 2026 changes guide](/guides/lol-season-changes-guide) explains how Aegis worked before and after.
## League of Legends MMR explained: the hidden rating
free Here is League of Legends MMR explained in short. Behind the visible rank there is a hidden matchmaking rating (MMR). Riot never shows the number. It is based only on whom you beat and whom you lose to. The matchmaker uses MMR to build lobbies and to decide your LP gains. Your visible rank is a slower layer on top of it, which is why two players with the same rank can gain very different amounts of LP. In the video's words, your hidden MMR is what really decides who you play against. The wiki says the same.
The lol hidden MMR also explains odd-looking lobbies. In 2026 Riot added a **Climb Indicator**. It marks a player whose rank is behind their MMR, so a "Silver player in a Platinum game" is often just someone who started climbing late. Solo/Duo and Flex each have their own MMR. Decay lowers your LP, but it never touches your MMR.
## Why am I losing more LP than gaining?
skip If you ask "why am I losing more LP than gaining?", the answer is nearly always that your MMR is below your visible rank. The system thinks you are ranked higher than you should be. It gives you smaller wins and bigger losses until your rank comes back down to your MMR, or until a run of wins pushes your MMR back up. Stop chasing the LP number with one more game when you are tilted. Every loss in that state costs more than a win gives back.
What fixes it:
- **Win more than you lose over a long run of games.** Your MMR rises first, and your LP gains follow a few games later. The video makes the same point: with low MMR, climbing feels slow even with a positive win rate.
- **Expect it after a lucky streak or a demotion shield save.** Both can lift your rank above your MMR for a while.
- **Don't dodge to avoid bad lobbies.** Dodging costs LP (see below) and does nothing for your MMR.
The opposite case is good news. If you gain 25 or more LP per win and lose fewer than 20, your MMR is ahead of your rank and you will climb quickly. LP gains explained in one line: the gap between your rank and your MMR decides your LP.
## The LoL demotion shield and tier-loss protection
free The video doesn't cover demotion. When you promote into a new tier from Bronze up to Master, you get a **demotion shield** (the "lol demotion shield" players search for). While it lasts, you stay at 0 LP instead of dropping out of the tier:
| Promoted into | Shield lasts |
| --- | --- |
| Bronze to Diamond | 10 games (wins and losses both count) |
| Master | 3 games |
When the shield runs out, you get **tier-loss protection**. You can lose a few more games at 0 LP in division IV before you drop. The exact number depends on your MMR and can change each time. A yellow warning icon on your ranked profile means a few more net losses will demote you. A red icon means the next loss probably will. If you do drop a tier, you land in division I of the tier below with 25, 50 or 75 LP, depending on how your MMR compares with that rank. Protection only covers tier drops. Dropping from division II to division III inside a tier has none, and losing tiers through decay has none either.
## Rank decay: Diamond and above only
grind Only Diamond and the apex tiers decay. The video says Iron through Platinum have no decay. That is true, but it leaves out **Emerald, which has no decay either**. Ranked games add days to a bank. When the bank runs out, you lose LP every 24 hours until you play again:
| Tier | Days banked per game | Bank maximum | LP lost per day of decay |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Diamond | 7 | 28 | 50 |
| Master, Grandmaster, Challenger | 1 | 14 | 75 |
So a Diamond player can take four weeks off without losing anything. An apex player who plays once every 14 days only keeps a one-day buffer. Decaying apex players also disappear from the leaderboard. Decay never changes your MMR, but if you decay while at 0 LP you drop a tier straight away, with no protection.
## Placements and the ranked reset in 2026
setup How does placement work in LoL? Your first ranked games of the year are **5 provisional games**. You cannot lose LP in them, and you can promote through several divisions in a row. Your first win can be worth up to 100 LP, and it is usually 40β80. You cannot place higher than **Diamond III**, and you cannot place into an apex tier. Your placement range is based on your rank after the reset. A brand-new ranked account is placed using its normal-game, ARAM and Co-op vs AI MMR.
How ranked splits work in LoL in 2026. The year has three ranked seasons, but your rank only has one real reset:
| Season | Start | What reset |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Season 1 | 8 January (26.1) | Yearly soft reset: everyone at least four divisions lower, then placements |
| Season 2 | 29 April (26.9) | Apex players in NA, EUW, EUNE, LAN, BR and TR reset to Master 0 LP. Nobody else changed |
| Season 3 | 29 July (26.15) | No rank reset |
Each season start does reset the Victorious skin mission (15 ranked wins across Solo/Duo and Flex) and pays out the rewards for the season that just ended. The next full ranked reset in LoL comes with the 2027 cycle. Riot publishes the exact date in the patch notes.
## Dodge penalty in LoL
skip If you leave champion select, fail to lock in a champion, or close the client, you dodge the game. The dodge penalty in LoL rises with each dodge you make within 24 hours, and the penalty tier goes down by one for every 24 hours without a dodge:
| Dodge | Queue lockout | Ranked LP loss |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1st | 6 minutes | β5 LP |
| 2nd | 30 minutes | β15 LP |
| 3rd and later | 720 minutes (12 hours) | β15 LP each |
Dodge LP can't demote you, but it can push you down to 0 LP. In 2026 Riot made two changes to dodging. Dodging no longer clears your autofill status, so you still get the role you were autofilled into in your next game. And at Master and above, a dodge now costs about as much as a loss. The /dev blog calls it a full loss, and the wiki lists β20 LP plus a hit to your MMR. If a teammate holds the lobby hostage to make someone else dodge, report them in champion select. Since 26.1, the game can end that lobby and penalise only the hostage-taker.
## How this guide was fact-checked
- **From the official League of Legends Wiki:** the tier and division structure, promotion and demotion rules, demotion shield lengths, tier-loss protection, the 25/50/75 LP landing points, the Β±20 LP baseline for the 2026 Annual Cycle, consolation LP, Aegis of Valor, the decay table, placement rules and the Diamond III cap, apex LP minimums, seat counts and the 23:45 UTC update (League system page). Also Riot's skill brackets, ranked requirements (Ranked game page), MMR (Matchmaking page) and dodge penalties (Queue dodging page).
- **From the official patch notes:** 26.1 (Season 1 start, Aegis of Valor at launch, dodge and autofill, Flex rating, hostage detection), 26.8 and 26.9 (Season 2 start and the regional apex reset), 26.10 (match termination LP rules), 26.14 and 26.15 (Season 3 start, win-only Aegis, apex duo limits). We checked patches 26.16 to 26.21 and found no further ranked system changes.
- **From Riot's /dev: Ranked 2026 blog:** lower-tier recalibration, the Climb Indicator, dodges counting as losses at Master and above, and Flex rating.
- **Rank distribution:** Esports Tales' August 2026 solo queue snapshot (published 12 August 2026, all regions), checked against its February, April and June 2026 snapshots. All percentages are approximate and change daily.
- **From the video's own screen:** the tier crests, the divisions graphic and the percentage slides, shown here with the video's numbers where we disagree with them.
- **Corrections to the video:** Iron and Bronze hold about 19% of players in 2026, not 35β40%. Reaching Gold puts you above about 40% of players, not 60%. The median player is in Gold III, not between Silver II and Gold IV. Emerald IV is about the top 18%, not the top 10%. Emerald has no decay, just like Iron to Platinum. The video doesn't cover Aegis of Valor, demotion shields, dodge penalties or the 2026 season resets, so we added them.
## What this guide doesn't answer
- **How to actually climb:** the [ranked climbing guide](/guides/lol-ranked-climb-guide) covers the lane, map and mid-game plan.
- **Exact LP for your account:** Riot doesn't publish the formula, and gains depend on your hidden MMR. All we can give you is the Β±20 baseline and the direction the MMR gap pushes it.
- **Regional rank distribution:** our table covers all regions together. Use the live League of Graphs page for your own server.
- **Ranked rewards and Victorious skin chromas:** these change every season and are announced in the patch notes.
- **Ranked 5s, Arena, TFT and Swiftplay:** these queues and modes have their own ranked rules or none, and are not part of the Solo/Duo ladder.
---
## FAQ
### What is the rank order in League of Legends?
From lowest to highest: Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Emerald, Diamond, Master, Grandmaster and Challenger. Iron to Diamond each have four divisions (IV to I) of 100 LP. Master, Grandmaster and Challenger have no divisions and share one LP leaderboard per server, with Grandmaster needing at least 200 LP and Challenger at least 500 LP plus a free seat.
### How many LP do you get per win in LoL?
In 2026 the baseline is about +20 LP for a win and -20 LP for a loss when your hidden MMR matches your rank. If your MMR is above your rank you gain more and lose less; if it is below, you gain less and lose more. Aegis of Valor doubles LP on a win when you are autofilled, but since patch 26.15 it no longer protects losses.
### Why am I losing more LP than I gain in League of Legends?
Your hidden MMR is below your visible rank, so the system shrinks your gains and enlarges your losses until rank and MMR line up again. Winning more than you lose over a run of games lifts your MMR first, and bigger LP gains follow. Dodging does not help: it costs 5 to 15 LP and does nothing for MMR.
### What rank is average in LoL in 2026?
Gold. In Esports Tales' August 2026 solo queue snapshot (all regions), half of ranked players are Gold III or higher, and Gold IV is the top 59.7%. Iron and Bronze together hold only about 19% after Riot's 2026 recalibration of the low tiers. These percentages change daily, so check League of Graphs for live numbers.
### Does League of Legends rank reset in 2026?
Only once a year. Season 1 (8 January, patch 26.1) brought the yearly soft reset of at least four divisions and 5 placement games capped at Diamond III. Season 2 (29 April) only reset apex players in NA, EUW, EUNE, LAN, BR and TR to Master 0 LP, and Season 3 (29 July) reset no ranks. Each season does restart the 15-win Victorious skin mission.