What is MMR in League of Legends and how does it work?

What is MMR?

For those wondering, MMR is not exclusive to League of Legends of course. MMR stands for Matchmaking Rating and is used to evaluate and assess the skill level of a player when it comes to ranked play, most of the time this is done by points. People who are looking to climb seek to increase their MMR rating by winning matches or games, increasing points, while losing sets you back a few.

How does it work exactly?

Like we mentioned before, your MMR rating will increase or decrease depending on the matches you win or lose. Oftentimes there’s additional elements that factor in how much MMR you gain and how much you lose. MMR in League of Legends is not the same as LP and your MMR is often not disclosed to you. MMR will be used to make sure a game is fair, ranging from your ranked games to even normal games, adding you to matches that feature people with a similar MMR.

What’s the difference between LP and MMR then?

Gaining 100 LP will let you climb a division (by playing games), staying at 0 LP and losing matches can get you demoted. This is where MMR comes in. Depending on the MMR of the players in the match and your own MMR, LP lost or gained will be calculated. If the MMR is higher, you gain more when winning, if it’s lower, you gain less.

This way League of Legends can quickly get players to the division they belong to or the other way around. It’s why some people can climb faster, if the game believes they’re playing under their level of skill.

Also read:

Join the discussion on social media or Discord!

You can also help improve our website by submitting direct feedback!

Image Credit: Riot Games
*The listed articles are provided through affiliate links. A purchase after clicking through them supports us at esports.com as we will receive a small commission without additional cost to you.