How to Download League of Legends PBE (2026)
To download League of Legends PBE, create a free PBE account on Riot’s PBE page, sign in to the regular Riot Client with that PBE login, select League of Legends, click the small arrow next to Play and choose League of Legends PBE. There’s no separate installer anymore, and Riot’s FAQ lists no sign-up requirements.
What is the League of Legends PBE?
The PBE (Public Beta Environment) is Riot’s test server for upcoming patches. New champions, skins, item and balance changes, and new Teamfight Tactics sets show up there before they reach the live game, so Riot can find crashes, hitching and bugs while there’s still time to fix them.
Riot is blunt about the trade-off. It warns that PBE content can be unfinished or switched off at any time, and what you see might never ship in that form. A champion can feel one way on Tuesday and completely different after Thursday’s update. That’s the point of a test server, and it’s also why nothing you do there carries over to your real account: no unlocks, no rank, no Blue Essence.
So who is it for? Mostly curious players who want to see a new champion kit or skin early, content creators, and people who actually enjoy reporting bugs. If you want stable games with fair matchmaking, it’s the wrong place (more on that below).
Who can make a League of Legends PBE account?
Anyone with a Riot account. Riot’s Public Beta Environment FAQ answers the requirements question with “There are none! Anybody can make a PBE account.” Older guides still mention honor level thresholds, and you’ll find those claims all over forums, but the current FAQ doesn’t list one.
In practice, the sign-up still checks your main account. An active penalty is the usual reason it fails. If you’re not sure where your account stands, our guide on how to check a LoL ban shows where Riot lists active suspensions and chat restrictions.
One rule matters more than the sign-up itself: you can’t share a PBE account. Riot says sharing it “could result in a permanent suspension.” Your friends need their own.
How to download League of Legends PBE, step by step
Setup is quick. The download itself depends on your connection, and these are the steps from Riot’s PBE client download article, with notes on where people get stuck.
- Go to the PBE page on leagueoflegends.com and sign in with your normal Riot account.
- Pass the eligibility check and create your PBE username and password. These are separate from your main login.
- Open the Riot Client on Windows or Mac. If you’re signed in to your main account, sign out first.
- Sign in again with the PBE username and password you just made.
- Select League of Legends in the client.
- Click the small down arrow to the right of the Play button and choose League of Legends PBE.
- Let the client install the PBE files, then press Play.
Step 4 is where most of the confusion comes from. If you sign in with your main credentials, the PBE option simply doesn’t appear in that dropdown, and it looks like something is broken. It isn’t. Sign out, sign back in with the PBE login, and the option shows up.
Honestly, the arrow itself is easy to miss too. It’s a small button glued to the right edge of Play, not a menu at the top of the client.
How much space does League of Legends PBE need?
Riot doesn’t publish a separate storage figure for the PBE. It’s a full second copy of League installed next to your live game, so plan for about the same space again. For reference, Riot’s system requirements list 16 GB of storage for League on Windows and 40 GB on Mac, and our LoL download size breakdown explains why the installed size grows over a season.
The catch is the update rhythm. Riot patches the PBE almost every weekday, so a PBE install that sits untouched for two weeks will want a much bigger update when you come back. If you test regularly, opening the client daily keeps each update small. Is a fast SSD required? Not strictly, but load times on a hard drive get painful once both installs live on it.
| Detail | What Riot says |
|---|---|
| Sign-up requirements | None listed in the PBE FAQ |
| Separate client | Not needed; PBE runs inside the Riot Client |
| Server location | North America only |
| Daily maintenance | Generally Monday to Friday, 11:30 AM to 1:00 PM Pacific Time |
| Free RP | 3,000 RP from a repeatable PBE mission, for the PBE store only |
| Account sharing | Not allowed; can lead to a permanent suspension |
| Penalties | A ban on PBE or live applies to both |
Is the League of Legends PBE free, and how does RP work there?
Yes, it’s free. You don’t pay anything to make the account or to play, and you can’t spend real money there.
Instead, Riot gives you a special PBE mission when you log in. Complete it and you get 3,000 RP that only works in the PBE store. Riot’s FAQ adds that new and current content is sold at its normal in-game price, so 3,000 RP buys a new legendary skin or a couple of epics, not the whole shop. Real talk: that’s enough for what the PBE is for, which is trying the newest skin or champion of the day.
None of it transfers. A skin bought on the PBE stays on the PBE, and so does any champion you pick up there.
When is the PBE down for maintenance?
Most weekdays, for a while. Riot’s PBE page says daily maintenance and patch releases generally happen Monday to Friday between 11:30 AM and 1:00 PM Pacific Time, and the FAQ notes the servers can be down “for an hour or two” while content is added or changed. During that window the server status shows as Unavailable and you can’t log in.
That’s 8:30 PM to 10:00 PM in Central Europe during most of the year (well, give or take an hour around daylight saving changes, since the US and Europe switch on different dates). If you play from Europe in the evening, it’s worth knowing before you sit down for a session.
On days when big new content lands, there’s often a login queue on top of that. Riot warns that the queue timer may not update properly when the server is full, so a timer that looks frozen doesn’t always mean you’re stuck. Funny enough, the queue is usually the best proof that a new champion just hit the server.
Why is my ping so high on the PBE?
Because the PBE servers are in North America. Riot says so directly: if you aren’t playing from North America, expect higher than normal ping. For players in Europe, Oceania or Asia, triple-digit ping is normal on the PBE, and nothing on your end will fully fix that.
A wired connection and closing downloads in the background can shave a little off, sure. The distance stays. For checking how a skin looks or what a new ability does, it’s fine; for practicing precise skillshots, use your home server instead.
Matchmaking is the other surprise. The PBE population is tiny next to the regional servers, so queues can take longer and Riot admits you may end up in uneven matchups. Ranked exists on the PBE, but it doesn’t count anywhere, and the games feel more like an experiment than a ladder (which, to be fair, is exactly what they are).
Can you get banned on the PBE?
Yes, and the ban reaches your main account. Riot monitors reports on the PBE and gives the same punishments as on live servers: “if you’re banned on one, you’ll be banned on the other.” Players who keep misbehaving can lose PBE access permanently, without warning or appeal.
The League of Legends Code of Conduct applies in full. Ranked games on the PBE don’t count, but chat, griefing and AFK behaviour are judged the same way as on live. If you’re careful about your honor level on your main account, treat PBE games with the same care. Riot’s FAQ also says an end-of-season honor reset doesn’t affect your PBE account itself.
How do you report bugs on the PBE?
Riot lists three ways, and the first is the fastest:
- The Bug Report button in the bottom-right corner of the League client.
- Riot’s web Bug Reporting Tool, if you prefer filling in a form after the game.
- A post on the community-run League PBE subreddit, where Rioters read reports and you can see whether someone already found the same bug.
Feedback doesn’t have to be in English. Riot says most developers speak English and may answer in it, but regional teams help with reports written in other languages. A good report names the champion or skin, the patch day, what you expected and what happened instead. Screenshots or a short clip help more than a paragraph of description.
What to do when the PBE won’t launch or won’t show up
Most PBE problems fall into a handful of patterns, and nearly all of them come back to the login.
- No PBE option in the dropdown: you’re signed in with your main account. Sign out and use the PBE credentials.
- Forgotten PBE password: use the “Can’t sign in?” button on the Riot sign-in screen, as Riot’s FAQ suggests.
- Server shows Unavailable on a weekday morning (US time): that’s maintenance, so wait it out.
- Endless queue on a release day: the server is full, and the timer may lag behind.
- Sign-up fails the eligibility check: look for an active penalty on your main account first.
For game crashes or broken files, the Riot Client’s repair option for the PBE install is the usual first fix, the same one you’d use for the live game. Before reinstalling everything, check whether the problem is just a broken test build: if other players report the same crash on the subreddit that day, the next PBE patch is your fix.
Do you need a PBE account at all?
Look, not to play League. The PBE is optional, and everything that matters for your progress happens on your live server. Our team has spent years leveling League accounts on live servers since 2017, and the PBE never figures into that: no Blue Essence, no rank, no champions follow you back. If your main is under a penalty, the PBE won’t help either, because the same ban covers both. For fresh ranked ready accounts on live servers, that’s a different product with its own rules, and buying any account goes against Riot’s Terms of Service.
Long story short, if you just want to see next patch’s champion before everyone else, the League of Legends PBE is the right tool. Make the account and sign in with it. Then pick PBE from the arrow next to Play, and check the maintenance window before your first session.
FAQ
How do I get the PBE client?
Create a PBE account on Riot’s PBE page, sign in to the Riot Client with it, select League of Legends, click the arrow next to Play and choose League of Legends PBE. The client then installs the files.
Do I need a separate client for the PBE?
No. Riot retired the separate PBE client. The PBE runs inside the standard Riot Client once you sign in with your PBE account.
What are the PBE account requirements?
Riot’s PBE FAQ says there are none and anybody can make a PBE account. The sign-up still checks your main account, and an active penalty can block it.
Is the PBE free to play?
Yes. The account and the games are free, and a repeatable PBE mission gives 3,000 RP for the PBE store only.
Why is my ping high on the PBE?
The PBE servers are hosted in North America, so players outside North America usually get higher ping than on their home server.
When does PBE maintenance happen?
Riot says daily maintenance and patch releases generally run Monday to Friday between 11:30 AM and 1:00 PM Pacific Time.
Can a PBE ban affect my main account?
Yes. Riot applies the same punishments on the PBE as on live servers, and a ban on one applies to the other.
Does PBE progress transfer to my live account?
No. Champions, skins, RP and rank on the PBE stay on the PBE and do not carry over to your live account.
