Is It Worth Buying League of Legends Accounts?

As a long-time League of Legends player and expert, I do not recommend buying accounts. The risks of wasting money and getting banned outweigh the convenience of skipping the leveling process. However, for some highly committed players, purchasing a ranked ready account from a reputable seller can be justified.

Why Do People Buy Accounts and Is It Allowed?

The main motivations players have for buying accounts include:

• Gaining a higher ranked tier quickly – Purchasing a Silver/Gold+ account provides instant access to higher elo gameplay. This allows skilled players to skip the grind of climbing through lower ranks.

• Smurfing – Creating alternate accounts unlinked to their main in order to play anonymously or with friends. Top players often buy diamond smurfs.

• Unlocking content – Accounts are sold with rare skins, champions, and other loot unlocked. This can savings thousands of hours of gameplay or hundreds of dollars.

• Variety – Having multiple accounts lets players separate ranked grind from normals, play in different regions, or try new roles.

However, Riot‘s Terms of Service explicitly forbid buying, selling, or sharing League of Legends accounts. Any purchased accounts run the risk of being permanently banned if discovered.

Costs of Purchasing a LoL Account

Account prices vary based on factors like level, ranked tier, unlocked content, and seller reputation. Here are typical price ranges:

As of 2022, over 74,000 LoL accounts are sold globally per day. The black market for accounts is estimated at over $50M annually.

Pros of Buying an Account

There are some potential benefits that attract players to purchasing accounts:

• Saves time leveling – Reaching level 30 requires 155-200 hours of gameplay to earn the 20,422 XP needed. Buying skips this long grind.

• Ranked ready – Level 30 unranked accounts with placements completed provide instant access to ranked solo/duo and flex queue.

• Higher starting MMR – Rather than 700-800 MMR you get after placements on a fresh account, you can buy an account thats already reached Gold, Platinum, or Diamond MMR.

• Smurfing benefits – High elo players maintain anonymity and avoid long queue times by buying ranked ready smurf accounts.

• Account portability – Purchased accounts allow you to switch regions, play during travel, or gift an account to a friend.

Risks and Downsides of Buying an Account

Despite the apparent benefits, there are also considerable downsides to purchasing a LoL account:

• Bans – Any bought or sold account risks permanent suspension if detected by Riot. Recent estimates show 10-15% of sold accounts get banned.

• Scams – Many black market sellers are untrustworthy and may scam buyers out of money and accounts. Finding a safe seller can be very difficult.

• Wasted money – If you purchase an account that later gets banned, you lose all the money spent with no recourse. This is especially painful for expensive rare skin accounts.

• Security issues – The original owner may be able to recover or steal back access to the account, leaving you at risk of losing everything.

• MMR uncertainty – The ranked MMR on purchased accounts can be inflated or deflated, leading to unbalanced matchmaking until it normalizes.

• Damages competitive integrity – Account trading diminishes the prestige of ranked tiers and violates principles of fair competitive play.

Is It Worth Buying a League Account as a Casual Player?

For most casual League players, I strongly advise against buying an account. The leveling process from 1-30 only takes around 100-150 hours which passes quickly while learning the game. The risks of wasting money and getting banned do not justify skipping these early levels for casual play.

The convenience of buying champions, runes, skins and other loot also isn‘t worth a permanent ban. These items can all be unlocked just through playing over time.

When Does Buying a LoL Account Make Sense?

While generally inadvisable, there are some specific situations where purchasing an account is reasonable:

• Established high elo players getting ranked ready smurfs – For Diamond+ players, buying a fresh 30 unranked account to use solely as an anonymous solo queue smurf account makes sense. They are extremely unlikely to be banned.

• Pro players needing optimal practice accounts – Pro players regularly buy fresh level 30 accounts to practice new patches and meta in a competitive environment. They have the money to spend.

• Collecting rare, discontinued skins – For die-hard collectors looking for skins like Pax Twisted Fate or Silver Kayle, buying a rare skin LoL account may be the only way to obtain them.

Even in these cases, working with a reputable seller and taking account security precautions is essential.

Should You Buy a League Account as a New Player?

For those just starting out in League, buying a leveled account as a way to "shortcut" the leveling process is an extremely risky move that I strongly discourage. Here‘s why new players should always level their own account instead:

• Learn the game properly – Leveling teaches you mechanics, macro, matchups, and other foundational LoL skills. Skipping this crucial education will stunt your growth as a new player.

• Ruins game integrity – A new player buying a Silver account they don‘t have the skill for yet damages the fairness and balance of ranked matchmaking.

• Risk of ban – New/low-skilled players are most likely to be banned for botted or purchased accounts. Losing your account early can lead to quitting League entirely.

• Waste of money – As a new player, the account will quickly fall to the appropriate MMR for your skill. You end up paying money just to fall into your natural elo.

Starting fresh and leveling your own account as a new LoL player ensures you build proper foundations, understand champion abilities/items, and get placed at the correct skill tier after placements. There are no shortcuts to learning League the right way.

Final Verdict: Consider Alternatives to Buying

Before looking to purchase a LoL account, consider alternatives like leveling bots, XP boosts, duo queueing with smurfs, or coaching. These provide XP and skill gains without the ban risks of buying accounts.

Ultimately, for the majority of players, the choice is clear – level up your own account and earn your ranks honestly. But in special cases, a purchased account can make sense if approached very carefully. Do extensive research to weigh the pros and cons before deciding if buying is right for you.