What is the Season Reset in League of Legends?

Every season the client wipes your badge and hands you placements. Every season the same rumour goes around: everyone is back to zero. They are not, and understanding what actually happens saves you from some very bad assumptions.

The season reset is the annual adjustment where League of Legends removes your displayed rank and compresses your hidden rating toward the middle of the ladder.

Soft reset, not a wipe

Riot uses a soft reset. Your rating is not deleted, it is pulled toward the average. High ranked accounts drop the most in raw terms, low ranked accounts move very little, and the whole ladder ends up more tightly packed than it was at the end of the previous season.

That compression is deliberate. It creates room for players to climb, it gives the ladder somewhere to expand into over the year, and it stops the top of the leaderboard from being permanently occupied by accounts that peaked eighteen months ago.

What this means in practice

• You will place below your peak. Almost everyone does. Dropping a tier or so is the norm, not a sign that anything went wrong.

• Your first games are still built on your old rating. Placement lobbies are not a fresh start, which is why they often feel like the same games you were already playing.

• The climb back is faster than the original climb. With your rating compressed but still above your visible rank, LP gains run high until the two align again.

• Rewards are locked to your end of season rank. Whatever you finished on is what determines the Victorious skin and other rewards.
  

The 2026 change worth knowing

Riot went further at the top for the 2026 season, applying a hard reset to the Apex Tier rather than the usual compression. Master, Grandmaster and Challenger accounts were pushed through a much sharper recalibration alongside a wider rework of ranked skill distribution.

For everyone below Diamond the familiar soft reset still applies.

Opening the season properly

The window right after a reset is the cheapest climbing of the entire year, because inflated LP gains do the work for you. Missing it means grinding the same ground later at full price.

Our new season package covers placements and a target rank together, and placement boosting handles just the opening ten if you would rather take the climb from there yourself.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the season reset delete your MMR?
No. It compresses your rating toward the middle, it does not remove it.

Why did I place lower than last season?
That is the reset working as designed. Nearly everyone places below their previous peak.

How long does it take to climb back?
Usually far less than the original climb, because compressed ratings produce oversized LP gains until things settle.