The League of Legends game client is the desktop application you open before every match — it's the central hub where you browse champions, find games, buy cosmetics, track your ranked progress, and land in Champion Select. Understanding what each part of the client does makes the whole experience less overwhelming, especially if you're new to the game.
The client runs on Windows and macOS and is installed through the official League of Legends website. Once installed, it operates inside the Riot Client — the unified launcher that also hosts Valorant, Teamfight Tactics, and other Riot titles. Within the Riot Client you'll see a League of Legends tab that loads the full LoL experience described below.
What the client covers
The client is organized into five main areas: the launcher/hub itself, the Home screen, Champion Select, the in-game HUD, and the post-game lobby. Each one plays a different role in your gaming session.
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Section 1: The Client as Your Central Hub
When you first open League of Legends, the client greets you with a dark-themed window that mirrors the game's visual style. A sidebar on the left gives you instant access to the five main tabs — Home, Play, Champions, Store, and Profile. The top navigation bar mirrors these tabs in a horizontal row for quick switching. A persistent ranked status widget shows your current rank, LP (League Points), and win/loss record at a glance. This overview means you never have to dig through menus just to check whether you're on a win streak or to find the Play button.
The sidebar and top tabs let you jump between every section of the client without loading new screens. -
Section 2: The Home Screen and News Feed
The Home tab is the first thing you see after log-in. It displays a scrollable news feed covering the latest patch notes, new champion announcements, skin reveals, and esports coverage. A featured banner highlights the most important update — typically a new patch or a live event. Below the banner, highlight cards link to skin collections, lore spotlights, and esports VODs. On the right side, an Events panel shows any active or upcoming limited-time events, complete with a link to the event pass and reward track. This makes it easy to stay current on what's changed without leaving the client to visit external websites.
The Home screen keeps you informed about patches, new skins, and limited-time events as soon as you open the client. -
Section 3: Champion Select
Champion Select is the pre-game screen you enter after a match is found. It's where the real preparation happens. Both teams take turns banning champions they don't want to face, then picking the champions they'll play. A countdown timer in the center keeps the pace brisk, typically giving each player about 30 seconds per turn. You use the search bar and champion grid to browse your roster, hover over a champion to preview their portrait and role, and then lock in your choice before time runs out. You can also set your summoner spells (Flash, Ignite, etc.) and review your teammates' picks to coordinate a balanced team composition. The Lock In button confirms your selection — once everyone has locked in, the game loads.
Champion Select lets both teams ban and pick champions before the match begins, with a countdown timer to keep things moving. -
Section 4: The In-Game HUD
Once the match loads, the client steps aside and you're looking at the actual game — a top-down view of Summoner's Rift. The Heads-Up Display (HUD) is the set of UI elements overlaid on the game view. At the top of the screen, a scoreboard shows each team's kill count and the match timer, plus icons for major objectives like Dragon and Baron. Along the bottom, you'll find your champion's health and mana bars, your four abilities (Q, W, E, R) with cooldown timers, your six item slots, and two summoner spell icons. In the bottom-right corner sits the minimap — a small bird's-eye representation of the entire map that shows teammate and enemy positions. Learning to read the minimap frequently is one of the most impactful habits you can develop as a new player.
The in-game HUD gives you real-time information about your health, abilities, items, and the state of the map. -
Section 5: The Post-Game Lobby and Honor System
When a match ends, the client transitions back to the post-game lobby. Here you'll see a full breakdown of your performance: kills, deaths, assists, creep score (CS), total gold earned, and damage dealt. Each player on both teams is listed so you can compare contributions side by side. Below the stats table is the Honor system — you can award one honor token to a teammate who showed great teamwork, good sportsmanship, or smart shotcalling. Honor is tracked over a season and contributes to cosmetic rewards. After viewing stats and honoring, you return to the client home, ready to queue for your next game.
The post-game lobby shows your full match stats and lets you honor a teammate before returning to the main client.
Other important tabs in the client
- Play tab: Choose your game mode here — Ranked Solo/Duo, Ranked Flex, Normal Draft, ARAM, and rotating game modes. You can also form a premade group with friends before queuing.
- Champions tab: Browse all champions, view their abilities and recommended items, and purchase or unlock new ones with Blue Essence (earned by playing) or Riot Points (purchased currency).
- Store tab: Buy champion skins, emotes, ward skins, and other cosmetics. You can also spend Hextech Crafting materials — chests and keys earned in-game — to unlock free cosmetics.
- Profile tab: View your match history, ranked standing, champion mastery, and honor level. This is also where you set your summoner icon and personal banner.
Tips for getting the most out of the client
- Use the Champion tab before queuing. If you're still learning, spend a few minutes on the Champion tab to read up on a new champion's abilities before locking them into a live match.
- Check the patch notes on the Home screen. Patches ship roughly every two weeks. Knowing which champions were buffed or nerfed helps you make smarter picks in Champion Select.
- Honor every match. Honoring costs nothing and takes two seconds. Over the course of a season it adds up to meaningful rewards including exclusive emotes and champion capsules.
- Bookmark your profile tab. Your match history includes detailed post-game breakdowns for every game, which is invaluable for self-review and improvement.
Frequently asked questions
Is the League of Legends client the same as the Riot Client?
They're related but distinct. The Riot Client is the outer launcher shared by all Riot games. Inside it, each game — League of Legends, Valorant, Teamfight Tactics — has its own full client experience. When people say "the LoL client" they usually mean the League of Legends section within the Riot Client.
Do I need to keep the client open while playing?
Once the game launches, the client minimizes to the system tray and you play in the game window. The client reconnects automatically when the match ends to display the post-game lobby. You don't need to manually manage it.
Why does the client sometimes feel slow or use a lot of memory?
The client is built on a web-based framework, which can be heavier on resources than a native application. Riot provides the Hextech Repair Tool as a free utility to diagnose and fix client performance issues, including clearing the cache. You can also enable low-spec mode in Settings to reduce animations and memory usage.
Can I change the language of the client?
Yes. Go to Settings (the gear icon) and select the General tab to change the client language. The game itself and the client share the language setting, so changing one changes both. A client restart is required for the change to take effect.
What happens if the client crashes during Champion Select?
If the client crashes during Champion Select and you can't reconnect before your pick timer runs out, the game may proceed without your selection (assigning a random or default pick, depending on phase). Restarting the client quickly usually reconnects you in time. If the crash was server-side, a lobby remake or remake vote may be offered once the game begins.
Final thoughts
The League of Legends game client is more than a launcher — it's your full companion from pre-game preparation to post-game review. Getting comfortable with its layout means less time fumbling through menus and more time focused on improving your gameplay. For the official download and the latest update notes, visit the League of Legends official website.
