How to Appear Offline in LoL: Complete Guide (2026)

League of Legends is still one of the most active competitive games in the world, with friends lists constantly lighting up the moment you log in. While that social side can be great, there are plenty of times when you just want to queue up, practice, or grind ranked without messages, invites, or unwanted attention. That’s where the idea of appearing offline comes in. In this guide, we’ll break down every working way to appear offline in League of Legends in 2026, explain what actually happens behind the scenes, and clear up whether Riot has finally added a real “offline” status or if third-party methods are still the only option. If you want peace while playing without fully disconnecting from the game, this covers everything you need to know.

What Does Appear Offline Mean in League of Legends?

In League of Legends, appearing offline means you can log in and play normally while your friends list shows you as unavailable. From their side, it looks like you’re not online at all, even though you might be in queue, locked into champion select, or already mid-game. It’s basically a way to enjoy the game in peace without messages, invites, or people checking what you’re doing. This has been one of the most requested quality-of-life features for years, but Riot Games still hasn’t added a real “offline” or “invisible” status to the client. Many players want the option to focus on solo play or ranked sessions without social pressure, but officially, that button still doesn’t exist. That said, you’re not completely out of luck. Even without a built-in option, there are a few reliable workarounds players use to stay hidden while playing. These methods aren’t perfect, but they do a good job of giving you privacy when you want to stay low-key and just enjoy the game on your own terms.

How To Appear Offline in League of Legends

League of Legends still doesn’t offer a built-in way to appear offline, but players have found a reliable workaround that lets you play without showing up online to your friends. Keep in mind that this only hides your online status in the client. Your match history is still public, and anyone can see your games through your profile or third-party tracking sites.
To stay hidden, most players use a small community tool called Deceive. The setup is quick and simple:
1. Download Deceive from its GitHub page
2. Open the program
3. Choose League of Legends from the list
That’s all you need to do. If the Riot Games client is already open when you start Deceive, a message will pop up asking to close it. Just confirm, and Deceive will restart everything correctly in the background. One nice bonus is that Deceive isn’t limited to League. The same tool also works with Valorant and Legends of Runeterra, letting you stay offline across multiple Riot games. Once it’s running, you can queue, play, and grind in peace without appearing online to your friends list.

Why League of Legends Doesn’t Have an Official Offline Feature

Riot Games has never come out and given a clear reason for why League of Legends still doesn’t have a built-in “appear offline” option, but there are a few likely explanations that make sense when you look at how the game and its client work. Adding an offline status isn’t just a small toggle. It would require deeper changes to how the League client communicates presence, friends lists, and real-time activity across Riot’s backend systems. That kind of work takes time, testing, and long-term maintenance. Another big factor is the state of the League client itself. For years, players have dealt with bugs, freezes, memory issues, and random crashes. Because of that, Riot’s engineers are far more likely focused on keeping the client stable and functional rather than layering in new social features. From a development standpoint, fixing core problems that affect everyone will always take priority over quality-of-life features that only some players ask for. There’s also Riot’s design philosophy to consider. League has always pushed social interaction, visibility, and engagement. An official offline mode runs slightly against that idea, since it makes players less reachable and less visible to their friends. While privacy is important to many players, it hasn’t been high enough on Riot’s priority list to justify a full implementation. In short, the lack of an official offline feature isn’t because players don’t want it. It’s more likely a mix of technical complexity, ongoing client issues, and Riot choosing to spend development time on stability, gameplay, and larger systems instead.

FAQs

Can my friends still see my games if I appear offline?

Yes. Appearing offline only hides your online status in the Riot client. Your match history is still public, so friends can see your recent games by checking your profile or using third-party stat websites.

Is using Deceive allowed by Riot Games?

Deceive does not modify game files or give any in-game advantage. It simply blocks presence updates in the client. Riot has not officially endorsed it, but it has been widely used for years without known bans related to its use.

Can I appear offline on mobile or console?

No. League of Legends does not support an offline status on any platform, and tools like Deceive only work on PC through the Riot client.

Conclusion

Appearing offline in League of Legends is still not something Riot offers natively, but that doesn’t mean you’re stuck being visible every time you log in. With tools like Deceive, players can play in peace, avoid constant invites, and focus on solo grinding without social pressure. While it’s not a perfect solution and doesn’t hide match history, it gets the job done for anyone who values privacy. Until Riot adds an official offline status, this remains the most reliable way to stay invisible while enjoying League of Legends on your own terms.