The League of Legends ranked scene has always had a meta, giving the strongest champions in the patch a lot of popularity during brief moments in the game. However, there are players who do not follow the meta and prefer playing champions that they are familiar with or like playing. This creates a sense of diversity in the game. Let’s take a look at the most used LoL champions in history according to global pick rate.
Most Used LoL Champions
Players from all ranks have preferences but there are certain demographics of people who like one champion more than most. League of Legends has tried to distribute different artstyles and models to give each champion a unique identity that will represent and appeal to the entire community. Although, there are some champions who seem a lot more popular than the rest due to different reasons.
To determine the most used LoL champions in history, it’s hard to research all the metrics since the beginning of League of Legneds to prove that these champion’s standings are accurate. However, we’ve compiled a list to determine the popularity of each champion since their releases. While the list may not be 100% accurate, it showcases an insight on some of the most familiar names in the game’s ranked history.
5. Miss Fortune
Miss Fortune is a champion that is favored mostly due to her aesthetic design. In lower ELOs, this champion is extremely easy to use and because most players don’t know the counterplay to playing against this champion, her abilities land far too easily. This makes her a terrible threat that can easily get fed so many players believe her to be an unstoppable choice that either needs to be banned or picked immediately.
In higher ELOs, Miss Fortune is still a popular choice because of her consistency in competitive play. Regardless of what the item meta for AD carries are, she can play and perform in a satisfactory level that allows people to play her as a one-trick. Even if she doesn’t do well, players will still want to play her because… well, let’s just say that many people have certain tastes in video game characters.
4. Lux
Lux is also in the same situation as Miss Fortune in the sense that she’s also a thirst trap for both male and female players. However, the reason why she’s popular globally and in all ranks is because she’s an extremely versatile champion that’s easy to use and has extremely high kill pressure especially in lower ELOs. She can be played as either a support champion or mid laner, sometimes even making her way in the top lane.
The reason many players like playing Lux in the lower ELOs is because her ultimate ability is such a powerful tool that can kill-steal and make her extremely dangerous. Her basic abilities are also very hard to dodge for players with below average reaction speeds. However, she still manages to find her way into higher ELOs because she makes an excellent support champion that can also carry the game if the other team members fail to do so.
3. Jinx
Since there are very few marksman champions, it’s no surprise that many players end up favoring one champion more than the others. In Jinx’s case, she’s not only popular in the lower ELOs but throughout all the ranked divisions in League of Legends as well. She’s definitely the most used LoL champion in the bottom lane because she is extremely easily to use and has a variety of abilities that players can take advantage of.
Many ADCs in the game have extremely complicated mechanics, late-game scaling, and really short range that make them easily abusable in the laning phase. Jinx has all of these problems covered and is strong in both the early and late stages of the game. Once she gets rolling, it’s pretty hard to see her fall off and usually just runs away with the game and ends up hard-carrying the team. It’s hard to counter her without using advanced marksman champions.
2. Master Yi
Master Yi is THE jungler in lower ELOs and you’d rarely see anything else played by new players. He’s so popular in the lower ELOs that he takes up an almost 70% pick rate when he’s available, accounting to the majority of why he’s one of the most used LoL champions in the game. If you ask a friend what his first jungle champion was in League of Legends, the answer will most likely be Master Yi and for good reason.
Jungling is hard for new players because the have so many things to learn while surviving against jungle monsters. For beginners, Master Yi is the only option because he has self-sustain and excellent jungle clear. He’s also very powerful when he gets ahead, it’s almost impossible to stop a fed Master Yi in the lower ELOs. However, his pick rate drops significantly in Gold games and above but isn’t enough to stop him from placing 2nd overall.
1. Yasuo
It’s probably no surprise that we placed Yasuo as the most used LoL champion in history. This champion has it all: great aesthetics, simple abilities, and also versatility in low and high ELOs. The reason why most players like to pick up Yasuo is because he’s an edgy samurai with multiple cinematics that highlight his abilities. Even his in-game battle animation is so fun to watch that new players simply want to use him.
In higher ELOs, Yasuo retains his popularity because he has such high outplay potential at the hands of a master player. He’s easy to pick up but it’s difficult to learn all of the proper timings and usage of his abilities, something that a lot of high ELO players can do extremely well. Unfortunately, his popularity isn’t well received since he became a subject of many League of Legends memes about his tendency to throw games really hard.