Last week, I spent 20 minutes scrolling through random forum posts trying to figure out if I could squad up with my cousin, who plays Apex on PS5, while I’m on PC. My first question was simple: does apex legends have cross platform support that works across all our devices without extra hoops to jump through? Most of the results I found had outdated info or mixed details about cross progression and matching rules, so I put together this full guide to cover every detail you need to know to play with friends no matter what device they use.
Does Apex Legends Have Cross Platform Support for All Devices?
The short answer is yes, cross platform play is available for almost every official version of Apex Legends released to date. All official console, PC, and Nintendo Switch versions of Apex Legends support cross platform play by default, so you don’t have to download any extra mods or pay for special access to use the feature.
Supported devices include PC (via Steam, Epic Games Store, and EA App), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch. Limited regional mobile versions of the game don’t support cross play with console or PC, but the global mobile release does support cross play between iOS and Android devices for players in supported regions.
You can turn cross play off entirely if you want to, though. If you’re a console player who prefers to only match against other console players even when queuing with friends, you can toggle the feature off in your settings in just a few clicks. Just know that if you turn it off, you won’t be able to see or join friends who play on other platforms. These small details are easy to miss if you’re only looking for a quick answer to does apex legends have cross platform, but they make a big difference in your overall experience.
How to Enable Crossplay and Join Friends Across Different Systems
Enabling cross play and adding friends from other platforms is far simpler than most people think, as long as you have your EA account linked properly to your platform of choice. If you haven’t linked your account yet, you’ll be prompted to do so the first time you launch Apex Legends on any device. Once that’s done, follow these steps to add cross platform friends:
- Open your Apex Legends settings and navigate to the "Gameplay" tab
- Scroll down to the Cross Platform Play toggle and make sure it is switched to "On"
- Go to your friends list, select "Add Friend", and enter your friend's exact EA Public ID (not their console gamertag or Steam ID)
- Once they accept your request, you can invite them to your lobby directly from your friends list, no extra steps required
I made a silly mistake the first time I tried to add my cousin: I typed in his PlayStation gamertag instead of his EA Public ID, and the request never went through. Double check that you’re entering the right ID, because EA IDs are case-sensitive and extra characters like underscores or numbers have to be exact. If your friend still doesn’t see your request, ask them to check their cross play settings to make sure they didn’t turn the feature off by accident.
If you’re joining a custom game, you don’t even have to add each other as friends first. Just enter the custom game code provided by the lobby host, and you’ll be able to join no matter what platform you’re on. This works for private scrims, community tournaments, and casual custom lobbies with large groups of friends.
Key Limitations of Apex Legends Cross Platform Play You Should Know
While cross play works really well for most use cases, there are a few important limitations that most guides don’t mention upfront. The biggest one is that Cross platform play does not automatically mean cross progression. A lot of new players assume that if they can play with friends on other platforms, their skins, rank, and in-game currency will carry over too, but that’s not the case by default.
Respawn does offer account merging for cross progression, so you can combine all your progress from different linked platforms under one main EA ID. Just note that merging is permanent, and you can only merge your accounts once per year, so make sure you select the right main account before you start the process.
Another common concern from console players is being matched against PC players who use mouse and keyboard, which is often seen as an unfair advantage. Don’t worry, Console players who solo queue will never be matched against PC players by default. The only time you’ll face PC players as a console user is if you intentionally queue with a friend who plays on PC. Even then, the game prioritizes input-based matching, so if you use a controller on PC, you’ll mostly be matched against other controller players regardless of their platform.
Cross play also doesn’t work across different server regions by default. If you’re in North America and your friend is in Europe, you’ll have to manually select a server that both of you have decent ping on to play together. You might notice slightly higher latency than you’re used to when playing cross region, but it’s usually manageable if you pick a server in between your two locations.
Tips for a Smooth Cross Platform Apex Legends Experience
Most players are so focused on confirming does apex legends have cross platform that they forget to adjust their settings to make the experience better. After months of playing cross platform with friends on every major system, I’ve picked up a few tricks that make the experience way more seamless, no matter what combination of devices you’re using. First, if you’re a console player who only wants to match against other controller users even when playing cross platform, you can turn on input-only matching in your gameplay settings. This will keep you from being paired with mouse and keyboard players even if you have cross play turned on.
You don't need an active EA Play subscription to use cross platform play, despite what some old forum posts might say. Cross play is completely free for all players, no paid membership required. In most regions, you also don’t need a PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live Gold subscription to play Apex Legends online, since it’s a free-to-play title.
If you’re running into high ping when playing with cross region friends, you can manually select a shared server instead of letting the game pick one for you. On PC, press F1 on the main menu to pull up the server list. On console, press the menu button twice quickly on the main login screen to access the server list. Pick a server where all members of your squad have ping under 100 for the best experience.
If you’re having trouble with cross platform voice chat, make sure your in-game voice chat settings are set to "Everyone" instead of "Friends Only" or "Team Only". Cross platform chat sometimes glitches if your settings are too restrictive, so switching to everyone for the duration of your squad session usually fixes the problem. If that doesn’t work, you can always use a third party voice chat app to talk to your friends instead, since most of them work across all devices with no extra setup.
Now that you know the answer to does apex legends have cross platform, you can stop scrolling through old forum posts and go squad up with all your friends no matter what device they play on. My squad has players on PC, PS5, and Xbox, and we’ve been climbing the ranked ladder together for months with barely any cross play related issues. As long as you double check your settings, enter the right EA ID when adding friends, and pick a low ping server for your group, you’ll have a smooth experience. If you run into any issues I didn’t cover here, drop a comment below and I’ll help you figure it out.