Apex Legends’ Arenas mode is great fun – who doesn’t want 3v3 battles in cool new locations? However, the Valorant and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive-inspired team shooter will live and die by its competitive integrity. In such a finely-balanced environment, subtle tweaks to weapon prices or legend abilities could impact gameplay far more than in the battle royale mode.
Respawn has recently shared how Arenas ranks will work, including its MMR system and what sorts of rewards we can expect to pick up from climbing the ladder. The ranks take a similar form to the battle royale variant of Apex Legends ranked, but there is also clear inspiration from the games that Arenas feels more akin to – Valorant and CS:GO.
While Apex Legends Arenas started life as a casual mode, Respawn has now honed competitive. So if you’re here looking for answers on how Apex Legends Arenas ranks work, read on.
Here’s everything we know about Apex Legends Arenas ranks so far, including how many points will be needed to reach each rank.
What are the Apex LEgends Arenas ranks?
The ranking system is the same as Apex Legends ranks. Therefore the Apex Legends Arenas ranks are as follows:
| Rank tier | Logo |
| Bronze |  |
| Silver (2,000 AP) |  |
| Gold (2,400 AP) |  |
| Platinum (2,800 AP) |  |
| Diamond (3,200 AP) |  |
| Master (3,600 AP) |  |
| Apex Predator (Top 500 players) |  |
What is Apex Legends Arenas MMR?
Apex Legends Arenas’ matchmaking rating (MMR) is a hidden score which ultimately determines who you are matched against in-game. Meanwhile, your rank is simply the visible skill rating you see on-screen.
Respawn says that having two different measures of skill is important to ensuring the quality of games remains as high as possible, as MMR can be quickly adjusted up or down based on your performance, “without making you lose your rank just because of a few bad matches.”
The example the studio gives is that if you are Silver rank, but are playing at a Platinum level, the system will match you with Platinum MMR players. By winning these matches, more Arenas Points (AP) will be awarded for wins and less deducted for losses, bringing you closer to your true rank much more quickly.
Conversely, if you lose these matches, your MMR will begin to drop until you’re matched with players more on your level.
How do the Apex Legends Arenas ranks work?
When you first get started with ranked mode in Arenas, you will be required to play ten placement matches in order to gauge your initial matchmaking rating (MMR) and rank.
Respawn says that the MMR variance is much wider than normal during placement matches, “so these first ten matches might be stomp-or-get-stomped until your MMR settles more” – so be prepared for some slightly skewed games.
Unlike the battle royale mode, there is no entry fee to pay to get into matches, nor is there the chance to snag extra Arenas Points (AP) for kills. Indeed, only victory will earn you those precious points.
When your placement matches are complete, and your starting rank handed out to you, you’ll start your Arenas career getting more AP for wins than you lose for losses. Respawn says this will continue until your visible rank and hidden MMR values match up.
Battle royale mode: how to climb the regular Apex Legends ranks
While the Apex Arenas ranked grind may seem easy at first glance with all these extra points, beware, as there is no demotion protection. This means you can drop straight out of Platinum IV into Gold after a loss if you’re not careful.
One major similarity that ranked Arenas shares with Apex’s battle royale mode is the inclusion of penalties for players who abandon games, as well as loss forgiveness for those who are abandoned.
According to Respawn, players who leave a match will receive a temporary ban from queuing – though it is currently unknown if an AP penalty will also be applied. Meanwhile, if you are abandoned mid-game, you won’t lose any AP thanks to leaver protection.
How to improve your Apex Legends Arenas rank
Obviously, shooting is at the forefront of Arenas gameplay, so heading to the Firing Range and putting in the hours with one of the guns high up our Apex Legends weapons tier list is the first step.
As there is very little looting and no way to rat yourself to more RP, you’ll have to learn how to fight effectively, and to fight as a team. This means communication is the most important factor in Arena mode, and keeping open comms with your teammates is the best way to grab yourself a win and climb the ranked ladder.
We also think that a lot of players will pick the newest addition to Apex Legends, Seer, so counter-picking him either with weapons or legends could be an interesting strategy to get some early wins.
That’s everything we know about Apex Legends Arenas ranks. We’ll keep this guide updated, so keep checking back for more information about the state of play. For now, though, check out our Apex Legends tier list for more information on the best legends to play in Arenas.
