How Long Does It Take to Get to Level 30 in League of Legends? (And When Buying a Smurf Makes Sense)

Every new League of Legends account has the same wall in front of it: the level 30 grind. Until you hit level 30, there’s no ranked, no climb, and no real way to test yourself against players at your skill level.

The question a lot of players ask is: is it worth grinding to level 30 again, or should I just buy a smurf account? In this guide we’ll break down how long the grind actually takes in 2026, what it costs in time, and when buying a smurf starts to make sense.

How Long Does It Take to Reach Level 30 in 2026?

Exact numbers depend on your win rate, whether you use XP boosts, and what game modes you play, but you can use these rough estimates as a guide:

• Without boosts, playing casually: 120–150 games
• With some wins and occasional XP boosts: 80–100 games
• Hard grinding with boosts and high winrate: 60–80 games

If we use a conservative average of 25–30 minutes per game including queue times, that looks like this:

• 120 games × 25 minutes ≈ 50 hours
• 150 games × 25 minutes ≈ 62.5 hours

So for most players, getting a fresh account from level 1 to level 30 is somewhere between 40–70 hours of playtime – and almost all of that time is spent in unranked games with unbalanced lobbies.

What the Level 30 Grind Actually Feels Like

Time isn’t the only problem. The experience itself can be rough:

• You’re matched with complete beginners, smurfs, bots, and people AFKing on second screens.
• Games are often one‑sided because MMR doesn’t have enough data yet.
• You can’t meaningfully track improvement because there’s no ranked ladder.
• If you already have a main account, it can feel like doing the tutorial again and again.

Some players enjoy the chaos for a while, but if you’ve already done the level 30 grind once (or several times), it’s understandable to want to skip it.

When Grinding to Level 30 Makes Sense

Despite the pain, there are situations where grinding is still a good choice:

• You’re totally new to League and want to learn everything slowly.
• You don’t mind how long it takes and just want to play casually with friends.
• You don’t want to spend any money at all on the game or on accounts.

If you’ve never played before, the level 1–30 journey can be a good place to learn basics, experiment with champions, and decide how serious you want to be. But if you already know you’re going to end up in ranked, grinding the same path multiple times starts to feel like wasted time.

What You Get by Buying a Level 30 Smurf

When you buy a level 30 LoL smurf account, you’re essentially paying to convert those 40–70 hours of low‑quality games into something more valuable:

• Instant access to ranked – you can start placements as soon as you’re ready.
• Blue Essence included – at AussyELO, many accounts come with enough BE to unlock your core champion pool.
• Clean match history – a properly leveled account doesn’t have dozens of AFK games or troll builds.

Instead of slogging through bots and unbalanced normals, you start from a clean slate at the point where the game actually matters to you.

Time vs Money: Which Is More Valuable to You?

Whether grinding or buying is smarter comes down to a simple trade‑off:

• Grinding to level 30 costs 40–70 hours of your time.
• Buying a smurf costs money, but saves those hours instantly.

If you have a lot of free time and no spare cash, grinding might be fine. But if your free time is limited and you want to jump straight into meaningful games, spending a bit on a reliable smurf can be a better deal.

How to Make Sure a Smurf Is Worth It

If you decide that your time is worth more than the grind, you still want to buy safely. Look for:

• A seller with real, detailed reviews – check out our AussyELO reviews to see what real players say.
• Accounts that are email‑changeable so you can secure them yourself.
• A clear warranty policy in case the account is banned for reasons outside your control.
• Fast and transparent support (our Discord is usually the quickest way to reach us).

AussyELO has been around since 2014 and specialises in safe, leveled smurf accounts for NA and OCE regions, with lifetime warranty on bans outside your control.

So… Should You Grind or Buy?

If you’re happy to spend dozens of hours in low‑stakes normals, grinding to level 30 is still an option. But if you’ve already done that grind once and you know you just want to play ranked on a clean account, buying a smurf from a trusted seller can save you a lot of time and frustration.

Ready to skip the grind?

• Browse all LoL smurf accounts
• NA LoL Accounts
• OCE LoL Accounts

Whether you grind or buy, make sure you’re actually enjoying the game. Your time is the most valuable resource you have.