Who Has the Lowest Ban Rate in LoL? Unveiling Champion Select’s Uncontested Picks

Understanding the Lowest Ban Rate in LoL

It’s a question that pops up in the minds of many League of Legends players, especially those who find themselves constantly navigating the often frustrating landscape of champion select: “Who has the lowest ban rate in LoL?” The answer isn’t as straightforward as pointing to a single champion, but rather a dynamic reflection of the current meta, player perception, and the sheer volume of available champions. My own experience has often been that the champions I least expect to see banned are precisely the ones that rarely get picked either. There’s a curious equilibrium in champion select, and understanding who occupies the bottom rung of the ban rate ladder offers some fascinating insights into the game’s ecosystem.

Currently, the champions with the lowest ban rates in League of Legends tend to be those that are either niche, underperforming in the current meta, or simply less appealing to the broader player base due to their playstyle or complexity. This isn’t a static list; it fluctuates with every patch and shifts in popular opinion. However, by analyzing data from various reputable League of Legends statistics websites, we can identify recurring trends and specific champions that consistently hover at the bottom of the ban priority list.

For the most part, champions with very low ban rates are often those that are either entirely new and have not yet proven their meta-defining power (and thus haven’t become a perceived threat to ban), or they are champions that have been in the game for a long time, have received numerous reworks or nerfs, and are now considered niche picks or are simply not strong enough to warrant a ban. Sometimes, these are champions that require a very specific team composition to excel, making them a risky or undesirable pick in solo queue or even in coordinated play if the synergy isn’t there.

The Mechanics of Ban Rates: Why Some Champions Are Never Banned

Before diving into specific champions, it’s crucial to understand what contributes to a low ban rate. In League of Legends, the ban phase is a strategic element designed to remove problematic or overly powerful champions from the enemy’s potential pool. A ban rate, therefore, is a measure of how often a champion is intentionally prevented from being picked by either team. A low ban rate indicates that players, collectively, do not perceive the champion as a significant enough threat to warrant expending one of their valuable ban slots. Several factors contribute to this:

• Lack of Perceived Power: If a champion is consistently underperforming according to win rate data, pick rate data, or general community consensus, players won’t see them as a threat worth banning. They’d rather ban champions that are currently dominating the meta or counter their own team composition effectively.
• Niche Playstyle or Role: Some champions excel in very specific situations or require a particular team synergy to be effective. While they might be strong in the right hands or in the right comp, their overall applicability is limited, making them a lower priority ban for most players.
• Complexity and Skill Floor: Champions that are exceptionally difficult to master can have lower ban rates. Players might feel that even if they ban such a champion, the enemy is unlikely to play it effectively enough to pose a serious threat. This is often true for champions with complex mechanics or steep learning curves.
• Lack of “Hype” or Popularity: Some champions simply aren’t “fun” or “exciting” to play or play against. This can lead to them being overlooked in the ban phase, even if they might have some meta relevance. Player psychology plays a significant role here.
• New Champion Syndrome (Initial Phase): Very new champions, before they are fully understood and their power level is assessed by the community and through data, might have surprisingly low ban rates. This changes rapidly as players discover their strengths and weaknesses.
• Abundance of Stronger Alternatives: In a patch with many powerful champions, players will naturally prioritize banning the absolute top-tier threats. Champions with a low ban rate might simply be overshadowed by other champions that are perceived as even greater risks.

It’s also important to note that ban rates are often influenced by the rank of play. In professional play or high Elo, bans are more strategic and data-driven. In lower Elo, bans might be more reactive, targeting champions that have personally frustrated a player or are perceived as “OP” by streamers or popular guides, even if their actual win rate doesn’t reflect that. The “lowest ban rate” often refers to the average across all ranks, but sometimes it’s useful to consider specific tiers.

Identifying the Champions with the Lowest Ban Rates

Pinpointing the *absolute* lowest ban rate champion at any given moment requires real-time data, which can fluctuate significantly. However, based on historical trends and recent data analysis from sites like U.GG, OP.GG, and LeagueOfGraphs, certain champions consistently appear at the bottom of ban rate charts. These are typically champions that are rarely seen in play, or when they are played, they don’t tend to dominate games to the point where players feel compelled to ban them.

Let’s look at some categories of champions that often find themselves with minimal bans:

The “Forgotten” Champions: Legacy Picks and Underperformers

These are champions that have been in the game for a long time, have a dedicated but small player base, and are often considered underperformers in the current meta. They might have received numerous reworks that didn’t quite land, or their core gameplay loop has been superseded by newer, more dynamic champions. My own frustration as a player often stems from facing champions that are so obscure you forget they even exist until someone locks them in. When they’re not even worth banning, that’s a strong indicator of their current standing.

• Galio: While Galio has seen periods of strength, he often falls into a state where he’s not quite strong enough to be a priority ban. His utility is high, but his damage output or survivability might be lacking compared to other champions in his role. When his ban rate dips, it usually means players aren’t fearing his presence in champion select.
• Taliyah: Taliyah’s kit is complex and has been reworked multiple times, often struggling to find a consistent identity. While she can be a powerful mid-laner or even support in the right hands, her low play rate and inconsistent performance often mean she’s a safe pick for players who want to avoid dealing with a ban.
• Kled: Kled is a champion with a unique mechanic (Skaarl, the Cowardly Lizard) that can be very effective but also has significant downsides. He’s an all-in aggressive champion, and if the meta isn’t favoring that style, or if players don’t feel comfortable playing against him, he often slips through the ban phase.
• Taric: The Gem of Ionia, Taric, is a support champion with strong defensive capabilities and a powerful ultimate. However, he can be very immobile and susceptible to poke. His low ban rate often signifies that players aren’t overly concerned about facing him, perhaps opting to ban more offensive or utility-focused supports.
• Zilean: Zilean is a master of time, capable of speeding up allies, slowing enemies, and providing crucial revives with his ultimate. Despite his potent utility, his squishiness and the skill required to land his bombs effectively can lead to a low ban rate. Players might feel he’s manageable if they focus him down or avoid his zoning.
• Soraka: As one of the quintessential healers in League of Legends, Soraka can be a nightmare to deal with. However, her extreme squishiness and vulnerability to assassins mean that if players have good engage or burst damage, they often feel confident they can deal with her, leading to a lower ban priority compared to more resilient or crowd-control heavy enchanters.

The “Niche Appeal” Champions: Situational Picks

These champions are strong, but only in very specific contexts. Their ban rate is low because players don’t see them as universally problematic. They might be excellent in a coordinated team or against a specific team composition, but in a typical solo queue environment, their limitations become more apparent, making them a less pressing ban.

• Ivern: The Green Father is a unique jungler who focuses on shields and utility rather than direct combat. His playstyle is so unconventional that many players don’t know how to properly play against him, but his lack of direct damage and reliance on his team often means he’s not a high-priority ban.
• Bard: Bard is a roaming support with incredible utility, including his powerful ultimate, “Tempered Fate.” However, his passive “Meeps” require him to roam extensively, which can leave his ADC vulnerable. His high skill ceiling and the potential for him to be a detriment if played poorly contribute to a lower ban rate, as many players don’t fear him in a standard matchup.
• Singed: While Singed can be incredibly frustrating to play against due to his proxy farming and poison trail, his effectiveness is highly dependent on the player’s skill and the enemy team’s ability to counter him. In the current meta, he often struggles to be a consistent threat, leading to a low ban rate.
• Rengar (Jungle Focus): While Rengar can be a terrifying assassin, his effectiveness as a jungler is heavily reliant on snowballing an early lead. If the meta doesn’t favor aggressive early-game junglers, or if players are confident in their ability to track and counter-gank him, his ban rate can drop significantly.
• Quinn: Quinn is a versatile ADC/mid-laner with excellent mobility and a strong laning phase. However, she can struggle to scale into the late game compared to other marksmen and can be vulnerable to crowd control. Her relatively low play rate in competitive scenes often translates to a lower ban rate.

The “Less Glamorous” Champions: Function Over Flash

Some champions are designed to fulfill a specific, often less flashy, role. They might be reliable but lack the “wow” factor that makes other champions perceived as ban-worthy. Think of champions who are good at their job but don’t have game-changing ultimates or incredibly flashy combos.

• Nautilus: While Nautilus is a strong engage tank, he often sits in a space where other engage supports might be prioritized for bans. His kit is straightforward, and experienced players often know how to play around his hook and engage.
• Braum: Braum is a defensive support whose primary strength lies in his spell shield and his ultimate’s knock-up. He’s excellent at protecting his team, but he lacks the offensive pressure that often leads to higher ban rates for other supports.
• Sejuani: Sejuani is a tanky jungler with good crowd control. While effective, she can sometimes be outshined by more aggressive or mobile junglers, leading to a lower ban rate as players focus their bans on those perceived as higher threats.
• Sion: Sion, the Undead Juggernaut, is a tanky top-laner with immense engage potential and a devastating ultimate. However, his slow mobility and susceptibility to kiting mean that if players are confident in their positioning and ability to dodge his engage, he may not be a high ban priority.
• Skarner: Skarner is a jungler with a unique ultimate that can displace enemies. However, his kit can feel somewhat outdated and less dynamic compared to newer champions, often leading to a lower ban rate as players don’t see him as an immediate threat unless he’s picked into a specific counter.

Data-Driven Insights: Looking at the Numbers

To provide a more concrete answer, let’s consider how these ban rates are typically presented. Reputable LoL statistics sites like U.GG, OP.GG, and LeagueOfGraphs compile data from millions of games across various regions and ranks. They usually offer filters for patch versions, regions, and even specific Elo brackets.

When we look at these sites, we often find champions like Ivern, Galio, Taric, Taliyah, and Skarner consistently appearing in the bottom 5-10 ban rate rankings. The exact order and percentage can shift, but these names are recurring.

For example, let’s imagine a hypothetical scenario for a specific patch (these numbers are illustrative and not from a live patch):

Hypothetical Champion Ban Rates (Illustrative)

Rank	Champion	Ban Rate (%)
1	Aatrox	65.2%
…	…	…
150	Taric	0.3%
151	Galio	0.2%
152	Ivern	0.15%
153	Taliyah	0.1%
154	Skarner	0.05%

As you can see in this illustrative table, champions like Skarner, Taliyah, Ivern, Galio, and Taric would be at the very bottom, meaning they are rarely banned. This implies that players, in general, do not consider them to be threats that warrant using a ban slot.

My personal take on this? It’s a testament to the game’s balance and the sheer variety of champions available. When you have champions like Fiddlesticks, Yuumi, or certain overloaded champions that are dominating specific metas, they naturally consume a huge portion of the ban priority. This leaves room for the less threatening, more niche, or underperforming champions to slip through the cracks. It’s almost like a natural selection process in champion select: the strong get banned, the weak (or niche) are left to be picked.

Why Do These Champions Have Low Ban Rates? Deeper Dive

Let’s dissect some of the more prominent examples of champions with consistently low ban rates and explore the “why” behind their lack of ban priority.

Ivern: The Enigmatic Jungler

Ivern is perhaps one of the most unique champions in League of Legends. His entire jungle clear involves creating “Friendship” trees for monsters, allowing them to live until he can return to claim them. This means he doesn’t fight monsters directly for health and mana sustain in the traditional sense.

• Unique Playstyle: His gameplay loop is so different from other junglers that many players simply don’t understand how to play with or against him effectively. This can lead to him being underpicked and, consequently, underbanned.
• Lack of Direct Threat: Ivern’s damage output is notoriously low. He excels at providing shields, crowd control (via his Q root and E slow), and mobility (via his W bushes and R knock-up). However, he struggles to secure solo kills or apply significant pressure on his own.
• Team Reliance: He’s a champion that heavily relies on his teammates to capitalize on his utility. If his laners aren’t able to follow up on his ganks or engage with his buffs, Ivern can feel quite useless. This makes him a risky pick in solo queue, and therefore, less of a ban concern.
• Counterplay is Straightforward: While Ivern can be tricky, his core weakness is his squishiness and his inability to duel effectively. Smart players know that if they can bait out his shields and crowd control, he becomes an easy target.

Galio: The Colossal Protector’s Dilemma

Galio, the Colossal Protector, has had his moments in the sun, particularly as a powerful mid-laner or even support due to his immense area-of-effect crowd control and global ultimate.

• Passive Rework Impact: Galio’s passive, which granted him magic damage based on his resistances, was reworked. The new passive provides his abilities with a damage boost based on his AP and bonus resistances, but it changed his build path and power curve significantly. This shift often leaves him in a state where he’s not quite strong enough to be a top-tier ban.
• Stat Checks: While he has strong engage and damage, Galio can be very stat-dependent. If he falls behind in levels or items, his ability to deal damage and tank effectively is severely hampered.
• Predictable Engage: His primary engage tool is his taunt, which, while powerful, can be dodged or anticipated by experienced players. His ultimate, while global, has a significant wind-up time, allowing enemies to react.
• Less “Snowbally” Than Others: Unlike champions that can snowball a lead into a stomp, Galio often relies on teamfighting. While potent in that regard, he might not be seen as an immediate threat to individual players that needs to be banned out of existence.

Taric: The Unbreakable Defender’s Quiet Presence

Taric, the Gem of Valoran, is the quintessential supportive tank. His kit is designed to sustain and protect his allies, offering powerful healing, shields, and a game-changing ultimate that makes his team invulnerable for a brief period.

• Immobility: Taric’s biggest weakness is his lack of mobility. He has a dash with his E (Dazzle), but it’s a skillshot that requires him to be relatively close to his target. This makes him vulnerable to poke and engage from ranged champions.
• Predictable Playstyle: While his ultimate is game-changing, his overall playstyle is fairly predictable. Players know he wants to stand near his ADC and use his abilities defensively.
• Counterplay with Focus: Champions with high burst damage or strong crowd control can often shut down Taric quite effectively. If the enemy team has excellent pick potential or can overwhelm him quickly, he ceases to be a major threat.
• Niche Appeal for Aggression: While he excels at defense, Taric doesn’t offer the offensive pressure or aggressive playmaking that some other supports provide. Players often prefer to ban champions that offer more immediate kill potential or disruptive crowd control.

Taliyah: The Stoneweaver’s Struggle for Relevance

Taliyah, the Stoneweaver, possesses a kit that is both unique and complex, revolving around her ability to manipulate the battlefield with seismic spells.

• Reworks and Identity Crisis: Taliyah has undergone multiple reworks, often trying to solidify her identity as a mid-laner or support. These shifts, while sometimes making her stronger, have also made her a less consistent pick and thus less of a ban priority.
• High Skill Ceiling: Her spells require precise aiming and positioning. Landing her Q (Threaded Volley) effectively, chaining her W (Seismic Shove) with her E (Unraveled Earth), and using her ultimate (Weaver’s Wall) for strategic plays demands significant skill. This high skill floor means fewer players can utilize her to her full potential, reducing perceived threat.
• Mana and Cooldown Dependent: Taliyah can be very mana-hungry early on, and her powerful crowd control abilities have significant cooldowns. If she misses her key spells, she can be left vulnerable and unable to contribute much.
• Less Reliable Engage: While her seismic abilities can disrupt and cc, they are often harder to land reliably compared to the hard CC of champions like Leona or Nautilus.

Skarner: The Crystal Vanguard’s Fading Menace

Skarner, the Crystal Vanguard, is a jungler known for his powerful area-denial and his unique ultimate, Impale, which can capture and displace a single enemy champion.

• Outdated Kit: Skarner’s kit, while having some strong points (especially his ultimate), can feel somewhat outdated compared to the more dynamic and utility-packed kits of newer junglers.
• Reliance on Spikes: His power spikes are often tied to items like Trinity Force or his ultimate being off cooldown. If he can’t secure kills or objectives during these windows, he can fall behind.
• Predictable Ganks: While he has a strong engage, his ganks are often telegraphed. Players can more easily anticipate his movements and prepare for his approach, especially if they have vision.
• Limited Carry Potential: Unlike some carry junglers, Skarner’s primary role is to disrupt and control, not necessarily to solo-carry a game through sheer damage output. This makes him less of a “must ban” threat.

It’s important to remember that the meta is always shifting. A champion with a low ban rate today could be a top-tier pick and ban target after a few favorable buffs in an upcoming patch. For instance, champions like Mordekaiser and Sylas were once rarely banned but quickly became ban priorities after receiving significant buffs and finding their place in the meta.

The Player Perception Factor

Beyond raw data, player perception plays a massive role in ban rates. If a champion is perceived as “annoying,” “toxic,” or “unfun” to play against, their ban rate can soar, even if their win rate isn’t particularly high. Conversely, champions that are seen as “fair” or “skill-expressive” might have lower ban rates. My own experience often sees me ban champions that I just don’t enjoy facing, regardless of how strong they *objectively* are. It’s a psychological element that stats alone can’t always capture.

Consider champions like:

• Teemo: Despite often having a sub-50% win rate, Teemo’s pervasive poison and mushroom traps make him incredibly irritating to play against, leading to a consistently higher ban rate than his performance might warrant.
• Yasuo and Yone: Their flashy playstyles, high mobility, and potential for outplays, coupled with a community perception of them being “feast or famine,” often lead to them being banned by players who simply don’t want to deal with the chaos they can create, regardless of their objective strength at any given moment.

Champions with low ban rates, like Ivern or Skarner, often lack this “annoyance factor” for the majority of the player base. They might be frustrating in specific situations, but they don’t inspire the same widespread dread or irritation that other champions do.

Champion Select Strategy and Lowest Ban Rate Champions

Understanding which champions have the lowest ban rate can inform your own champion select strategy. If you’re a player who enjoys playing champions that are often overlooked in the ban phase, you can consistently pick them without fear of them being removed from the pool.

For example, if you’re a dedicated Ivern one-trick, you can be reasonably confident that you’ll get to play your champion in most games. This allows you to focus your practice and mastery on that specific champion, rather than constantly worrying about bans.

Conversely, if you’re a player who likes to react to the enemy team’s picks and bans, knowing the low-ban-rate champions can help you identify potential comfort picks or counter-picks that the enemy might not have considered banning.

Frequently Asked Questions About Lowest Ban Rates in LoL

How can I find the most up-to-date information on who has the lowest ban rate in LoL?

To get the most current data on which champions have the lowest ban rates in League of Legends, your best bet is to consult reputable third-party statistics websites. These sites actively scrape and analyze game data from millions of matches across different regions and ranks. Popular and reliable options include:

• U.GG: This site is excellent for in-depth statistics, including champion win rates, pick rates, and ban rates, often filterable by patch, region, and rank.
• OP.GG: Similar to U.GG, OP.GG provides comprehensive data and player statistics, making it a go-to resource for many players.
• LeagueOfGraphs: This platform offers a wide array of champion analytics, including trends in ban rates over time and across different game modes.

When you visit these sites, look for sections dedicated to champion statistics or ban rates. You can usually sort champions by their ban percentage in ascending order to quickly identify those at the bottom of the list. It’s also beneficial to check the data for the current patch you are playing on, as ban rates can change dramatically with each update.

Why are some champions consistently picked but rarely banned?

There are several reasons why a champion might have a high pick rate but a low ban rate:

• Perceived Fairness: Some champions, even if they are strong, are not perceived as “unfair” or “overpowered.” Players might believe that these champions are balanced and that counterplay exists, making them less of a priority to ban. Think of champions that rely on intricate combos or require significant team coordination to be effective; even if they win, they might not feel like a “cheap” win.

• Manageable Weaknesses: A champion might have clear weaknesses that players feel confident they can exploit. For instance, a squishy mage with high damage might be popular, but if players know they can easily burst them down or out-maneuver them, they won’t feel the need to ban them. They’d rather ban a tank that’s hard to kill or a support that provides unmanageable crowd control.

• Skill Expression: Champions that require a high level of mechanical skill to perform well often have lower ban rates. Players might assume that the enemy won’t be skilled enough to play them to their full potential, making them a less threatening pick to ban. This is a common perception with champions like Riven, Lee Sin, or Zed.

• “Fun” Factor: Some champions are simply fun to play, even if they aren’t meta-defining. Players might pick them because they enjoy the champion’s kit or playstyle, and if they aren’t perceived as a game-breaking threat, they won’t be banned as frequently. Their presence in the game is more about enjoyment than a significant competitive threat.

• Counter-Pick Potential: If a champion has well-defined counter-picks that are readily available, players might feel less inclined to ban them. They believe that their team can handle the champion through strategic drafting and gameplay, rather than expending a ban slot.

It’s a delicate balance. A champion needs to be strong enough to be picked frequently, but not so overwhelmingly powerful or frustrating that players feel compelled to remove them from the game entirely via a ban.

Do ban rates differ significantly between different regions or ranks?

Yes, ban rates can and do differ significantly between different regions and ranks. This is a crucial aspect of understanding the nuances of champion select strategy:

• Regional Differences: Each region (e.g., North America, Europe, Korea, China) has its own meta, playstyle preferences, and champion pool popularity. For example, certain regions might favor aggressive early-game champions, leading to higher ban rates for those champions. Other regions might prioritize late-game scaling or utility-focused champions, influencing ban priorities accordingly. Cultural perceptions of champion “fairness” or “annoyance” can also vary.

• Ranked Tiers: The differences in ban rates across different skill levels are often even more pronounced:

  • Professional Play (Pro Play): Bans here are highly strategic and data-driven. Teams ban champions that are considered top-tier threats in the current meta, champions that counter their own compositions, or champions that specific opponents are known to excel at. Ban rates in pro play are often the most indicative of true meta strength.

  • High Elo (Master, Grandmaster, Challenger): Similar to pro play, bans are generally more informed. Players at this level understand the game’s intricacies, champion matchups, and meta trends. They will prioritize banning champions that are difficult to counter or that can easily snowball games.

  • Mid-to-High Elo (Platinum, Diamond): Ban rates here start to reflect a mix of meta awareness and player frustration. Champions that are perceived as strong or annoying, even if they aren’t consistently winning, might see higher ban rates. There’s a growing understanding of meta, but individual player experiences and biases start to play a larger role.

  • Low Elo (Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold): In these brackets, ban rates are often heavily influenced by individual player experience and community perception. Champions that are seen as “broken” or “unfun” by a significant portion of the player base tend to get banned, regardless of their objective performance data. For example, champions like Yasuo, Zed, or even Teemo might have higher ban rates in lower Elo simply because players find them difficult or frustrating to deal with, even if skilled players can counter them effectively. Conversely, complex champions or those that require significant team coordination might have very low ban rates because players in these brackets either don’t understand them, don’t play them, or don’t know how to play against them effectively.

Therefore, when looking at ban rate data, it’s always a good practice to filter by your region and rank to get the most relevant insights for your own games.

Does the role of a champion affect its ban rate?

Absolutely. The role a champion plays in League of Legends significantly impacts its ban rate due to how that role interacts with the game’s win conditions and player perception.

• High Impact Roles: Roles that have a significant impact on the game’s outcome tend to have champions with higher ban rates. For example:

  • Mid Lane: Mid laners often have high damage output, significant crowd control, and the ability to roam and influence other lanes. Champions that excel in these areas are frequently banned.

  • Jungle: Junglers dictate the early game tempo, gank lanes, and secure objectives. Powerful junglers that can snowball leads or provide consistent pressure are often high ban priorities.

• Support Role Nuances: Supports can have a wide range of ban rates. Those that offer immense crowd control, sustain, or engage potential (like Thresh, Blitzcrank, or Leona) might see higher bans. However, enchanter supports who are more reliant on their ADC to carry might have lower ban rates if they’re not perceived as game-ending threats on their own.

• Top Lane and ADC: These roles can be more situational. Top laners who are strong duelists or split-pushers can be concerning, while ADCs that provide immense late-game scaling damage are often banned, especially if they’re in a meta where their itemization is strong.

• “Unfun” or “Toxic” Kits: Champions that have kits perceived as “toxic” or “annoying” can have elevated ban rates regardless of their role. For instance, champions like Teemo (Top/Mid) or Shaco (Jungle) often get banned due to their playstyle, even if they aren’t always the strongest meta picks.

• Lack of Agency: Champions that are perceived as having low agency or being highly dependent on their team often have lower ban rates. If a champion can be easily countered or if their impact is minimal without strong team support, players are less likely to spend a ban on them.

Ultimately, the ban rate reflects not just a champion’s objective strength, but also their perceived threat level and how much players want to avoid dealing with them. Roles that have a more direct and immediate impact on the game’s flow tend to see their champions banned more frequently.

What is the difference between pick rate and ban rate?

The terms “pick rate” and “ban rate” in League of Legends refer to distinct but related aspects of champion selection:

• Pick Rate: The pick rate of a champion indicates the percentage of games in which that champion is selected to be played by a player. A high pick rate suggests a champion is popular, strong, or desirable. This doesn’t mean they are necessarily good; a champion might be picked frequently because they are fun, iconic, or have a large dedicated player base, even if their win rate is average or below average.

  Example: If a champion has a pick rate of 20%, it means they are chosen in 1 out of every 5 games.

• Ban Rate: The ban rate of a champion indicates the percentage of games in which that champion is intentionally removed from play by a ban during the champion select phase. A high ban rate suggests that players collectively perceive the champion as a significant threat, either due to being overpowered, too difficult to counter, or simply too frustrating to play against. A low ban rate means players generally don’t feel the need to use a ban slot to remove that champion.

  Example: If a champion has a ban rate of 50%, it means they are banned in half of all games.

The relationship between the two is often correlative but not directly causal:

• High Pick Rate & High Ban Rate: This usually signifies a champion that is currently dominant in the meta. They are both popular and perceived as a threat that needs to be dealt with.

• High Pick Rate & Low Ban Rate: This could indicate a champion that is very popular and fun to play but not necessarily perceived as overwhelmingly strong or problematic. Alternatively, they might have clear counterplay that players are confident they can exploit.

• Low Pick Rate & High Ban Rate: This is less common but can occur if a champion is considered extremely dangerous in the hands of a skilled player or if they have a very niche but game-breaking ability that necessitates a ban, even if few players actually pick them.

• Low Pick Rate & Low Ban Rate: This typically describes champions that are either underperforming, niche, or not particularly popular. They are neither frequently chosen nor perceived as significant threats warranting a ban.

Understanding both pick rate and ban rate provides a more comprehensive picture of a champion’s standing in the game’s ecosystem.

Conclusion

The quest to answer “Who has the lowest ban rate in LoL?” leads us to a fascinating intersection of data, player psychology, and the ever-evolving League of Legends meta. While specific numbers fluctuate with every patch, champions like Ivern, Galio, Taric, Taliyah, and Skarner consistently appear at the bottom of ban priority lists. These champions are typically characterized by their niche playstyles, perceived lack of overwhelming power, or the presence of manageable counterplay.

My own journey through countless champion selects has taught me that the ban phase is as much about what players *fear* as it is about objective power. The champions with the lowest ban rates are often those that don’t inspire that primal urge to remove them from existence. They are the safe picks, the situational picks, the underperformers, or the simply less glamorous options. For players looking to secure their favorite champion without the stress of bans, exploring this list can be a strategic advantage. It highlights that not every champion needs to be feared; some are content to simply exist, waiting for the right player and the right moment to shine, often bypassing the ban hammer entirely.