If you’ve ever logged onto Rainbow Six Siege on your Xbox, only to realize half your regular squad plays on PC, you’ve almost certainly asked: can xbox play with pc rainbow six siege. Crossplay has become a standard for most modern multiplayer games, but Ubisoft rolled out support for the feature in fits and starts over Siege’s long lifespan. I’ve spent the last three years switching between Xbox Series X and PC for Siege matches, so I’ve tested every quirk of the crossplay system first hand. This guide breaks down exactly what works, what doesn’t, and how to get your whole squad in the same lobby no matter what platform you use.
Can Xbox Play With PC Rainbow Six Siege: Official Crossplay Rules
The short answer is yes, all Xbox consoles (Xbox One, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X) support full crossplay with all PC versions of Siege, including Steam, Ubisoft Connect, and Epic Games Store releases. All Xbox and PC versions of Siege share the same crossplay pool for casual, ranked, and quick match modes as of the latest patch. This wasn’t always the case, though. Before 2022, Xbox and PC players were locked to separate matchmaking pools, and crossplay was only available for private custom lobbies.
One key rule to note: crossplay with PC is opt-in for Xbox users. You won’t be placed in lobbies with PC players unless you manually turn on the crossplay setting in your options menu. Ubisoft added this opt-in rule to level the playing field, since PC players using mouse and keyboard have a natural aiming advantage over controller users. If you only want to play with your PC friends and not random PC opponents, you can also stick to private lobbies that only include people from your friends list.
How to Set Up Crossplay Between Xbox and PC for Siege
Setting up crossplay takes less than two minutes once you know where to find the right settings. You’ll need to make sure both you and your PC friends have crossplay enabled, and that you’ve added each other as friends on Ubisoft Connect, since platform-specific friends lists don’t carry over automatically. Follow these steps to get your lobby up and running:
- On Xbox: Open Siege, go to the Options menu, select the General tab, scroll down to Crossplay Matchmaking and set it to On, then save your settings.
- On PC: Open Siege, navigate to the same General tab in Options, confirm Crossplay Matchmaking is toggled on, then make sure your Ubisoft Connect profile is set to visible to friends.
- Next, search for your friend’s Ubisoft Connect username in the in-game friends menu, send a friend request, and once accepted, you can invite them to your lobby directly from the friends list.
I’ve run into issues where Xbox users couldn’t see PC friend requests before, and the fix is almost always double-checking that both profiles have crossplay enabled, and that neither user has their Ubisoft profile set to private. If you still can’t find each other, restarting the game on both platforms usually fixes the minor sync bug that causes the issue. When you’re playing crossplay between Xbox and PC Rainbow Six Siege, you can adjust your controller sensitivity to better compete with mouse and keyboard players if you want to level the playing field a bit.
Pros and Cons of Xbox and PC Crossplay for Siege
Crossplay is a game-changer for most players, but it’s not perfect for every playstyle. It’s worth weighing the benefits and downsides before you toggle the setting on, especially if you’re a competitive ranked player.
The biggest benefit is obvious: You can play with your entire friend group no matter what platform they prefer. I used to have to switch between my PC and Xbox just to play with different groups of friends before crossplay launched, and it saved me so much hassle. Second, crossplay lobbies have much shorter queue times, especially for less popular modes like Terrorist Hunt or ranked placement matches during off-peak hours. You won’t be waiting 10 minutes for a match at 2am on a Tuesday like you would in Xbox-only lobbies.
The downsides are mostly related to fair play. First, PC players using mouse and keyboard have a significant aiming advantage over controller users, especially at longer ranges. If you’re a casual player, this might not bother you, but if you’re climbing ranked, you might notice you get picked off by PC snipers more often. Second, PC players are slightly more likely to run into cheaters, though Ubisoft’s BattlEye anti-cheat has gotten much better at catching hackers in recent years. I’ve only run into three confirmed cheaters in crossplay lobbies over the last year, which is about the same rate as PC-only lobbies.
Common Crossplay Issues Between Xbox and PC (And How to Fix Them)
For the most part, crossplay works seamlessly, but there are a few common bugs that pop up regularly. I’ve run into almost all of them myself, so these fixes are tried and tested.
The most common issue is being unable to invite PC friends to your Xbox lobby, or vice versa. Make sure you’re using your friend’s Ubisoft username, not their Xbox gamertag or Steam username, when sending requests. Platform-specific usernames won’t show up in the in-game friends search, so you’ll need to ask your friend for their exact Ubisoft handle. If requests still aren’t coming through, double-check that neither of you has crossplay disabled in your settings.
Another frequent issue is lag or high ping in crossplay matches. This usually happens when one player is on a different server region. Go to the Options menu, select the Network tab, and make sure everyone in your lobby has the same preferred server selected. If you’re still getting lag, try restarting your router or using a wired connection instead of Wi-Fi. Voice chat not working between platforms is another common bug, and the fix is usually as simple as setting your in-game voice chat to Team Only instead of Platform Only in the Audio settings tab.
One thing that isn’t a bug, but a lot of players get confused about: cross-progression between Xbox and PC is not supported right now. Your rank, skin collection, and in-game currency are locked to each platform, so you won’t be able to carry your progress over if you switch between Xbox and PC regularly. Ubisoft has stated they have no plans to add cross-progression between console and PC in the near future, so you’ll have to grind ranks separately if you play on both platforms.
At the end of the day, the answer to can xbox play with pc rainbow six siege is a resounding yes, as long as you have crossplay enabled and are friends on Ubisoft Connect. Crossplay makes it easier than ever to play with all your friends, no matter what platform they prefer, even if there are a few small quirks to work around. If you’re a casual player just looking to have fun with friends, the minor downsides of crossplay are almost certainly worth it. If you’re a competitive ranked player, you can always stick to platform-only lobbies when you’re grinding ranks, and switch to crossplay when you’re playing for fun with your PC squad.
