If you’ve ever hopped on a PS5 party with friends who only play Rainbow Six Siege on PC, you’ve almost certainly asked can you crossplay rainbow six siege ps5 and pc at least once. I’ve been there too – last month, my college crew planned a Siege marathon, half of us on PS5, the other half on high-end gaming PCs, and we spent 20 minutes fumbling through settings before we figured out exactly what works and what doesn’t. This guide breaks down every detail you need to know, no misinformation or outdated patch notes included, so you can spend less time troubleshooting and more time planting defusers or holding sites.
Can You Crossplay Rainbow Six Siege PS5 and PC: The Short Answer
The short answer is yes, full crossplay between PS5 and PC for Rainbow Six Siege is supported for all casual, ranked, and custom game modes, as long as you have the right settings enabled. When I first looked up can you crossplay rainbow six siege ps5 and pc last year, the feature was still in beta, but now it's fully rolled out to all regions with no region locks. Crossplay between PS5 and PC only works if both players have cross-platform play enabled in their Ubisoft account settings, not just their console or Steam settings. You won't have to pay any extra fees to access crossplay, and it works for both the standard and deluxe editions of the game. The only time crossplay between PS5 and PC won't work is if Ubisoft has temporarily disabled the feature for server maintenance or patch updates, which they usually announce at least 24 hours in advance. A lot of guides skip over the Ubisoft account linking step, but it's non-negotiable if you want to get crossplay working properly for your group.
Step-by-Step Setup for PS5 and PC Crossplay
Setup takes less than 2 minutes per person, no extra downloads or account upgrades required. If you're still running into issues after following these steps, it's likely that one person in your group has crossplay disabled, which is the most common fix for anyone still having trouble with crossplay between the two platforms.
- For PS5 players: Open Rainbow Six Siege, go to the main menu, select Options, navigate to the Gameplay tab, scroll down to "Crossplay Matchmaking" and toggle it to "On". You'll also need to confirm your Ubisoft account is linked to your PSN profile, which you can do through the in-game Ubisoft Connect prompt.
- For PC players (Steam or Ubisoft Connect): Launch Siege, open the Ubisoft Connect overlay, go to Settings, select "Crossplay" and make sure the toggle is enabled. If you're playing through Steam, double check that your Steam account is linked to the same Ubisoft account you use for cross-platform friend adds.
- To add friends across platforms: Open the in-game friends list, select "Add Friend", enter their Ubisoft Connect username exactly (capitalization and special characters matter), and send a request. Once accepted, you can invite them to your party directly from the friends list.
I learned the hard way that username capitalization matters when adding friends – I spent 10 minutes trying to add my friend "JakeSiege22" before I realized his username was actually "jakesiege22" with no capitals. If you don't see the request pop up, double check the spelling first before you assume crossplay is broken. Party leaders can set crossplay preferences for the whole group, so if the leader has crossplay off, no one in the party will match with cross-platform players, even if their individual settings are on. You don't need a PS Plus subscription or Xbox Live Gold to play crossplay with PC players, though you will still need it for regular console online play if you're matching with other console users.
Key Limitations of PS5 and PC R6 Crossplay
It's not all perfect, right? There are a few tradeoffs to crossplaying between PS5 and PC that a lot of guides skip over, but they can make a huge difference in your match experience. First, input-based matchmaking: By default, PS5 players using a controller will match with other controller users, even if they're on PC, but if you plug a mouse and keyboard into your PS5, you'll be put in the PC input pool. That means if you're a controller player on PS5, you won't get matched with mouse and keyboard PC players unless you choose to turn off input-based matchmaking in your settings. Controller players on PS5 have the option to turn off input-based matchmaking if they want to challenge themselves against mouse and keyboard users, but most players keep it enabled to keep matches fair.
Another common question tied to can you crossplay rainbow six siege ps5 and pc is whether progression carries over, and the short answer is no, your unlocks and rank are tied to your platform, even if you use the same Ubisoft account. I was disappointed when I found that out – I have a full set of Black Ice skins on my PS5 account that I can't use on my PC account, no matter what I do. Custom game crossplay works for all modes, but some limited-time events may restrict crossplay temporarily if Ubisoft is testing new features. Crossplay voice chat works natively through the in-game system, but if you're having issues, you can always use a third-party party app like Discord to talk, which is what my group does to avoid in-game chat glitches. Cheat reports for crossplay matches go directly to Ubisoft's cross-platform anti-cheat team, so you can report hackers on either platform the same way you would report a player on your native system.
A lot of players who are new to crossplay worry that PC hackers will ruin their matches, but Ubisoft's BattlEye anti-cheat works across both platforms, so the risk is no higher than it would be if you were playing PC-only or PS5-only matches. That's one of the biggest misconceptions I see from people asking about crossplay between the two platforms – they assume PC players are all cheating, but that's not the case for the vast majority of matches.
Tips to Make PS5 and PC Crossplay Smoother
After running crossplay matches with my mixed group for the past three months, I've picked up a few small tweaks that cut down on lag, mismatches, and general frustration. First, adjust your ping limit settings before you start matching. By default, Siege lets you match with players up to 150ms ping, but if you set that limit to 70ms or lower, you'll avoid matches where PC players on the other side of the world have a huge latency advantage over your PS5 group. Second, if you're a PS5 controller player, turn on the advanced controller aim assist settings for crossplay matches. The default aim assist is tuned for console-only play, but the advanced setting gives you a small boost when tracking mouse and keyboard players if you choose to play against them. Never turn off crossplay mid-party, as this will kick all cross-platform players out of the group immediately and force you to re-invite everyone.
If you're playing ranked crossplay, make sure everyone in your party is within the same rank tier (Silver, Gold, Platinum, etc.) before you queue. The ranked crossplay matchmaking system prioritizes rank over input type, so you won't get matched with players three ranks above you just because they're on PC. If you're having trouble connecting to a crossplay lobby, restart your game and check Ubisoft's server status page first – crossplay outages are usually tied to general server issues, not a problem with your settings. Last week, our group couldn't connect to a crossplay ranked lobby for 15 minutes, and we thought our settings were broken, but it turned out Ubisoft was running a quick server maintenance that we missed the announcement for. These small tweaks will make a huge difference in your crossplay experience, and they're all things I wish I knew before I first started looking up can you crossplay rainbow six siege ps5 and pc for our group marathon.
At the end of the day, asking can you crossplay rainbow six siege ps5 and pc opens up a ton of new play opportunities, especially if you have friends on multiple platforms. You don't have to switch devices to play with your crew, and the setup process is way simpler than it was even a year ago. Just keep the limitations and tips we covered in mind, double check your settings before you queue, and you'll be ready to jump into matches in no time. If you run into issues we didn't cover, drop a comment below and I'll help you troubleshoot.
