If you’ve ever gotten stuck fighting a tough Pyro Hypostasis or wished you could show off your newly pulled 5-star character to your gaming crew, you’ve probably asked: can i play Genshin Impact with friends? The short answer is a resounding yes, but co-op play comes with a few specific rules, unlock requirements, and limits that most new players don’t know about right off the bat. I first got into Genshin because my roommate kept bugging me to join so we could run artifact domains together, so this was literally the first question I searched when I made my account. I’ve spent hundreds of hours running domains, hunting for crystal chunks, and even messing around in hide-and-seek events with my own friend group, so I’m breaking down everything you need to know to make your co-op sessions go off without a hitch.
Can I Play Genshin Impact With Friends? How to Unlock Co-Op Mode First
Before you can jump into a friend’s world, you’ll need to hit a very specific progression milestone first. Co-op mode unlocks automatically as soon as you reach Adventure Rank 16, no extra quests or purchases required. For brand new players, that usually takes 3 to 5 hours of casual play, depending on how much you wander off to explore instead of completing main quests. If you’re in a hurry to play with friends, prioritize archon quests and world quests, since they give the most AR experience per minute of play.
All players in the group need to be at least AR 16 to join co-op, even if only one of you is way further into the game. The good news is cross-platform play is fully supported across every device Genshin is available on: PC, PlayStation 4/5, mobile, and Nintendo Switch players can all join the same session with no extra barriers. There’s one big exception to that rule, though: you can only play co-op with players on the same regional server as you. If you made your account on the North America server, you won’t be able to join friends who play on the Europe, Asia, or SAR servers, and there’s no way to transfer your account between regions right now.
PlayStation players get an extra perk here: you don’t need a PlayStation Plus subscription to access Genshin co-op, unlike most other online multiplayer games on the platform. That means you can jump in with friends right away even if you only have a free PSN account.
Fun Co-Op Activities You Can Enjoy With Friends
Once you unlock co-op, there are dozens of ways to play together that make the game feel way more dynamic than solo play. Most players start with running domains, since artifact, talent, and weapon ascension domains are way easier to beat with a group, especially the higher level ones that unlock at AR 45 and above. You get the exact same rewards for running domains in co-op as you do solo, so it’s a great way to cut down on the time you spend farming for gear.
World bosses are another popular co-op activity. Fighting Azhdaha, the Raiden Shogun weekly boss, or any of the new Fontaine world bosses with 3 other people cuts fight time down drastically, and you still get the same drop rate for rare ascension materials. You can also team up to hunt for resources: if you need 168 violetgrass to ascend Hu Tao, you can split up in a friend’s world and collect twice as much in half the time. Resources in another player’s world respawn after 48 hours, so you don’t have to worry about depleting their stock.
Limited time events almost always have a co-op mode too, from rhythm games to boss rush challenges to hide-and-seek across Teyvat. You can even visit each other’s Serenitea Pots to show off your builds, leave gifts for each other, or use each other’s crafting tables if you don’t have a specific furniture recipe unlocked. That said, there are a few things you can’t do in co-op, so it’s good to know those limits ahead of time:
- Complete main archon quests or story character quests (you have to do these solo to avoid breaking story progression for the host)
- Open certain chests that are tied to the host’s world quest progression, like hidden chests locked behind puzzle chains
- Change the world level of the host’s world mid-session, even if they have a lower world level unlocked
- Claim reputation rewards or complete your own daily commissions in another player’s world
The host of the world controls what quests or activities you can access, so always ask before wandering off to take resources if you’re a guest. It’s a small courtesy that stops a lot of unnecessary conflict, especially if you’re playing with people you don’t know super well.
Pro Tips for Smooth, Enjoyable Co-Op Sessions With Friends
Anyone who’s spent time in public co-op lobbies knows that not all sessions are created equal, but a few simple rules will make your playtime with friends way more fun. First, pay attention to world level differences. If you’re AR 50 joining your AR 20 friend’s world, enemies will be scaled to their world level, so your level 90 5-star characters will one-shot every enemy before they get a chance to play. To avoid that, swap to lower level characters that match the world level, or ask them to raise their world level temporarily if they have the option unlocked.
It’s considered good etiquette to bring at least one support character if you’re joining a friend’s world to run high-level domains. There’s nothing more frustrating than showing up to a level 90 artifact domain with three other DPS characters and no healer or shielder, forcing you to restart the domain three times in a row. Even if your main is a strong DPS, swap to a healer like Barbara or a shielder like Diona if no one else on the team has that role covered.
If you’re the host, set clear expectations for the session ahead of time. If you’re only opening your world to farm crystal chunks, say that upfront so your friends don’t show up expecting to run weekly bosses. If you don’t want random players joining your world, set your co-op permissions to “friends only” in the settings menu. I learned this the hard way last year, when a random player joined my open world and stole all the Sumeru rose seeds I was saving for my Serenitea Pot garden. I haven’t set my world to public since.
You don’t need voice chat to communicate well in co-op, either. The in-game ping system lets you mark enemies, resources, and points of interest with one tap, so you can easily tell your friends where to go even if you don’t want to turn on your mic. If you do use voice chat, keep it light! Co-op is supposed to be fun, don’t yell at your friends for missing a perfect elemental reaction.
Common Co-Op Issues and How to Fix Them Fast
Even if you follow all the rules, you’ll probably run into a few co-op issues every now and then, but most of them are really easy to fix. The most common issue is being unable to join a friend’s world. First, double check that you’re both on the same regional server, that their world is set to friends-only or public, and that they’re not in the middle of a story quest that locks co-op. If they’ve already got 3 other players in their world, you’ll get a “world is full” error, since co-op only supports up to 4 players total per session.
Lag is another super common issue, especially if you or one of your friends is playing on mobile with a spotty internet connection. First, turn off any background apps that are using up bandwidth, and switch to a wired internet connection if you’re playing on PC or console. If lag persists, have the player with the most stable internet connection host the world, that usually fixes 90% of connection issues right away. If you’re playing on mobile, try moving closer to your wifi router or switching to a 5G connection.
If you can’t claim rewards after beating a boss or domain, that’s almost always because you don’t have enough Original Resin left. Just like solo play, you need 20 Resin to claim domain or world boss rewards, and 30 Resin for weekly bosses, even in co-op. You can check your Resin count in the top right corner of your screen at any time.
Another common issue is not being able to find your friend on your co-op list. You have to add them as an in-game friend using their 9-digit UID first, even if you’re already friends with them on Steam, PlayStation, or your mobile device. I once spent 10 minutes trying to join my little cousin’s world before I realized I’d typed one digit of his UID wrong, so double check that you entered it correctly if you can’t find their account.
At the end of the day, asking can I play Genshin Impact with friends opens up a whole new side of the game that you won’t get from solo play, from beating tough bosses you could never take on alone to making silly memories running around Teyvat with people you care about. You don’t need any special equipment or extra purchases to access co-op, just a little bit of time to hit AR 16 and a group of friends on the same server. If you’re just starting out, don’t rush to unlock co-op, take your time exploring the story first, but once you hit that level, it’s absolutely worth giving it a try. Next time you log on, send a co-op request to your friend list, you might be surprised at how much more fun the game feels with other people along for the ride.