If you’ve ever tried to round up friends to farm boss drops or clear event domains, you’ve probably wondered is Genshin Impact cross play compatible across different devices. Lots of players pick up the game on whatever hardware they have handy, from budget Android phones to high-end gaming PCs, and it’s frustrating to realize you might not be able to play together without switching platforms. This guide breaks down exactly how cross play works in Genshin, what limitations you might run into, and how to set it up in just a few minutes.
Is Genshin Impact Cross Play Supported Across All Platforms?
The short answer is yes, cross play works across every official Genshin Impact platform, though there were restrictions for PlayStation users in earlier versions of the game. All Genshin Impact platforms support cross play for co-op sessions, so you can team up with friends no matter if they play on PC, iOS, Android, PS4, PS5, or Nintendo Switch. You don’t have to pay any extra fees to access cross play, either, beyond any required platform subscriptions like PlayStation Plus for online play on Sony consoles.
Cross save functionality works alongside cross play for most platforms, too, as long as you link all your game accounts to a single HoYoverse account. That means you can start playing on your phone during your commute, pick up where you left off on your PC at home, and then join a friend’s session on your PS5 later the same day without losing any progress. The only small caveat here is that platform-exclusive items don’t carry over, which we’ll cover in more detail later.
It’s important to note that cross play only works between players on the same regional server. If you made your account on the North America server, you can’t join a friend who plays on the Europe or Asia servers, no matter what platform you both use. You cannot transfer server progress after creating your account, so you’ll want to confirm which server your friends use before you start playing if you plan to team up regularly.
How to Set Up Cross Play in Genshin Impact for First-Time Users
Setting up cross play takes just a few steps, and you only have to do it once to access it across all your linked devices. Follow these steps to get started:
Adventure Rank 16 takes roughly 4-6 hours of gameplay to reach for new players, so don’t panic if you just downloaded the game and can’t access co-op right away. Focus on completing main story quests and opening waypoints to level up your Adventure Rank quickly. I helped my little sister set up her account last year, and we were able to start running domains together the same afternoon she started playing, so it doesn’t take too long.
If you run into issues adding friends, double check that you entered their UID correctly, and confirm that they don’t have their co-op settings set to “block invites” in their in-game privacy menu. A lot of new players accidentally turn off invites without realizing it, so that’s the first thing to check if your invites aren’t going through.
Key Limitations of Genshin Impact Cross Play You Should Know
While cross play works very well for the most part, there are a few small limitations you should be aware of to avoid frustration. The biggest one for PlayStation users is that exclusive items tied to PlayStation Plus promotions don’t carry over to other platforms. PlayStation-exclusive in-game items will not appear in your inventory when you log in on other platforms, so if you claim a free character skin or weapon bundle on your PS5, you won’t be able to use it when you log in on your phone or PC. These items stay tied to your PlayStation account, even if it’s linked to your HoYoverse account.
Another small limitation is related to voice chat. Cross-play chat works across all platforms, but voice chat is only supported on PC, mobile, and PlayStation. Nintendo Switch users don’t have access to in-game voice chat, so if you’re playing with someone on Switch, you’ll need to use an external voice call app to talk during runs. I ran into this last month when playing with a friend who uses Switch, and we just hopped on a group call instead of relying on in-game voice, which worked perfectly fine.
You might also notice small performance differences between platforms during cross-play sessions. For example, if you’re playing on a Switch, you might load into domains a few seconds slower than friends playing on high-end PCs, but this doesn’t impact actual gameplay for anyone in the group. The game automatically adjusts for these differences, so you won’t run into lag or glitches just because you’re playing with people on different hardware.
Tips to Improve Your Cross Play Experience in Genshin Impact
There are a few easy tweaks you can make to get the most out of cross play, no matter what platforms you and your friends use. First, take a minute to sync your friends list across all your devices once you link your HoYoverse account. That way, you don’t have to re-add all your friends every time you switch between your phone and PC. You can enable this in your account settings with one click.
You can lower your world level once every 24 hours to match lower-rank friends for cross-play sessions. If you’re Adventure Rank 50 and your friend is only Rank 20, they won’t be able to join your world by default, but lowering your world level by 1 or 2 will let them join without forcing them to grind for hours to catch up. This is a great feature if you’re helping new players get caught up on boss drops or event rewards.
If you often switch between controller and touch controls depending on what platform you’re using, save your control layout presets in the in-game settings menu. You can load these presets in one click when you switch devices, so you don’t have to spend 10 minutes adjusting your controls every time you swap from your PC to your phone.
Avoid joining random cross-play lobbies if you don't want other players to collect resources from your world. Random players can collect flowers, ore, and other limited resources from your world when you let them join, so if you’re saving up materials for an upcoming character banner, set your co-op privacy settings to “friends only” to prevent strangers from taking your resources.
To wrap things up, to answer the question is Genshin Impact cross play compatible across all platforms: yes, with only a few minor limitations that are easy to work around. As long as you and your friends are on the same server, have linked your HoYoverse accounts, and have reached Adventure Rank 16, you can team up no matter what hardware you use. I play with friends across every supported platform every week, and outside of the rare voice chat quirk for Switch users, we almost never run into issues. Just double check your server before you make your account, and you’ll be able to play with all your friends without any extra hassle.