Crossplay in Fortnite: who can play with whom

Fortnite has crossplay across all platforms: PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Switch and mobile can all play together. It’s one of the things that helped the game become hugely popular, and it works without any setup. Players on weaker hardware notice it the most, so we took a separate look at how Fortnite runs on Switch. There are a few rules, though, mainly around who the game matches you against. This article covers what crossplay can do and where its limits are.

Who can play with whom

Pretty much everyone with everyone. One party can include players on PC, both generations of PlayStation and Xbox, Switch and Switch 2, and mobile. All you need is to add each other as friends through your Epic Games account. That account is shared across platforms, and it’s also why your progress and purchases carry over when you launch the game somewhere else.

Controller vs. mouse

This is the most common question, and it’s also where crossplay isn’t as simple as it looks. When searching for a match, the game considers what you play with, not what you play on. For matchmaking purposes, a controller player on PC is closer to a controller player on console than to their neighbor using mouse and keyboard.

The practical consequence: when you invite a friend on a different device into your party, the game matches you based on the most demanding input in the party. If three of you are on controller and one is on mouse, the whole party ends up in tougher matches.

Mobile is a special case

Playing on a phone is a different world in terms of both controls and performance, and the game knows it. Mobile players have their own environment, and while they can team up with a PC party, expect it to be harder for them. If you play in a mixed group, it’s fair to take that into account when judging results.

How to turn off crossplay

You can restrict it in the game settings, but think it over first. Fortnite looks for matches across the entire connected player pool, and restricting it will make your wait times much longer, especially at off-peak hours or in modes that fewer people play.

When it makes sense: you play on controller and don’t want to run into mouse players. When it doesn’t: you want to play with a friend on another platform, in which case you need crossplay turned on.

What crossplay doesn’t solve

It doesn’t solve purchases between stores. Cosmetics bought on an account are tied to that account, not the platform, so you see them everywhere, but V-Bucks bought in one store are still deducted from a single shared account wallet. More details in our article on what you pay for in Fortnite.

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