Dota 2 ranks and MMR explained

Dota 2 has eight ranked medals: Herald, Guardian, Crusader, Archon, Legend, Ancient, Divine and Immortal. The first seven each have five stars, and each medal covers roughly 770 MMR, so one star is about 150 MMR. Immortal has no stars and shows a regional leaderboard number instead. Your MMR moves after every ranked game, but since patch 7.33 the amount depends on how certain the system is about your rating. Behavior score is a separate number from 1 to 12,000 that decides who you get matched with, not your medal.

All Dota 2 medals and rough MMR

Valve does not publish MMR cutoffs. The ranges below are the community-tracked bands that most current guides use. Treat them as a guide, not a rule: the exact numbers shift with patches and player population, and the Immortal cutoff is different in every region.

The pattern is simple once you see it. Every medal is about 770 MMR wide, and five stars split that into steps of about 154. Going from Archon 1 to Legend 1 is roughly five stars, or a bit under 800 MMR of net gains.

How much MMR you gain or lose per game

For years Dota 2 used a near-fixed swing per game, and you will still see "25 per win" or "30 per win" quoted online. Patch 7.33 in 2023 replaced that with a Glicko-based system. Glicko keeps two numbers for you: your rating, and how sure it is about that rating. Valve shows the second one as rank confidence.

• Low confidence (new account, long break, recent recalibration): wins and losses move you a lot.
• High confidence (you play often and your results are steady): the swing per game gets smaller and more predictable.
• Match balance matters. Beating a team rated above yours is worth more than beating a weaker one, and losing to a weaker team costs more.

So there is no single correct answer to "how much MMR per game". If your swings look large, it usually means the system is still unsure about you, and a run of wins will move you quickly in either direction.

How calibration works

New ranked accounts, and accounts after a reset, play a set of calibration games before a medal shows. Current guides put this at around 10 games. Those games carry more weight because uncertainty is high, which is why a good or bad calibration run can place you several stars away from where you would settle later.

One detail surprises a lot of players. A Valve developer explained that recalibration only looks at wins and losses, the rank balance between the two teams, and the uncertainty on your rank. You get no extra credit for kills, last hits or a high KDA beyond simply winning the game. Playing for stats during calibration does nothing. Playing to win does.

To queue ranked at all, Valve requires a phone number linked to the account and at least 100 hours played. These rules were added to cut down on smurfs and throwaway accounts.

Behavior score and why it matters

Behavior score is not part of your MMR, but it shapes every ranked game you play.

• It runs from 1 to 12,000. The 12,000 cap came with a 2023 client update that also added a separate communication score.
• It reflects reports, commends and how you behave in recent matches.
• A high score keeps you in the normal pool. Players with very low scores get matched with each other, and can lose features such as chat, voice and coaching.
• Low priority is a separate punishment, triggered by abandons or a burst of reports. While in it you can only queue Single Draft until you win your way out.

The practical point: a ranked climb is easier from a clean account. If your behavior score has dropped, a few calm games with no reports will help your matchmaking more than you might expect.

What this means for climbing

• Play often enough to stay confident. Long breaks raise uncertainty, so your next games swing harder.
• Win, do not farm stats. MMR is about results, not your post-game numbers.
• Party versus solo. Queueing with a stronger friend changes the match balance the system uses, so gains in a party can differ from solo games.
• Protect your behavior score. Muting early beats arguing.

Boosting and the rules

Account sharing breaks Valve's terms, and Valve has run ban waves aimed at boosters and smurfs before. No service can promise zero risk. A safer route is to keep your own account in your hands: a Dota 2 duo boost puts a pro in your party while you play. If your medal has not shown yet, calibration help covers the games that set your starting point, and Dota 2 coaching works on your own decisions if you want to climb on your own.

For a set amount of MMR from your current rating, see the Dota 2 MMR boost page. A pro from the team plays your games, you can appear offline, and every game is tracked in a live order chat.

Quick answers

What are the ranks in Dota 2 in order?

Herald, Guardian, Crusader, Archon, Legend, Ancient, Divine and Immortal. The first seven have five stars each. Immortal shows a leaderboard position instead.

How much MMR is one star in Dota 2?

About 154 MMR. Each medal covers roughly 770 MMR split into five stars. Valve does not publish exact cutoffs, so these are community estimates.

How much MMR do you get per win?

It varies. Since patch 7.33, Dota 2 uses a Glicko-based system, so gains are bigger when the system is unsure of your rating and smaller once it is confident.

Do kills and KDA affect calibration?

No. A Valve developer said recalibration only uses wins and losses, team balance and rank uncertainty. In-game stats give no extra credit.

Does behavior score affect MMR?

Not directly. It runs from 1 to 12,000 and decides your matchmaking pool and some features, while MMR only changes with match results.