How to Farm in League of Legends: Mastering CS from Start to Finish
Farming—also known as “CSing” or “creep score”—is one of the most fundamental skills in League of Legends. Whether you’re aiming to climb ranked or just want to improve your gameplay, learning how to consistently secure minion kills can dramatically boost your gold income and set you up for success. This guide breaks down farming by game phase to help you develop solid habits from the very start.
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Early Game Farming: Laying the Foundation
The early game (levels 1–6) is the most critical time to focus on clean, consistent farming. This is when the majority of laners build their gold lead and begin to snowball.
Tips for Early Game Farming:
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Last-Hitting is Key: Wait until a minion’s health is low and time your auto-attack to get the killing blow. Try practicing in custom games to improve your accuracy.
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Use Attack-Move Click: This helps with timing and can prevent accidental movement.
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Manage the Wave: Don’t push the wave unnecessarily unless you’re planning to roam or recall. Keeping the wave near your tower makes it safer to farm.
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Watch Your Opponent: While focusing on CS, don’t ignore the enemy laner. Be aware of their positioning and avoid taking unnecessary damage while last-hitting.
Goal: Aim for around 70–80 CS by the 10-minute mark. It’s okay if you don’t hit that right away—consistency comes with practice.
Mid Game Farming: Stay on the Move
Mid game (levels 7–13) shifts the focus from laning to skirmishing, objectives, and map control. You’ll often be rotating between lanes, making it harder to farm in one spot.
Tips for Mid Game Farming:
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Catch Side Waves: If your team is grouped mid or contesting objectives, take time to grab side lane farm when it’s safe.
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Jungle CS: If you’re ahead or your jungler is on the other side of the map, take camps like Krugs, Raptors, or Gromp to maintain income.
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Avoid Sharing CS: If multiple allies are in lane, don’t all sit on the same wave. Spread out so everyone can continue to scale.
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Map Awareness: Only farm when it’s safe—check the minimap before pushing out far. Dying for a wave is never worth it.
Goal: Keep your CS per minute steady—ideally around 6–8 CS/min. That’s roughly 120–160 CS by 20 minutes.
Late Game Farming: Time to Scale
Late game (level 14+) is all about teamfighting, objective control, and pushing waves for pressure. Farming becomes more opportunistic, but it’s still important—especially for carries who need to hit their full build.
Tips for Late Game Farming:
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Don’t Overextend: Only farm waves that are near your team or heavily warded areas. Getting picked off late game can cost your team a Baron or even the Nexus.
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Shove and Group: Push a lane quickly (especially with AoE abilities), then group for objectives or vision.
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Prioritize Super Minions: These waves give more gold and can build up fast—clear them efficiently.
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Respect Roles: Let your ADC or carry pick up solo farm if they need one more item spike. Sometimes it’s smarter to zone off jungle camps and let your scaling champs get the gold.
Goal: Maintain map control while farming. Even in the late game, a 300g wave can be the difference between winning a fight or falling behind.
Farming is a foundational skill in League of Legends
Farming isn’t the flashiest skill in League of Legends, but it’s one of the most powerful. Every minion killed is a step closer to your power spike—and every missed CS is gold left on the table. By focusing on your last-hitting and wave management from early to late game, you’ll not only become a better laner but also a smarter, more impactful player overall.
Want help tracking your CS in real games? Tools like Porofessor, Blitz, or OP.GG overlays can give you real-time feedback and set performance goals. Happy farming—and see you on the Rift!