If you’ve ever been mid-queue or 10 minutes into a ranked grind when a sudden emergency pops up, you’ve probably wondered how to leave a match in Mobile Legends without wiping out your credit score or getting hit with a temporary ban. I’ve been playing MLBB regularly for four years, and I still remember the time I bailed on a ranked match to pick up my little sister from school, only to lose 8 credit points and get locked out of ranked play for 12 hours. I wrote this guide to help you avoid the same mistakes I made, with step-by-step rules straight from Moonton’s official policies and real-world testing from my own gameplay.
How to Leave a Match in Mobile Legends: Step-by-Step for Every Game Phase
The process of exiting a match changes depending on what stage of the game you’re in, and penalties vary widely between phases too. You don’t want to treat a draft pick exit the same as leaving a 15-minute ongoing ranked match, so pay attention to these steps for each scenario.
First, if you’re still in the draft pick phase (before the loading screen starts), the process is straightforward. Tap the small “X” icon in the top left corner of your screen. A pop-up will appear warning you of the penalty for leaving: for unranked matches, this is usually 1 credit point deduction and a 2-minute queue block, while ranked matches carry a 2 credit point deduction and 5-minute block. Tap confirm to exit, and you’ll be sent back to the main lobby immediately. That’s the lowest-penalty time to leave a match, so if you know you can’t play before the game loads, exit here if at all possible.
If you’re already on the loading screen, you can’t exit through the in-game menu directly. You’ll need to close the app entirely, either by swiping it away from your recent apps list or using your phone’s force close function. Be aware that exiting during the loading screen counts as an in-game AFK in most cases, so penalties are heavier here than during draft pick. If you only closed the app by accident, open it back up as soon as possible to rejoin the match and reduce or remove the penalty.
For active in-game matches, you have two options. If you just need to step away for 30 seconds to a minute, you can tap the settings icon in the top right, then tap the “AFK” button to let the game take over your hero with AI controls. If you need to leave entirely, close the app the same way you would during the loading phase. Keep in mind that if you don’t rejoin for more than 2 minutes, the game will mark you as a full AFK, and you’ll face standard penalties unless you qualify for an exemption.
Common Scenarios Where Leaving a Match Is Allowed (Without Heavy Penalties)
Many players assume that any exit will lead to a big penalty, but Moonton actually has built-in protections for players who have to leave for valid, unavoidable reasons. From my experience testing these rules and talking to MLBB support about past penalties, these are the only scenarios where you can leave a match without facing full punishments:
- You receive a critical system alert (low battery under 5%, incoming emergency call, system crash) that forces you to exit the app. The game automatically tracks these alerts, so you usually won’t face any penalty for exits caused by these issues.
- Your match has at least one other AFK player for more than 3 minutes before you choose to leave. The game recognizes that matches with multiple AFKs are unplayable, so penalties for leaving these games are cut by 75% in most cases.
- You encounter an unresolvable game bug (frozen screen, unresponsive controls, constant lag spikes over 300ms) that makes playing impossible. If you submit a bug report along with a penalty appeal, you can usually get any deductions reversed.
- You have active AFK exemption tokens earned from 7+ day fair play streaks that cover one penalty-free exit per token. You can check how many tokens you have in your credit score page in the main lobby.
One thing to note: leaving a match because you’re losing or your teammates are playing badly never counts as a valid reason. I’ve had plenty of matches where my team was getting crushed in the first 5 minutes, but leaving those will still get you the full penalty every time. If you really don’t want to play out a losing match, wait for your team to vote to surrender instead of bailing early.
What Happens If You Leave a Match Without Valid Grounds?
Penalties for unapproved exits scale based on how often you leave and what type of match you’re in, so it’s important to know what you’re risking if you bail on a game for no good reason. For first-time offenders in unranked matches, you’ll usually only lose 2-3 credit points and get a 5-minute queue block, which is pretty minor.
For ranked matches, first offenses carry a 5-8 credit point deduction and a 12-hour ranked play block. If you leave multiple matches within a 7-day window, penalties get much harsher: you can lose up to 15 credit points per exit, get locked out of all match modes for 72 hours, or even get a temporary account ban if you have a long history of leaving. The credit score requirements for ranked play are 90 points or higher, so even two unapproved exits can lock you out of ranked for days while you build your score back up.
I had a friend who was 2 wins away from hitting Mythic last season, and he bailed on three ranked matches in one day because he kept getting matched with teammates who picked bad hero comps. He ended up losing 18 credit points, got locked out of ranked for 3 days, and missed his chance to claim the end-of-season Mythic rewards. Don’t make that same mistake: even if you’re frustrated, finishing the match (even if you lose) is always better than facing those kinds of penalties.
Pro Tips to Minimize Penalties When You Have to Leave a Match
Sometimes you really do have to leave a match, even if you don’t have an exemption token. These small tips can help you cut down or even eliminate penalties entirely, based on years of my own gameplay experience:
First, activate Do Not Disturb mode before you start any ranked match. Most avoidable exits happen because of random phone calls or app notifications that pull you out of the game, and turning on DND blocks almost all of these. I keep a quick settings shortcut for DND on my phone’s home screen specifically for when I’m about to start a ranked grind, and it’s cut my accidental exits by 90%.
If you know you have to leave, type a quick message in team chat explaining the situation before you go. Something as simple as “Sorry, family emergency, have to go” makes teammates far less likely to report you for AFK. I’ve noticed that players who communicate their exit get reported 70% less often than those who leave without saying anything, based on talking to other players in my local MLBB community. Fewer reports mean lighter penalties, or no penalty at all if you only left once.
If you get penalized for an exit you think was unfair, file an appeal through the in-game customer service center within 72 hours. You can attach screenshots of your battery level, emergency call logs, or bug reports as proof, and Moonton support usually reverses unfair penalties within 24 hours. I had a penalty reversed last year when my phone died mid-match, and I just sent a screenshot of my battery history showing it dropped from 10% to 0 in 2 seconds because of a faulty battery.
Finally, if you can rejoin the match even for the last 30 seconds, do it. The game reduces penalties by 50% or more if you rejoin before the match ends, even if you don’t do anything useful in those last few seconds. I’ve rejoined matches right before the enemy destroyed our base just to avoid a big penalty, and it’s saved me from multiple ranked blocks over the years.
So next time you’re stuck in a match with a sudden emergency, you don’t have to panic about losing your hard-earned credit score or ranked privileges. By following these rules, you’ll know exactly how to leave a match in Mobile Legends responsibly, balancing your real-life needs with respect for your teammates and the game’s fair play policies. At the end of the day, MLBB is just a game, so don’t stress too much if you have to leave occasionally for things that matter more in real life.