Is ARC Raiders Crossplay? PC, PS5 and Xbox Explained

Yes, ARC Raiders is crossplay. A raider on a Steam PC, a raider on PlayStation 5 and a raider on Xbox Series X|S can share a squad, a lobby and the same stretch of the Rust Belt. Crossplay is switched on by default, and your account is shared across platforms through an Embark ID, so progress follows you if you change systems.

The details are where people get caught out: what happens when you switch crossplay off, why there is no console-only pool, and what does and does not move between platforms. Everything below is checked against Embark’s own help pages as of 22 October 2026.

ARC Raiders Crossplay at a Glance

ARC Raiders launched on 30 October 2025 and costs $39.99 on Steam, or $59.99 for the Deluxe Edition.

Which Platforms Play Together

Embark’s friends and parties guide says ARC Raiders supports crossplay between Steam, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. The official site lists five ways to play: Steam, the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and GeForce NOW. Epic and GeForce NOW are PC versions, and Epic accounts can be linked to an Embark ID alongside the rest.

That means one shared population. When you queue with crossplay on, the raiders in your match can be on any of those platforms, and so can the friends in your squad.

How to Turn Crossplay Off

1. Open Settings from the main menu.
2. Go to the Gameplay tab.
3. Scroll down to Crossplay and switch it Off.

With crossplay off you only match players on your own platform. Embark’s answer for console players, published in the pre-launch FAQ and reported by MP1st, is that “with crossplay off on PS5, you will only match against other PS5 players.” The same goes for Xbox.

There is a cost. Embark’s matchmaking troubleshooting page says that when matchmaking feels slow, “the most common reason is that Crossplay is turned off.” A smaller pool means longer waits. If you turn it off and queues drag, turning it back on is the first fix.

Why There Is No Console-Only Option

A lot of console players want to play with PS5 and Xbox but not PC, because cheating is easier on PC. ARC Raiders does not offer that. Embark confirmed before launch that crossplay is all or nothing: either every platform, or only your own.

So a PS5 player has two choices. Keep crossplay on and share raids with Xbox and PC players, or turn it off and play in a PS5-only pool. The same choice applies on Xbox.

Crossplay in a Squad

A party takes the strictest setting in it. Embark’s matchmaking page puts it plainly: “The Crossplay setting of the most restrictive player applies.” If you have crossplay on and one friend has it off, the whole party queues with crossplay off.

That has two effects worth knowing:

• A mixed party needs crossplay on for everyone. If your squad has a PC player and a PS5 player, and one of them has crossplay off, you will not get a match. The Live Update 1.45.0 patch notes (8 September 2026) added clearer matchmaking errors for exactly this case, so the game now tells you when your crossplay settings are incompatible.
• One friend can slow the whole squad down. A party on the same platform still works with crossplay off, but every member waits in the smaller pool.

Adding Friends on Other Platforms

Cross-platform friends go through the Embark ID, not your PSN, Xbox or Steam friends list. From the friends and parties guide:

1. Select the Social button at the bottom right of the lobby.
2. In the Friends tab, select Add Friend at the top right.
3. Type their Embark ID and send the request.

Once they accept, invite them with the + above the play widget. To team up again with someone you met in a raid, open Recent in the Social menu and either send a friend request or invite them straight to your party. Your Embark ID has a display name and a discriminator, so ask friends for the full ID rather than just the name.

How Cross Progression Works

Your progress lives on your Embark ID. Embark’s Embark ID page says it “enables cross-progression between Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S” and keeps your progress and cosmetics tied to your account. An Embark ID is required to play, and if you have played THE FINALS or any ARC Raiders test, you already have one.

To carry progress to a second platform, link that platform to the same Embark ID. There are two ways, from Managing Your Embark ID (last updated 28 April 2026):

• In game. On first launch on the new platform, choose Link Existing Account, scan the QR code or open the link, and sign in with a platform that is already on your Embark ID.
• On the Embark ID site. Log in with an account that is already connected, open your account name, select Connected Platforms and link the new one.

Sign in with the platform you already play on. Embark’s own example: if you played on PlayStation and now want to add Steam, choose PlayStation as the platform you sign in with.

The Rules That Catch People Out

Embark’s account page lists a handful of restrictions that are worth knowing before you link anything:

• One account per platform. An Embark ID can hold one Steam, one PlayStation, one Xbox, one Epic Games, one Discord and one Twitch account.
• Your first platform is permanent. The first account you linked can only be removed by Customer Support.
• A platform can only be re-linked to itself. Unlink Steam and you cannot put a different Steam account in its place without Support.
• Progress does not move between Embark IDs. If you unlink a platform and attach it to a different Embark ID, your progress, rewards and cosmetics stay with the old one.
• Paid items stay on the platform you paid on. The Deluxe Edition, pre-order items, the Bonecrown Set, the Wasp Hunter Set and Raider Tokens are tied to the store you bought them from. Unlinking that platform can remove them from your inventory until you link it again.
• Never unlink everything. If you remove every game account, your Embark ID is permanently deleted, along with all your ARC Raiders and THE FINALS progress and cosmetics.
• A banned account cannot unlink. If an Embark account is banned, none of its platform accounts can be disconnected.

If linking fails with “The account you are trying to connect to has content saved from an Embark game and cannot be merged at this time,” that platform account is already on another Embark ID. Unlink it there first.

Crossplay and Cheaters

Crossplay is why a lot of console players ask this question. With it on, PC players are in your raids, and PC is where cheats run. ARC Raiders requires Easy Anti-Cheat on PC, and Embark’s ban and enforcement policy covers accounts on every platform. Turning crossplay off is the only way to keep a console raid console only, at the price of slower queues.

For PC players the picture is the reverse. Console raiders make up part of every crossplay lobby, and they cannot run PC software. That is also why our ARC Raiders cheat for the Steam version is a Windows PC build only. It does nothing on PlayStation or Xbox, though with crossplay on you will meet console players on the surface.

Is Crossplay Worth Keeping On?

For most players, yes. It is the default, it gives the fastest queues, and it is the only way to play with friends on other systems. Turn it off if you are on console and would rather wait longer than share raids with PC players.

If you are new to the game, our ARC Raiders beginner’s guide covers your first raids, and the ARC Raiders player count post shows how big the shared pool is. If you are coming from Tarkov, which has no console version at all, the ARC Raiders vs Tarkov comparison sets the two side by side.