- Win Rate
- 49.9%
- Pick Rate
- 4.5%
- Ban Rate
- 20.5%
Malzahar vs Naafiri
- Patch
- 26.20
- Games
- 5,949
- Lane
- All Lanes
- Tier
- All Tiers
- Last Updated
- Oct 12, 2026 UTC
- Methodology
- Data Methodology
- Author
- Dakota Chinnick
Malzahar vs Naafiri is a moderate matchup in LoL patch 26.20. Naafiri wins with a 51.1% win rate (+2.2%) over Malzahar based on 45 games. Naafiri wins the early laning phase while Malzahar scales better into the late game. Below you'll find the best Malzahar build, runes, laning stats, and strategies for the Malzahar vs Naafiri matchup.
Malzahar Matchup Breakdown
Use the dropdown to select an opponent and see a detailed breakdown of how Malzahar performs against them. You'll get head-to-head win rates, laning stats, the best build and runes for the matchup, and early vs late game analysis — all based on real ranked data.
Who wins Malzahar vs Naafiri?
Malzahar wins 51.2% of these games. With this many games the true rate is most likely between 36.5% and 65.7% (95% range).
- Expected
- 49.5% From both champions' overall Mid win rates
- Matchup effect
- +1.7 pts Observed minus expected
- Sample
- 41 games Lane: Mid
- vs patch 26.19
- — Not enough games on both patches
Lane: Mid · Ranked Solo/Duo & Flex · North America server · All ranks · Patch 26.20 · Oct 10 – Oct 11
Key takeaways
- Malzahar vs Naafiri is an even matchup: Malzahar wins 51.2% of 41 games, and the 95% range (36.5–65.7%) comfortably includes 50%.
- Both champions' overall Mid win rates predict 49.5% for Malzahar; the result is within the margin of error of that, so this matchup mostly reflects the two champions' general strength.
- Neither side reliably wins the lane: the average gold difference at 15 minutes is 23, within the margin of error (41 games).
- Malzahar players pick Transcendence much less often against Naafiri: 93.8% of their other Mid games, 82.9% here.
How we calculate this
Games: ranked Solo/Duo and Flex games on the North America server from the patch shown. Remakes (games under 5 minutes) are excluded.
A game only counts when Malzahar and Naafiri played the same position on opposite teams, so roaming, lane swaps within a team or a champion merely being in the same game never count as this matchup.
The 95% range is a Wilson score interval. Confidence comes from how wide that range is: within ±3 points is very high, ±5 high, ±8 moderate, anything wider low. Below 20 games a matchup is not classified at all.
Expected win rate combines both champions’ win rates in this lane (same games and filters) with the log5 formula: E = A(1−B) / (A(1−B) + B(1−A)). Matchup effect = observed − expected.
"What changes" compares Malzahar's choices in this matchup with the same champion's other games in the same lane, and lists a change only when it is at least 3 points and statistically significant (two-proportion z-test, |z| ≥ 2, 20+ games).
Results are not split by rank: the sample per rank is too small for honest per-rank matchup numbers.
Malzahar vs Naafiri Laning Stats
At 15 minutes
Whole-game averages
Malzahar vs Naafiri Win Rate by Game Length
Malzahar's win rate against Naafiri by game length. The dot is the win rate, the bar its 95% range and the dashed line the champion's usual win rate at that length. Lengths with fewer than 25 games are left blank.
No game length stands out: Malzahar's results against Naafiri in short and long games are within the margin of error of each other.
Malzahar vs Naafiri Power Spikes
Who is ahead at each stage, measured from these games. A stage reads "Even" when the difference is inside the margin of error, and "Insufficient data" when there are too few games to tell.
- Lane (15 min)EvenMalzahar gold at 15: +23
- First itemEvenMalzahar: 10.4 min · Naafiri: 10.5 min
- Games under 20 minInsufficient data
- 20–30 min gamesInsufficient data
- 30+ min gamesInsufficient data
What Malzahar Changes Against Naafiri
Choices Malzahar players make noticeably more or less often in this matchup than in their other Mid games.
TranscendenceRuneUsually93.8%vs Naafiri82.9%−10.9 pts47.1% WR here
Absolute FocusRuneUsually2.9%vs Naafiri12.2%+9.3 pts
MorellonomiconItemUsually6.3%vs Naafiri14.6%+8.4 pts
Armored AdvanceBootsUsually0.8%vs Naafiri4.9%+4.1 pts
Best Malzahar Build vs Naafiri
Usual Malzahar build (Mid)
66.1% win rate · 59 games
Against Naafiri
Not enough matchup-specific build data: only 7 of 30 Malzahar games against Naafiri carried a complete build, which is too few to recommend an item path from. Use Malzahar's standard build instead.
- Malzahar usually completes Blackfire Torch first, at 10.4 min (median of 27 games).
- Naafiri usually completes Voltaic Cyclosword first, at 10.5 min (median of 30 games).
- Skill priority: E > Q > W — the same as usual.
Builds are ranked by the lower edge of their win rate range, not the raw win rate, so a build seen in a handful of wins never outranks a proven one.
Best Malzahar Runes vs Naafiri
Usual Malzahar runes (Mid)
Deathfire Touch
51.4% win rate · 893 games
Against Naafiri
Too few games for a matchup-specific rune page yet — use the usual page.
Plan your Malzahar draft in Draft Lab
Draft Lab lays out both teams lane by lane with live matchup win rates, damage profiles and game-phase lean, and suggests picks and bans from current meta data.
- Full 5v5 draft board
- Lane matchup win rates
- Pick and ban suggestions
Malzahar matchup data for League of Legends patch 26.20. The table below shows Malzahar's win rate, gold difference, and performance stats against every champion in the current meta. Click any champion name to see a detailed head-to-head breakdown including the best Malzahar build, runes, laning stats, and early vs late game analysis for that specific matchup.
Other Malzahar Matchups
Hardest for Malzahar
Easiest for Malzahar
Win rate and games for each matchup. Lists are ranked by the edge of the 95% range so small samples cannot top them; matchups with at least 50 games only.
Help us maintain accuracy! If you notice incorrect stats, missing data, or any issues, your feedback directly improves the quality of our data for the entire community.
Malzahar vs Naafiri FAQ - Patch 26.20
Who wins Malzahar vs Naafiri?
Malzahar vs Naafiri is an even matchup: Malzahar wins 51.2% of 41 games, and the 95% range (36.5–65.7%) comfortably includes 50%.
What is Malzahar's win rate against Naafiri?
Malzahar wins 51.2% of 41 Mid games against Naafiri on patch 26.20 (95% range 36.5–65.7%). Based on both champions' overall Mid win rates, 49.5% would be expected.
Does Malzahar counter Naafiri?
Not clearly. Malzahar wins 51.2% of 41 games against Naafiri, and the 95% range (36.5–65.7%) includes 50%, so neither champion reliably counters the other on current data.
Who wins lane, Malzahar or Naafiri?
Neither side reliably wins the lane: the average gold difference at 15 minutes is 23, within the margin of error (41 games).
Does Malzahar outscale Naafiri?
There are too few games of each length to tell yet.
When is Naafiri strongest against Malzahar?
On current data there is no stage of the game where Naafiri is ahead of Malzahar beyond the margin of error.
What should Malzahar build against Naafiri?
There are not enough games for a matchup-specific core, so use Malzahar's usual Mid core: Liandry's Torment, Shadowflame, Morellonomicon. The biggest change against Naafiri: Morellonomicon (6.3% usually, 14.6% here).
What runes should Malzahar use against Naafiri?
Use Malzahar's usual Deathfire Touch page (Sorcery + Inspiration); there are too few games for a matchup-specific page. The biggest change against Naafiri: Transcendence (93.8% usually, 82.9% here).