- Win Rate
- 49.5%
- Pick Rate
- 2.0%
- Ban Rate
- 6.6%
Naafiri vs Malzahar
- Patch
- 26.20
- Games
- 2,600
- Lane
- All Lanes
- Tier
- All Tiers
- Last Updated
- Oct 13, 2026 UTC
- Methodology
- Data Methodology
- Author
- Dakota Chinnick
Naafiri vs Malzahar 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 Naafiri build, runes, laning stats, and strategies for the Naafiri vs Malzahar matchup.
Naafiri Matchup Breakdown
Use the dropdown to select an opponent and see a detailed breakdown of how Naafiri 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 Naafiri vs Malzahar?
Naafiri wins 48.8% of these games. With this many games the true rate is most likely between 34.3% and 63.5% (95% range).
- Expected
- 50.5% 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
- Naafiri vs Malzahar is an even matchup: Naafiri wins 48.8% of 41 games, and the 95% range (34.3–63.5%) comfortably includes 50%.
- Both champions' overall Mid win rates predict 50.5% for Naafiri; 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).
- Naafiri players pick Chainlaced Crushers far more often against Malzahar: 19.4% of their other Mid games, 46.3% 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 Naafiri and Malzahar 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 Naafiri'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.
Naafiri vs Malzahar Laning Stats
At 15 minutes
Whole-game averages
Naafiri vs Malzahar Win Rate by Game Length
Naafiri's win rate against Malzahar 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: Naafiri's results against Malzahar in short and long games are within the margin of error of each other.
Naafiri vs Malzahar 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)EvenNaafiri gold at 15: −23
- First itemEvenNaafiri: 10.5 min · Malzahar: 10.4 min
- Games under 20 minInsufficient data
- 20–30 min gamesInsufficient data
- 30+ min gamesInsufficient data
What Naafiri Changes Against Malzahar
Choices Naafiri players make noticeably more or less often in this matchup than in their other Mid games.
Chainlaced CrushersBootsUsually19.4%vs Malzahar46.3%+27.0 pts
Crimson LucidityBootsUsually28.7%vs Malzahar12.2%−16.5 pts
Usuallyunder 0.5%vs Malzahar4.9%+4.9 pts
Best Naafiri Build vs Malzahar
Against Malzahar
Not enough matchup-specific build data: only 7 of 31 Naafiri games against Malzahar carried a complete build, which is too few to recommend an item path from. Use Naafiri's standard build instead.
- Naafiri usually completes Voltaic Cyclosword first, at 10.5 min (median of 30 games).
- Malzahar usually completes Blackfire Torch first, at 10.4 min (median of 27 games).
- Skill priority: Q > E > 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 Naafiri Runes vs Malzahar
Usual Naafiri runes (Mid)
Electrocute
55.0% win rate · 200 games
Against Malzahar
Too few games for a matchup-specific rune page yet — use the usual page.
Plan your Naafiri 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
Naafiri matchup data for League of Legends patch 26.20. The table below shows Naafiri'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 Naafiri build, runes, laning stats, and early vs late game analysis for that specific matchup.
Other Naafiri Matchups
Hardest for Naafiri
Easiest for Naafiri
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.
Naafiri vs Malzahar FAQ - Patch 26.20
Who wins Naafiri vs Malzahar?
Naafiri vs Malzahar is an even matchup: Naafiri wins 48.8% of 41 games, and the 95% range (34.3–63.5%) comfortably includes 50%.
What is Naafiri's win rate against Malzahar?
Naafiri wins 48.8% of 41 Mid games against Malzahar on patch 26.20 (95% range 34.3–63.5%). Based on both champions' overall Mid win rates, 50.5% would be expected.
Does Naafiri counter Malzahar?
Not clearly. Naafiri wins 48.8% of 41 games against Malzahar, and the 95% range (34.3–63.5%) includes 50%, so neither champion reliably counters the other on current data.
Who wins lane, Naafiri or Malzahar?
Neither side reliably wins the lane: the average gold difference at 15 minutes is 23, within the margin of error (41 games).
Does Naafiri outscale Malzahar?
There are too few games of each length to tell yet.
When is Malzahar strongest against Naafiri?
On current data there is no stage of the game where Malzahar is ahead of Naafiri beyond the margin of error.
What should Naafiri build against Malzahar?
There are not enough games for a matchup-specific core, so use Naafiri's usual Mid core: Voltaic Cyclosword, Hubris, Axiom Arc. The biggest change against Malzahar: Chainlaced Crushers (19.4% usually, 46.3% here).
What runes should Naafiri use against Malzahar?
Use Naafiri's usual Electrocute page (Domination + Precision); there are too few games for a matchup-specific page.