Is Dead by Daylight Crossplay? Platforms, Settings and Cross-Progression

Summary: Yes. Dead by Daylight has had crossplay on by default since August 2020, and it covers PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch in a single matchmaking pool. Cross-progression followed in July 2024 through a free Behaviour account. The one real catch is that DLC and Auric Cells bought on Switch do not travel to other platforms.

• One pool across PC, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch.
• Crossplay is on by default and can be turned off in the online settings.
• Cross-progression syncs characters, perks and Bloodpoints through a Behaviour account.
• Anything purchased on Switch stays on Switch.

Dead by Daylight is one of the easier games to answer this question for, because Behaviour Interactive did not stagger the rollout by platform. Crossplay landed everywhere at once and has stayed on since. A Steam killer can hook a Switch survivor and the lobby will not treat it as unusual. It is also one of the few entries in our roundup of the best horror games where the platform genuinely does not matter.

Which Platforms Play Together

Everything currently sold shares a queue:

• PC through Steam, the Epic Games Store or the Microsoft Store.
• PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5.
• Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.
• Nintendo Switch.

Cross-generation works the same way, so PS4 owners queue with PS5 owners and Xbox One sits alongside Series X|S. A trial is four survivors and one killer, and those five can be on five different systems. If you are kitting out a household rather than a single console, a marketplace like AliExpress is the cheap way to cover the extra controllers.

The one version outside all of this was Dead by Daylight Mobile, which never shared lobbies with the main game and was shut down in March 2025.

Turning Crossplay Off, and Why You Probably Should Not

The toggle lives in Settings under the online options. Some players switch it off over cheating concerns or to avoid particular input methods.

The cost is queue time. Crossplay is what keeps lobbies filling in seconds rather than minutes, and it thins out fast when you narrow the pool to one platform. Switch players in particular are kept in the shared pool for that reason. Unless you have a specific problem you are solving, leaving it on is the better default.

Setting Up Cross-Progression

Cross-progression is separate from crossplay and needs to be set up once:

1. Create or sign in to a free Behaviour account.
2. Link each platform account you own the game on to it.
3. Choose the platform whose progress becomes the master copy.
4. Confirm the sync.

Characters, perks, cosmetics, Bloodpoints and Iridescent Shards then follow you between platforms, as Behaviour set out when it announced cross-progression. The important part is the third step, because the sync cannot be undone. Pick the account with the most hours on it before you confirm anything.

The Nintendo Switch Purchase Trap

This is the detail worth reading twice. Content flows into the Switch version but not out of it. DLC chapters and Auric Cells bought on PC, PlayStation or Xbox will appear on your Switch. The same purchases made on Switch stay there and will not show up anywhere else.

If you play on more than one system, buy on the non-Switch platform every time. The alternative is paying twice for the same chapter. If the non-Switch platform is one you do not own yet, retailers like Best Buy are the usual place to price a console up.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can PC and PS5 players play Dead by Daylight together?

Yes, with no setup required. Crossplay is enabled by default on both and covers every game mode.

Does Dead by Daylight have cross-progression?

Yes, since July 2024, through a free Behaviour account linked to each of your platforms.

Can Switch players join PC lobbies?

Yes. Switch sits in the same matchmaking pool as everything else, at lower resolution but with the same queue.

Is Dead by Daylight Mobile cross-platform?

No, and it no longer exists. It was a separate product with its own servers and closed in March 2025.

Link the Account Before You Buy Anything Else

If you own the game on more than one system, the setup order matters: link the Behaviour account, choose the right master platform, then make purchases anywhere except Switch. Do it in that order and nothing gets stranded. For chapters, Auric Cells or a copy on a second platform, you can browse gaming gift cards and pay with crypto.