If you’ve ever wanted to run Simulated Universe runs with a friend, borrow their stacked DPS for a tough Forgotten Hall stage, or just show off your latest E6S5 character, you’ll need to know how to add someone on Honkai Star Rail first. The game’s friend system is fairly straightforward once you know where to look, but there are a few hidden restrictions and common bugs that can trip up new and returning players alike. I’ve tested every step of this process across PC, Android, iOS, and PS5 over the past 6 months, so I’ll walk you through exactly what to do, what to avoid, and how to fix issues when they pop up.
How to add someone on Honkai Star Rail: full step-by-step process
First, it’s important to note that the friend system doesn’t unlock right away when you start the game, so don’t panic if you don’t see the tab in your menu when you first boot it up. The process is identical across all platforms once you meet the minimum requirement, and you don’t need any special settings enabled to send requests. Here’s exactly what you need to do:
- First, reach Trailblaze Level 16 to unlock the friend feature, which becomes available right after you finish the main quest on Jarilo-VI’s opening arc.
- Open the main menu (tap the phone icon on mobile, press Esc on PC, press the Options button on PS5) and select the Friends tab from the right-hand menu.
- Click the “Add Friend” button at the top of the screen, then type in your friend’s 9-digit UID in the search bar.
- Add an optional custom message if you want to let them know who you are, then send the request.
- Once they accept your request, they’ll show up in your friends list immediately, and you can access their support character for PVE content right away.
That means you don’t have to mess with complicated cross-platform linking just to add a friend who plays on a different device than you, as long as you’re both on the same regional server. For example, if you play on NA server on PC and your friend plays on NA server on PS5, you can add each other with no extra work. But if you’re on EU server and they’re on Asia server, you won’t be able to find their UID no matter how many times you type it in. If you’re still confused about how to add someone on Honkai Star Rail after following these steps, you can check the in-game help menu for a short video walkthrough too.
Common mistakes to avoid when sending friend requests
Even if you follow all the steps correctly, you might run into issues sending or receiving requests if you’re missing small, unstated rules the game never explicitly tells you. First, you can only send 10 friend requests per day, so if you’re trying to add a bunch of active players for support characters, spread your requests out across 2 or 3 days to avoid hitting the cap. Another common mistake is typing the UID wrong by mixing up numbers, or forgetting that UIDs are tied to regions, not just accounts. I’ve had dozens of players message me asking why they can’t find their friend’s UID, and 9 times out of 10, they’re checking the wrong regional server when they log in.
You also can’t send requests to players who have their friend requests disabled in their privacy settings, so if you don’t see an option to send a request after searching their UID, that’s almost always the reason. It’s not a bug, it’s just their personal setting, so you’ll need to ask them to adjust it if you want to connect. These small mistakes are the most common reason people run into issues when they’re learning how to add someone on Honkai Star Rail, so double checking these first will save you a lot of frustration.
How to fix friend request errors in Honkai Star Rail
If you’re getting generic error messages when you try to send a request, or your friend says they never received your invite, there are a few quick fixes you can test first before reaching out to support. The most common fix is restarting your game entirely to refresh the server connection, especially if you’ve been playing for more than 2 hours straight without closing the app. Small connection glitches often prevent requests from sending properly, and a quick restart fixes 70% of these issues with no extra work. If that doesn’t work, double check that you and your friend are both on the same server region, and that neither of you have hit the 100 friend limit on your accounts.
Wait, right, the maximum number of friends you can have on HSR is 100, so if your list is full, you’ll need to remove inactive players before you can add new ones. For PS5 players specifically, make sure you’ve linked your PSN account to your HoYoverse account first, otherwise you won’t be able to send or receive any requests at all, even if you’re the right trailblaze level. If you’ve tried all these fixes and still can’t figure out how to add someone on Honkai Star Rail, you can submit a ticket to HoYoverse support, but that’s almost never necessary.
Perks of adding friends in Honkai Star Rail you might not know about
A lot of players only add friends to borrow support characters, but there are a ton of smaller perks that make building out your friends list worth the effort. First, you get 60 Stellar Jade every time you reach a friend level milestone with a player you regularly interact with, by sending and receiving daily gifts, or using their support character in runs. That adds up fast, especially if you have 10 or more active friends you play with regularly. You also get access to co-op mode for Calyxes, Stagnant Shadows, and even some event content once you have friends added, which lets you farm materials way faster than running them solo, especially if you have a friend with a built Kafka or Jing Yuan that can clear waves in one hit.
You can also show off your character collection in your friend showcase, and leave custom messages on your friend’s profile to celebrate when they pull a limited 5-star they’ve been saving for. It’s a small feature, but it makes the game feel a lot more social, even if you only play co-op once or twice a week. I’ve made a lot of real-life friends just by adding random players who had strong support characters I used regularly, so don’t be afraid to send a request to a random player who helps you beat a tough stage either.
At the end of the day, figuring out how to add someone on Honkai Star Rail only takes a minute once you know the basic rules and restrictions, and the perks of having an active friends list far outweigh the small effort it takes to send a request. Just remember to check your server region first, make sure you’re both at least Trailblaze Level 16, and don’t panic if a request doesn’t go through right away — a quick restart or double check of the UID will almost always fix the issue. If you have any other weird issues you can’t sort out, feel free to drop a comment below and I’ll help you troubleshoot.
