Recruit-A-Friend Process to Collect the Pets

! → RAF program is on hiatus as of June 11, 2019. The system will be getting a rework and re-released in Patch 8.2.5, and this guide may no longer be applicable.

TLDR: Step-by-step directions on how to RAF yourself.

As of Patch 8.0, the RAF system was updated and streamlined. You no longer need to purchase and add the base game or WoW Battlechest to get started.


1. Log into your main character and open your friends window.

2. Find the "hand" icon in that window (upper right) and click that button.

3. Type in your current email address that you use for your Bnet account.

4. Check that email address for an email from Battle.net and click the link provided. (check spam folder)

5. Follow the RAF steps (choose the option that says "I already have a Bnet account" if you want to keep your RAF account on the same one as your main account). If adding the RAF account to your existing Bnet account, you'll be prompted to log in.

6. After logging in, you'll run into an error (might be fixed in the future). Click on the "Apply code" option (code should already be filled in). This auto-applies a Starter Edition account at no cost (you can view it in your WoW licenses list when you check your account management page on Battle.net; WoW1, WoW2, etc.).

7. Add 3 month's worth of game time to the new account by either heading over to the Battle.net store and buying game time or adding a 3 month subscription. If you want to use a WoW Token on the RAF account, you must first apply at least 1 month of game time to unlock access to trades and the Auction House (adding game time/subscription upgrades a "Starter Account" into a normal version, and only normal accounts have access to trades, mail and the AH).

8. Done! Main account needs to wait 8 days from the time the 3 months game time was applied (must be billed and not a pending transaction) to receive the RAF rewards. Redeem your reward by logging into the character from which you sent the RAF invitation, and there should be a notification over your social button.


Total cost for one RAF:

$45 (3 months game time) OR
$42 (3 months subscription) OR
$15 (1 month game time) + Gold price of WoW Token will vary

If buying a subscription, remember to cancel it before the auto-billing incurs!

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NOTE: Below is old information from pre-8.0 patch. Leaving it here for referencing and posterity's sake.


This past Friday I was finally eligible to redeem 3 RAF pets. I had recruited myself 3 times 7 days prior, and being a total noobie when it comes to doing this RAF thing, I was anxious that I may not have done it properly. Thankfully it all worked out! An old guildmate is my fourth RAF, but I'm still waiting for that transaction to complete. I'll explain further down in the post.

My total for the entire thing came out to be $105, not taking into account the 3 free months of game time that my main account will receive. Thinking about it now, though, it's a pretty steep amount to pay for 3 pets. Guess I'm glad that I didn't attend Blizzcon; I had extra savings to help cover the cost of these pets. Having a birthday that just recently passed also helped, heh.

RAF'ing is quite the process and I was really worried that I somehow botched it up. I wasn't able to find many detailed FAQ's or guides on how to do it, but thanks to the folks at WarcraftPets and on Twitter, it gave me some much needed hope/confidence. Still, I wasn't 100% sure that everything would work out until I was able to redeem the pets.

For anyone that's confused or hesitant to RAF themselves, here are the steps that I took. For general information on the RAF system, Blizzard has official articles here and information on rewards here.

1. Sent my current Battle.net email a RAF invite while I was on my main character.

2. Went to my email inbox and opened the RAF invite. Clicked on the link provided inside (takes you to a Battle.net URL).

3. I chose the option that said something like "I already have a Battle.net account".

4. Added the "starter edition" account to my existing Battle.net.

5. Next I needed to upgrade from a "starter edition" account to a "standard edition" account. I used this link, and chose to apply it to the appropriate WoW account. This allowed me to upgrade the RAF account for only $5 (all expansions up to and including Catalcysm). (UPDATE: This last portion no longer applies, as the link does not work. Instead, upgrade your "starter edition" to a "standard edition" via the Battle.net shop. Upgrading using the WoW Battlechest should include all relevant expansions.)

6. Once it was upgraded to "standard edition", I headed over to the Blizzard Store and purchased game time. I'll explain below why I didn't just add a normal credit card subscription.

7. I repeated these steps 2 more times to get 3 "standard edition" Cataclysm MoP accounts (labeled WoW1, WoW2, WoW3).

Here are some notable things to keep in mind when RAF'ing yourself (or someone else).

- Total amount for one RAF pet should be: cost of Battlechest or WoW upgrade to "standard edition" + 2 month's worth of game time (For me during sale season: $5 + $30 = $35 for one RAF pet. During non-sale season = $60 + $30 = $90).

- If the RAF email does not go through and you don't see it in your inbox, wait a few moments and then try sending it again. Make sure to check your spam/junk mail folder, just in case it was sent there.

- The link for the $5 upgrade may only be temporary. If it doesn't work for you, don't worry. Simply wait for a sale on WoW Battlechests where they sell them for $5. To apply the upgrade, go into your Summary tab on Battle.net and click on the RAF account (should be labeled "starter edition"). There should be an option to upgrade on that account's page.

- You can only have a total of 9 WoW accounts on one Battle.net.

- You do not need to log into the game on the RAF account to complete the process.

- The RAF account(s) must have 2 months purchased game time applied to it for the main account to be eligible for rewards.

- Applying WoW Tokens to a RAF account does count towards receiving the rewards.

- It takes a total of 7 full days after game time is applied (and registered) before your main account is eligible for the pets.



- Once the 7 days is up, log onto your main account (the one that RAF'ed all the others), and there should be a notification over your social button that you're eligible to claim RAF rewards.





Following the indicators will bring you to a redeem page in-game where you can choose one mount or one pet.

- Important! Adding a credit card subscription will mean you have to wait longer for the pets. The 2 months game time (necessary for reward eligibility) will not be registered until your credit card is charged. RAF accounts come with one month free game time, so until that time is up, your credit card will not be charged. Adding pre-purchased game time or game cards is a much faster process since it's applied and registered immediately.

On a similar note, be careful of what edition you use to upgrade your RAF account to a "standard edition". My guildmate chose to use a WoW license that included one free month of the game, so he not only had one free RAF month to go through, but another free month from the game licence. This meant that his credit card subscription won't be registered until after a full 2 months pass. In the end he chose to apply game time from the Blizzard Store instead, so 7 days from the time he applied it is when I should be able to redeem the last RAF pet.

So now I'm just waiting for the 7 days to complete on my guildmate's RAF account, and then I'll be able to collect the last pet I need.

I'm pretty relieved that it went smoothly, but the wait really had me on edge. I wish there was some sort of indicator or message in-game to alert me that my recruit applied game time, and provided a countdown estimate of when I would be eligible for the rewards.

In the end, the revamped system might have made it easier to invite friends, but it's (still?) not that user-friendly or convenient for the person that was recruited. It kind of makes me hope that they don't add more RAF pets in the future.