There is a simple version of this and a complete version, and both are below in that order.

Short answer

In most cases the straightforward approach works. The exceptions are specific and listed below.

  • Do not build a routine around an edge case.
  • Revisit after a major patch if the behaviour changes.
  • Write down what you changed, so you can undo exactly one thing if it goes sideways.

Twenty years of expansions mean half the advice online describes a version that no longer exists. Most of the disagreement online comes from people describing different versions of World of Warcraft. Nothing here depends on a setting you are unlikely to have.

Worth knowing alongside this

Screenshots age faster than text, which is why this describes rather than shows. Edge cases are genuinely rare, which is why the simple answer is usually the correct one. The mechanic behind it is simpler than the discussion around it suggests. If you are coming to this after a long break, the terminology has probably moved on.

Testing this yourself takes a few minutes and settles it definitively. The accepted community answer is broadly right and wrong in a specific way that matters here. There is no hidden trick here that the game is keeping from you.

What to do instead

It is worth separating what the game does from what players have concluded it does. A single check up front replaces a lot of guessing later. The short version is near the top on purpose; the reasoning is there if you want to know why.

  • Note the exception cases — they are specific rather than vague.
  • Test it yourself where testing is cheap.
  • If a menu path does not exist for you, your build is older or newer than the one described.
  • Check which version any conflicting advice was written for.
  • Try the straightforward approach before the elaborate one.
  • Stop and reassess after two failed attempts rather than repeating the third.

Why it works this way

Nothing here assumes a particular playstyle beyond wanting the thing to work. The awkward part is rarely the step itself, it is knowing which step comes first. Where two approaches both work, the one with fewer moving parts is the one to keep. Most of the disagreement you will find online is two people describing different builds.

There is usually a fast way and a reliable way, and it is worth knowing which one you are choosing. None of this needs a paid tool, a third-party launcher or an account on a site you have never heard of. Patch notes move numbers around constantly; the shape of the answer holds even when a specific value shifts.

When the usual advice fails

The community wisdom on this is roughly half right, and the half that is wrong costs the most time. Anything that behaves differently on console than on PC is flagged where it matters. Do the cheap check before the expensive one — that ordering alone saves most of the frustration.

Where something depends on your platform or region, that is called out rather than glossed over. If your result differs from what is described here, note what is different first rather than starting over. What follows assumes you are on a current install and have not modified it.

The practical answer

World of Warcraft is not shy about hiding useful information two menus deep, so some of this is simply knowing where to look. It helps to understand why a step exists, because then you can adapt it when your situation is slightly different. The developers have changed their mind about this at least once, which explains the older advice.

Where people go wrong

  • Grinding a method that was patched months ago because a thread still ranks well.
  • Treating a rare edge case as the normal behaviour and planning around it.
  • Assuming a guide from an older season still describes the current version.

WoW FAQ

Is there a faster method?

Sometimes, at the cost of reliability. Where that trade exists it is described rather than recommended blindly.

Why do other guides describe this differently?

Most were written for an earlier version and never revisited. Compare the steps against what your build actually shows.

How long does this take?

Minutes if it goes cleanly, an evening if you hit the edge case in the caveats list. Neither is unusual.

Does this work the same on console and PC?

The logic is identical. Menu paths and button prompts differ, and any real difference is flagged above.

If you only take one thing from this: the answer near the top is the part that matters, the rest is context.