With the help of your preferred Agents, you have achieved supremacy. It’s time to find out who the community’s true best are at this point. Compete with others who share your interests in order to rise to the summit of the local leaderboards. If you dare accept the task, you can win some bragging rights.
But before you enter a competitive battle, you should familiarize yourself with the ranking system. Read on to learn how the Valorant ranking system functions, how to climb the levels, and how the game’s Acts affect ranking.
Valorant Rank System – Overview
The ranking structure of Valorant can be a little perplexing, particularly for newcomers. With a few significant distinctions that are exclusive to Riot Games, the method is similar to other multiplayer ranking systems.
First of all, due to Riot Games’ proprietary Rank Ratings (RR) and Matchmaking Rankings (MMR) systems, you can’t just hop into competitive/ranked mode on a whim and you won’t be put in unfair matches. Second, in order to maintain fairness, the Leaderboards omit how much you perform. When someone plays more, has more kills/wins, but has a lower kill/win ratio, they lose their Leaderboard spot to the individual with more kills and wins who plays less.
The summary of valorant ranks and how they function in 2023 is provided here.
Initial Ranking System Details
To activate competitive mode when this new mode first debuted, players only had to finish 20 unrated games. Since finishing games is simpler than finishing matches, a lot of trolls and smurfs flooded the matched competitions and caused issues, so the prerequisite of ten unrated matches was introduced.
The Ranking System Before Episode 4
You had to finish ten unrated matches before Episode 4 came out in order to get the game’s competitive option. Riot Games “upped” the unlocking requirements through match completions as a response to possibly troublesome players. Although it’s not a perfect answer, finishing matches calls for more commitment and dedication than simply jumping into a few simple matches.
Five placing matches had to be finished after ten unrated match victories. The game used placement battles to determine your starting position within the ranking system.
The game took into account your overall success, not just whether you won or lost a placement match, even if you lost matches. Your prior ten unrated victories were taken into account by Valorant when determining your rank.
The Ranking System After Episode 4
As of Episode 4 and later, you need to have an account level of 20 in order to play games with a competitive/ranked mode. However, you will have access to the same competitive games if you participated in at least one ranked battle prior to Episode 4.
Take a better look before you start worrying about placement matches.
Valorant Ranks and Tiers
There are nine ranks or divisions in the Valorant ranking system:
- Iron
- Bronze
- Silver
- Gold
- Platinum
- Diamond
- Ascendant
- Immortal
- Radiant (previously called “Valorant”)
The first eight ranks have three tiers you must achieve to advance to the next rank. The last rank, Radiant, only has one tier. There are 25 ranks in total in Valorant, excluding Unranked.
Most players start at the Iron rank, although their performance during placement matches can put them in a higher ranking and tier. For example, exceptional players may skip four levels and see their starting rank at Bronze 2.
When a new Episode begins, all players need to play 5 placement matches to get placed, with Ascendant 1 being the highest initial placement.
Playing one placement match is required to receive your rank in Act 2 or 3 of a new episode. Your Rank won’t drop at the beginning of each Act, but it can drop if your placement match becomes a bad experience.
Skipping ranks and tiers as you play in Competitive mode is also possible. It all depends on your matchmaking rating (MMR), performance, and frags (kills) in a match. Consistency is key if you’ve got your eye on skipping ranks. Go on large win streaks, get some MVPs, and you may advance through the ranks faster. You must achieve a 100 Rank Rating (RR) per act to move up, such as from Iron Rank 1 to Rank 2.
After initially getting placed in a Rank, you get 50 RR to start. For Episode Acts 2 and 3, you get a minimum of 10 RR. Once you reach Immortal 2 or higher, you must earn a specific amount of RR to get promoted, which is based on Regional settings. For North America (NA), you need 90 RR to get promoted to Immortal 2, 200 RR for immortal 3, and 450 RR to achieve Radiant Rank.
The top two ranks in the Valorant system (Immortal and Radiant) are reserved for the best of the best.
It takes a lot of dedication and patience, but if you perform well and win matches, you may eventually work your way to the top of the leaderboards.
Ranking Decay
Some multiplayer online games use a “ranking decay” mechanic to entice players to check in frequently. In some games, a player’s position begins to decline if they don’t play for a predetermined amount of time.
You can take breaks from playing if you’d like because Valorant doesn’t have a level decay mechanic. To restore your position, you might need to play a placement game if you take an extended break from the game. The placement game helps determine whether you can still compete at your previous position and how skilled you are after a long absence.
It makes sense from the perspective of competition. Riot Games wishes to make sure that you are matched with opponents who have the same level of skill as you. You might also benefit from finishing a placement game before getting back into the flow of things. The last thing you want is to switch back to competitive mode only to discover that you’re somewhat sluggish and overwhelmed.
Regional Leaderboards
Curious to find out how you rank against other players in your region?
The Regional Leaderboards were a brand-new element for competitive players unveiled in Valorant Episode 2. Your position, rating, and private details like your Riot ID and player card are displayed on the leaderboards. When competing, you can always alter your personal information to say “Secret Agent” if you’d prefer to remain a little more anonymous.
When you start competitive mode, you will regrettably be unable to see where you stand on the area leaderboards. First, you must compete in at least 50 events. You’ll need to invest some time into the game and play at least one competitive game a week to maintain your position on the leaderboard.
As previously stated, if you go missing for a few weeks, you won’t lose rank, but you also won’t show up on the leaderboard.
Checking Match History
As you advance in the ranks, knowing your previous battles can help you identify what you’re doing right and where you’re making mistakes. For instructions on how to view your match history, see below:
- Go to the game’s main dashboard.
- Press the “Career” tab located at the top of the screen.
- Check out the information for your last ten matches.
Along with kills, spike plants, assists, and first bloods, you’ll be able to see metrics like wins and losses. If you enjoy playing a little meta, this knowledge is essential for comprehending and improving your match performance.
As an added bonus, you can also view how other participants fared in the same game. Just pick a game and look over the specifics.
Match Making Rating (MMR) Explained
One of the most significant figures you’ll ever have is your Match Making Rating (MMR), but you are unable to see it. Your rank and position in matches are decided by Valorant using an internal algorithm. It affects how other players are matched with you in the competitive game. Your MMR is the level on the ladder you would be on if you could visualize one.
No two users may occupy the same rung or position on the Leaderboards ladder, according to Riot Games. Whether you climb the MMR ladder or get “pushed down by others” depends on each encounter. It is merely a rating that is separate from your RR, or Rank Rating, and aids the game in placing you with other players of a comparable degree.
To keep a level playing field, Riot Games also takes into account your performance when deciding where to position you on the ladder, such as the quantity of matches you’ve played versus your wins and kills. You cannot adopt “Player 1’s” position in the Leaderboards and change their successful placement, for example, if “Player 1” plays fewer matches but wins more than you do. Despite playing more contests, you haven’t won as many games.
Rank Rating (RR) Explained
Your post-competitive game score is converted into your Rank Rating. Wins in competitions and your overall performance in the match, particularly in lesser tiers, determine how many RR points you receive.
You need to collect 100 RR points in order to move on to the next tier. The distribution of points varies from game to game, but generally speaking, it appears like this:
- Wins: 10 – 50 RR, 5+ RR for Diamond ranks and above
- Losses: Minus 0 – 30 RR, 50 RR max drop for Diamond ranks and above
- Draws: 20 RR (based on performance) for ranks Iron – Diamond
Beware, though, because it is possible to get demoted to the previous tier if you receive no RR points in the game. If you do get demoted, Valorant has “demotion protection” for players wherein you won’t go below 70 RR (previously 80 RR) for the newly demoted rank.
The good news is that it’ll only take you 30 RR to get back to the previous rank, but the bad news is that you got demoted in the first place.
MMR vs. RR
In Valorant, your MMR and RR are two different scoring methods. One aids in the game’s ability to pair you up with compatible opponents, while the other establishes your competitive performance rating.
Riot Games works hard to find the best matches for your talent set, but they can only guess how well you’d do. Your Match Making Rating is that “idea.” You are ranked at the low range of your estimated rank when Riot Games creates matches to test you based on your MMR and RR.
If you “pass” the test or regularly succeed, you’ll move up the ladder of success and be paired with other players who share your level of skill. Additionally, you’ll notice a change in your RR scores.
You will score more points for victories than losses, and vice versa. With all those additional RR points, you’ll be better prepared to climb to the top of the system’s estimation of your rank.
Riot Games ultimately wants all players’ MMR and RR scores to “converge” in that direction. Your MMR should enable you to demonstrate that you are deserving of that rank while your RR should accurately represent your performance level.
Climb the Ranks with Skill, Not Grind
The ranking system doesn’t operate that way, so it’s tempting to play as many games as you can to “grind” your way to the top of the leaderboards. The focus in the game is on “wins,” but they also consider how you win and the abilities you demonstrated in your matches. It’s all about quality, not number, if you want to move up Valorant’s ranking system.
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