RANKING VALORANT AGENTS BY TIER

For those of you just starting out Valorant, or trying to climb up the ranks, finding the right agent to play is important. Granted this list is just on my personal opinion, so if you disagree with any of my listings, let me know down in the comments!

S TIER

JETT

Despite the recent nerfs that Jett has faced (3 to 2 smokes, right-click ult), Jett is still a huge agent being able to create space on attack. On defense she’s still one of the best agents to OP being able to reposition and peak different angles.

Especially on maps like Icebox and Breeze, she’s able to take advantage of the verticality aspect thus making her very important in most team compositions.

SOVA

Sova’s abilities are huge for any team composition. His use of an owl drone and his recon dart can help gather information and be able to take up more map space. Players have been pushing their limits with arrow lineups and he has proven to not only be a valuable agent in ranked but also in pro play as well.

His owl drone is probably the best of utility because he is able to see certain areas of the map without necessarily taking the risk of being gunned down by the enemy team.

CHAMBER

Valorant’s newest Sentinel agent is comparable to Jett in the OP department. His ability to quickly disappear and reposition after OPing in his original spot makes him a valuable agent.

Jett initially was the only agent that was meant for the OP, but now Chamber is able to play that role proficiently as well and keep up with her.

His other abilities, Headhunting especially, can purchase up to 8 bullets for 100 credits each, giving him another weapon he can use in eco rounds and has no pressure to save either. Not to mention, his ultimate ability Tour De France, is an Operator with a quick reload gives him another piece of utility that he can use in eco rounds as well.

I’m sure there will be more reworks to his abilities in the future, but until then, he is an agent that should be featured.

ASTRA

Playing against a good Astra literally makes the game so difficult. Her stars being able to smoke, suck, and concus literally forces enemy teams to reposition. She is probably the strongest controller in the game right now. She can place her stars anywhere on the map, and when she recalls her utility, there is a brief 2-3 second smoke.

Not to mention, her ultimate is able to split a site however she chooses making the enemy team guess where everyone is positioned making her that much more useful.

A TIER

VIPER

Viper’s recent buffs made her a must use agent on maps like Breeze and Icebox. She is very much serviceable on maps like Bind, Ascent, Haven (to an extent), and Split. Her wall is able to split a site creating more space and her utility makes it super useful for post plant situations.

Her ult makes retaking or taking a site difficult because the enemy team slowly dwindles down in HP the longer they stay in the Viper’s Pit.

While she is super important on some maps, there are other maps where she can be replaced thus making her only an A-tier agent.

RAZE

Despite her recent nerfs (ultimate now requiring 8 orbs, Boombot doing only 80 max damage), she is a much needed agent on maps like Bind and Split.

Her utility is great to clear out pockets and she is able to break other agents’ utility. Her Raze Rocket ultimate is super useful in that if it hits an enemy, they immediately die, but even if she isn’t able to get those kills, it creates enough space for her team to be able to push in and takeover sites.

On defense she can stall pushes and help gain more map control. Like Viper, she is essential on certain maps but on others, there are better agents that can be used.

CYPHER

Cypher creates a safety blanket on attacking being able to watch flanks with his use of tripwires and his camera to gather information. His cages act as another smoke and makes noise whenever an enemy team goes through it, providing more information for the team.

On defense he’s able play passive and slow down an enemy from pushing in. His ultimate gives the team a 2-3 second glimpse of where everyone is located on the map giving the team more information.

KILLJOY

Being that I am a Killjoy main, I personally believe she is an S-tier agent. But being objective, while Cypher is able to watch flanks and provide information, Killjoy’s strong suit is on the defensive end. On maps like Ascent, Bind and to an extent Icebox, Killjoy can single-handedly hold a site down by herself.

Her mollies and alarmbot constantly puts the other team on edge making sure they check all angles before they push in. Not to mention her turret essentially acts as a 6th member of the team shooting whenever it spots an enemy team.

Her ultimate is great for stalling a push or even for retaking a site. The only downside? Her utility is rendered useless whenever she is out of range, so unlike Cypher she has to be located closeby in order for her utility to work. This gives the enemy team information at least to know if she is closeby them or not.

SKYE

Skye has probably one of the better utilities in the game that helps the team out tremendously. Her flashes not only can cover a lot of space, but indicate if an enemy has been blinded. Her wolf is able to scout out spaces and if it hits an enemy directly can deal a little bit of damage and concus them.

Her ultimate also is able to provide information about enemy locations. When combining her flashes with the pressure from her teammates, it can net easy kills and put you in a man advantage.

KAY/O

With every new agent that gets released, Kay/o ends up getting more and more powerful. His zero-point knife not only helps give information on enemy locations, but it suppresses ability usage for 7 seconds. His ultimate is especially useful suppressing enemies from using abilities and when he does get knocked, he is able to be revived.

His flashes received a recent buff making it difficult to predict when he is using them and his molly is great to stall any sort of push. Especially on maps like Bind, Split and even Haven, Kay/o mains can really shine.

The only downside? His ability heavily and I mean heavily relies on good gunplay. If you can master your aim and learn how to use his abilities effectively, best believe you will be a problem that the enemy team has to take account for.

B-TIER

BREACH

The recent release of Fracture (new map) made Breach one of the most needed agents in the game. His aftershock ability can clear out pockets that enemies may camp in and with the recent buffs, can destroy Killjoy’s ultimate.

His ultimate helps either takeover site or retake site making anyone caught in his ultimate dazed thus making it easier. His recent buffs make it easier now for him to be more self sufficient rather than having to string a combo of ability usage.

BRIMSTONE

What was once viewed as the weakest controller, Brimstone’s abilities actually have a huge benefit on maps like Bind, Haven, and even Ascent to an extent. He received a wider range for his smokes and his smokes last a lot longer than they used to.

His molly is great for stalling an enemy push or on attack being able to play for post plant. Not to mention his orbital strike is nothing to be messed with.

His stim beacon does seem a bit unnecessary but it does help sometimes winning those gun fights because your teammates do shoot faster when in range. Not saying it’s completely useless, but it isn’t useful either a lot of the times.

REYNA

This isn’t trying to hate on Reyna at all, she’s a freaking badass agent. The only reason why she’s a B-Tier agent is because for TEAMPLAY her blinds are only helpful. Her other two abilities realistically only benefit her. She can heal herself after assisting on a kill or can reposition using her dismiss.

Her ultimate as well regenerates her heath and makes her invisible for the time being making the enemy worry about where her location is. Aside from her blinds, she necessarily doesn’t have a lot utility that helps a team take control or retake a site

SAGE

Despite her role as being a “Sentinel” her utility isn’t necessarily meant to be able to watch for flanks. She is a unique case where she can be played as both an aggressive or passive agent. Not to mention her ultimate is the strongest in the game. Being able to revive someone after they died makes things a whole lot more difficult for the enemy team.

However, her healing ability is worse than Skye’s because Skye can at least heal her teammates if they are in proximity to her. Sage’s healing does take a bit of time. A lot of professional teams have taken her out of their composition and what was once viewed as a must needed agent, she isn’t being played as much.

C-TIER

PHOENIX

Phoenix was one of those duelists in the beginning having in your composition was a must need specifically on Ascent, Haven, and even Split. However, with initiators like Skye and Kay/o being introduced, Phoenix’s utility started becoming less useful in team compositions.

His flashes are not the greatest being that it is a curveball and people have began to be able to avoid his flashes on a regular basis. His molly is super short and doesn’t deal a whole lot of damage. The wall that he also has doesn’t create too much intimidation and teams will just push through taking a bit of damage.

The only “useful” ability is his ultimate and honestly because it is still only 6 orbs, he is a C-tier. Anything higher would have dropped him down. What was once a needed secondary duelist, has now become an agent that should be avoided because of the introduction to Skye and Kay/o.

OMEN

Omen was considered as a must needed agent in a lot of compositions, but the introduction of Astra basically changed all of that. While his smokes can cover most of the map, it does take some time for them to get set and unlike Atra he is unable to recall them back.

His paranoia still costs a decent amount and while his teleport ability is great for making clips, in actual gameplay it doesn’t serve the team any benefit.

His From the Shadows ultimate was once viewed as super useful being able to get behind enemy lines, but as the players started getting smarter, they began understanding the basic positions that Omens would set on their ult. Not to mention, once his shadow figure gets destroyed, he can’t use it until he gets 7 orbs. It’s really a shame, Riot Games needs to buff Omen again if their goal is to get him to be useful in pro play again.

D-TIER

YORU

Yoru unfortunately needs a rework. When first introduced it seemed cool that there was another agent that can teleport, but it needs to be combined with a flash that can work efficiently. His flashes are super useful being that it needs to hit a surface in order to be activated.

That being said, his footsteps honestly have become overplayed and rarely anyone is getting fooled. His ultimate is great for being able to gather information and get behind enemy lines, but what happens if he gets caught.

This by no means is saying he’s completely useless, but pro teams have to really practice on coordinating with utility with the rest of the team. I’m not necessarily sure if teams are willing to put in that effort. While he does have a great deal of potential, unfortunately, if a rework isn’t in Riot’s plans, the pick rate for this agent will still be relatively low.

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