HomeGames50 Valorant Tips & Tricks: The Ultimate Strategy Guide

50 Valorant Tips & Tricks: The Ultimate Strategy Guide

Mastering Valorant, Riot Games’ tactical shooter, is no easy feat. With its rich blend of strategic gameplay, precise shooting mechanics, and unique character abilities, players are always on the lookout for Valorant tips and tricks to get an edge on the competition. Whether you’re aiming to climb the competitive ladder or just looking to improve your game, understanding the nuances of Valorant can significantly enhance your performance.

For those just starting their journey, Valorant tips for beginners can be a goldmine of information to kickstart your progress. Among these invaluable pieces of advice, two stand out for their universal application: utilizing the practice range to refine your aim and abilities, and the recommendation to avoid staying scoped in for too long, which can hinder your awareness and mobility. These foundational strategies set the stage for more advanced techniques and game sense.

This list of tips and tricks has been carefully assembled by seasoned Valorant players, aiming to offer actionable advice that spans across various skill levels. Whether you’re a fresh recruit or a battle-hardened veteran, these insights are designed to elevate your gameplay, tailoring your approach to the dynamic and ever-evolving challenges of Valorant. Find the ultimate Valorant strategy guide below to take you from Iron dud to Radiant stud.

1
Always hold an angle as you are pushing an area.

If you’re looking straight on, you’re going to get killed.

2
Don’t instalock a character at the beginning of a match if you’re playing with randoms.

Let them choose first and then pick your character. It’s often the case that competitive players are only comfortable playing one character. If you can play multiple different characters, you should let the random players have the first choice to maximize your chances of winning the match.

3
Use the Practice Range

Aim Lab is great for FPS players, but you’re much better off actually practicing in the Valorant Practice range. Use the practice range to practice headshots without using Aim Labs. Check out Dr. Uninstall’s practice range routine – it’s freaking perfect!

4
Don’t shift walk around common spots.

Shift walk to that point, and then release shift when you actually peak the corner. Otherwise, your enemies will have plenty of time to see you and kill you.

5
Don’t Stay Scoped-In

valorant sniper scoped in

When holding a spot with the operator, don’t stay scoped in so that you can’t see what’s around you. You should be scoping in and out.

6
Change Positions After Killshots

After you hit a shot – whether it be with the operator, a pistol, a phantom, or whatever other gun you’re using – change your positioning. If you keep holding the same exact position you just got your kill from, chances are the second person to peak you will get the kill because their teammate has told them exactly where you are.

See Also: Valheim Guide

7
Switch Your Defending Position Every Round

If you’re defending, never hold the same exact position as you did the previous round. If you’re always sitting in garage window on Haven right in the center of the doorway for every round, the enemy team is going to know where you always are and can plan accordingly. If you change your position every round, they’ll never know exactly where you are, making it harder for them to make plans.

8
Don’t Use the Operator on the Same Site Twice in A Row

Don’t try to successfully use the operator at the same site twice in a row when defending. If the team rushes mid on Icebox for a round and you successfully snipe a couple of them with your operator and they lose the round, chances are that they’re not going to be stupid enough to go mid again for the next round. Instead, maybe take your operator to B long for the next round. Keep switching it up to keep the enemy team guessing about your location.

You should utilize and track any of the popular Valorant stat trackers.

11
Shoot After Blinds Are Thrown

Don’t be afraid to waste some bullets right after Jett or Omen or whoever else smokes a common spot. Most of the time, right after someone blinds a spot, they’re going to run to the other side of wherever they just smoked. I can’t tell you how many kills I’ve gotten from blind firing in Valorant.

12
Use the Sheriff or Vandal if You’ve Got Great Aim

If you’ve already got pinpoint aim from playing any of the other FPS games on PC, that skill translates almost 1:1 to Valorant. That means using higher damage guns with one-shot headshot kill potential like the Sheriff or Vandal should be great choices for you.

13
Use the Spectre, Phantom, or Shotguns if You Don’t

Conversely, if you’re not exactly the most accurate shooter, stay away from guns that may require more precision to be effective and opt for guns that are more beginner-friendly. The Frenzy or Ghost for pistol rounds, the Spectre for half buys, and the Phantom for full buy rounds are probably your best bets as they’re easier to control and have less recoil.

14
Finding Omen’s Shadow

omen from the shadows

Omen’s ultimate – From the Shadows – can be a game-changer for Omen players. When you hear his ultimate called, begin listening closely and looking around you to pinpoint his respawn location. There’s a slight delay in his materializing, which gives you a couple of quick seconds to find him and secure the easy kill.

15
A Good Headset is Necessary

You cannot be successful at Valorant without a proper headset. Sound awareness will make the difference between you getting the jump on your enemy and the enemy knowing you’re running through waters on Split and camping the other end. Does that mean you have to go spend $399 on the Audeze Mobius if you don’t want to be stuck in Iron comp matches for the rest of your life? No, but I don’t recommend cheaping out, either. Get something with at least simulated 7.1 surround sound.

Check out our picks for the best wireless gaming headsets here.

16
Don’t Be Toxic in Competitive Mode

If you’re playing with randoms in competitive mode, be as nice as possible. It’s often the case that those players have no problem throwing a match if they’re called out for being bad in the chat. You’re much better off just letting them play the game and playing around them as best as possible instead of insulting them.

17
Stop ‘N Shoot

Perfect the art of stopping all movement before you shoot. The quicker you can transition from running to stopping, shooting, and then running again, the more successful you’re going to be at Valorant.

18
Learn Location Names and Call Them Out

Work on calling out locations and being as specific as possible. “Over there” means nothing.

19
Ping the Bomb Plant

If you plant the bomb and die, ping the bomb’s spot on the map so your teammates know where it’s planted and can defend it.

20
Pay Attention to Your Teammates At the Start of a Round

Pay attention to what your teammates are doing at the start of the round, especially when you’re on the planting side of things. If your teammates are all shift walking to a site, don’t rush it and run right by them. You’ll make noise and ruin their strategy.

21
Finding the Right Mouse Sensitivity Is Key

Your mouse sensitivity is your own, meaning I can’t tell you whether to use high or low sensitivity. But the best way to figure out which is best for you is to pick a specific spot on a wall and try to run back and forth while keeping your crosshairs on the same spot. If you’re having trouble staying on that spot, adjust your sensitivity and try again. Check out DEFYED’s Valorant mouse sensitivity guide here for more.

22
Jump Around Corners and Crouch to Shoot Enemies

Perfect the art of jumping around corners and crouching for the killshot if you know an enemy is going to be there.

23
Pull Out Your Knife If You’re Running

knife out valorant

You run faster while holding the knife in your hand. If you’re defending A and the enemies are all confirmed B, take your knife out and run faster while you’re rotating to the other site. Remember to switch back to your gun before nearing common engagement points.

24
Find The Enemy’s Strongest and Weakest Players Early

Each enemy team will have their strong players and weak players, and those first few rounds can be CRUCIAL for deciphering that information. If you know that the enemy Yoru is bottom fragging after a few rounds, and he always defends on B site, but the enemy Reyna is top fragging and always plays on A, you’re much better off going B for the next round. It’s not always a 100% thing, but it’s much more likely that players will hold their spots until it becomes a noticeable problem to the other team.

25
Pick the Right Gun For Your Character’s Role

Pick the right gun for your role. If you’re defending A short on Haven or A showers on Bind, you’re not going to want an operator. Conversely, if you’re watching B Long on Icebox or B long on Haven, you’re not going to want a Classic or shotgun.

26
Always Plant the Spike, Even if You Won’t Win the Round

how much for planting the spike

Your team gets added credits for successfully planting the spike, even if it’s after you’ve already killed the entire enemy team. Try and plant the spike every round.

27
Find Your Main Character and Perfect Them

Learn to master a single character (your main), and watch every video about that character’s abilities and useful locations that you can. For example, if you’re Sova, there are no shortages of Youtube vids about the best arrow locations for each specific map, many of which can prove useful for your specific playstyle.

28
Bomb Timing Is Important To Know When You Should Run and Save Your Gun

The bomb takes 45 total seconds to go boom. You need to start defusing the bomb within 3 seconds of the start of the second to last beeping phase. Otherwise, you’re not going to have time to defuse (which requires 7 seconds). If you know you don’t have time to defuse, save your gun and run away like a bad action movie explosion sequence.

29
Use Abilities Through The Teleporter on Bind

Sova’s arrows can all go through a teleporter on Bind and work on the other end. So if you’re defending A and your teammates call out a B hookah push, shoot your two Shock Bolts right through the center of the A teleporter for potential kills/damage to your enemies.

30
Flash For Your Teammates

If you are using a character with flashes, flash for your teammates, not yourself. There’s a slight delay in switching back from your abilities to your gun, so if you’re flashing for yourself, you’re often too late to pull your gun up and score a kill. However, if your teammate already has their gun out, and you flash for them, they can pop around the corner ready to kill the blinded enemies.

31
Don’t Peak a Corner Twice

If you’re peeking a corner to see if there’s someone there ready to snipe you, you’re better off not peeking a second time if you do spot someone watching that spot. Double back and find another way to go, or use your blinds.

32
Switch Your Strat If You’re Losing a Match

If your current playstyle isn’t working, try switching things up. If the other team is shutting you down, and you’re now down 11-6, try doing a complete 180 with your strat. If you’re playing aggressively and getting wiped out, try playing slower and more conservative in hopes that the enemy doesn’t know how to handle it.

33
Your Crosshairs Should Be Placed at Head-Level

valorant crosshairs

Place your crosshairs at head-level, and if you don’t get a headshot, keep firing and drag your crosshairs downward.

34
Break the Reload Habit

Don’t reload too often. You don’t need to reload your Ares after every kill, typically. This is a tough habit to break, especially for those who typically play Call of Duty or PUBG.

35
Hold Angles From As Far Back As You Can

When holding an angle, stand as far back as you can; if you’re further back than your opponent is on the other side, you’ll see their arm before they can see yours. It’s basic math.

36
Pay Attention To Your Enemy Team’s Economic Status Every Round

Before buying your guns and making your decisions every round, take a look at your enemies’ economy. Are they all 3000 or below? That means you can expect things like Judges, Stingers, Spectres, maybe a Marshall if they’ve got a sniper. Are some of their players packing 7200 creds? Don’t go B long – you’re likely to get sniped by an Operator if they have a skilled sniper.

37
Pay Attention to Your Enemy’s Composition

Play off of what the enemy composition is. Meaning, if they’ve got a Sova, make sure you hold angles behind crates or other objects in spots where the typical Sova tracking dart doesn’t ping your location, especially at the beginning of a round. With characters that have blinds, be prepared to look away from those blinds.

38
Make Sure Your Team Has a Character With Smokes

Make sure your team has a character that uses smokes, as they’re invaluable against enemies (specifically enemies that might otherwise be able to dominate your team with an Operator). At least one character should have a smoking ability.

39
Use Voice Chat to Call Out Your Flashes Before You Throw Them Around a Corner

Call out your flashes to your team in chat before you flash. Nothing is worse than going into a site and then being blinded by your teammate, causing the enemy to have an advantage over you.

40
Buy Weapons For Your Allies

Buy weapons for your allies when you can, and request reasonable guns when you need to.

41
Buy and Save With Your Teammates

Buy and save with your teammates. If your team just got wiped and you all can’t buy a decent gun, it’s probably best to save for a round.

42
The Bomb Carrier Should Not Be the First Person Into a Site

Don’t send the bomb carrier into a site first. Have the rest of the team clear the site of enemies quickly, secure a pick or two, and then plant the bomb. If the bomber dies first, on a site alone, the rest of the enemy team is going to rotate to that site to watch the bomb, making it harder for the planting team to win.

43
You Can Run-n-gun With Certain Guns

Certain guns will work well for running and gunning/playing aggressively. The Phantom, Spectre, and Vandal are easy to get close-range kills while charging a site (if you practice enough with them, that is).

44
Your Abilities Make Noise and Will Give Away Your Team’s Position

Some of your abilities make noise and will give away your position. Dropping Killjoy’s turret, throwing up Cipher’s camera, or any of Jett’s abilities, for example, all make noises for the enemy team to hear.

45
Reloading Your Gun Also Makes Noise

Reloading your gun makes noise, too. Don’t reload if you’re sneaking and don’t absolutely need to. If you’re in a situation in which you are close to the enemy but need to reload, slowly back away around a corner to reload first.

46
Wallbang With Friends

Try coordinating timed wallbang kills with your teammates. Ping the location you want to wallbang, and then a quick countdown to 3 over the voice chat for a coordinated kill effort.

47
Combat Frequent Smokers With Shotguns

If you’ve got enemies frequently smoking sites, it might be time to buy a shotgun and start camping inside the smokes.

48
Record Your Games and Watch Them

Record a few of your games and watch them back. You can find a lot of your own mistakes by simply watching your gameplay to see what you were doing wrong/could’ve done differently.

49
Call Out Enemy Damage After You Die

Call out damage you’ve done to enemies after you die. It’s helpful to know that Phoenix has 5 HP left on site when you have full health and need to defuse the bomb.

50
Grab The Orb If It’s On the Way to The Site You’re Rotating To

valorant orbs

Grab those orbs if you’re not in a rush to plant or defuse the bomb.

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Bobby Bernstein
Bobby is the Co-Owner of Nerd Much?. He's the former Games Editor and current Shopping Editor at Heavy.com, former Editor in Chief of Den of Geek, and former bylines at HiConsumption, Slickdeals, Gamedeveloper.com, and more! He is also on Opencritic. He has been writing about nerdy stuff on the web for over 10 years. The best way to reach him is on Twitter.

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