There have been an increasing number of tactics and unique lineups that teams have formulated within the game. This year, we have already seen a plethora of international VALORANT tournaments take place. There have been some agent who have become the go-to picks for various players during this season. Following VALORANT Champions 2025, VALORANT has announcd the launch of Agent 29, Veto. The new agent is from the country of Senegal and a part of the sentinel class of agents. Thus the need for an updated VALORANT Agents tier list is a must. Let’s take a look at who the best Valorant agents are in 2025 in our updated VALORANT agents tier list.
Valorant Agent Rankings: Methodology and Ranking Criteria
Here’s how we’ve categorized the agents on our best VALORANT agents tier list:
- S-tier:
Agents dominating the current VALORANT Meta in Ranked Play and VALORANT Esports
- A-tier:
Balanced picks that perform well in all ranks
- B-tier:
Good choices, though not ideal for team play
- C-tier:
Requires significant buffs to be used in ranked matches
- D-tier:
Agents that should be avoided if possible on ranked
How this Tier List was Created
While creating the VALORANT agents tier list, several key points were taken into consideration. This includes the win rates and pick rates of the agents on competitive ranked play. At the same time, we also took a look at the pick rates from major
VALORANT esports
tournaments. Primarily we take a look at the tournaments from the 4 regional VALORANT Champions Tour leagues and the Game Changers cuircuit. Alongside the win rates, we also took a look at which best VALORANT agents have the most impact during a game on each map.
How often is Jaxon’s Valorant tier list updated?
Our VALORANT tier list will be updated before any major Patch or VALORANT Champions Tour tournament that takes place within a given year.
Image Credits: Riot Games
The Valorant Tier List: Best Agents Ranked by Tier
| S-Tier Agents | Omen, Sova, Viper, Fade |
| A-Tier Agents | Neon, Yoru, Raze, Clove |
| B-Tier Agents | Killjoy, Cypher, KAY/O, Phoenix, Breach, Iso, Gekko |
| C-Tier Agents | Jett, Vyse, Deadlock, Sage, Reyna, Brimstone, Chamber |
| D-Tier Agents | Harbor, Astra, Tejo, Waylay, Skye |
S-Tier Agents Explanations
Omen Guide
Abilities
- Q – Paranoia:
A projectile can pass through walls, blinding the enemies that come in contact with it
- C – Shrouded Step:
A short-range teleport to potentially go on off angles
- E – Dark Cover (Signature):
Two smokes that can be thrown by Omen through walls.
- X – From the Shadows (Ultimate):
Omen can teleport to any location on the map after a brief period of time. He can also cancel his teleport midway.
Omen can be played both passively and aggressively. One can use his teleports to catch enemies off guard or to rotate between sites quickly. His smokes are ideal to block off significant parts of a map in VALORANT. During VALORANT Champions 2025, Omen’s pick rate was 80%, the highest by far by any agent. Following the tournament, we saw the agent receive nerfs during Patch 11.08. During the
VALORANT Game Changers Championship 2025, the agent had the highest pick rate at 58%.
- Primary Strength:
Omen’s biggest strength is his ability to have presence all over the map at any given moment. He can also place his smokes from anywhere on the map, thus providing him more freedom in play.
- Major Weakness:
All of Omen’s abilities have loud audio cues, which can be fatal if not timed correctly.
Viper Guide
Abilities
- Q – Poison Cloud:
Throws a gas bomb that can be picked up and redeployed. When activated, it creates a toxic cloud of gas that drains the health of enemies and blocks vision.
- C – Snake Bite:
Fires a canister that explodes on impact, creating a puddle of acid that damages enemies and applies the ‘Vulnerable’ debuff, causing them to take double damage for a certain period of time.
- E – Toxic Screen (Signature):
Deploys a line of gas emitters that can be activated to create a long wall of toxic gas, blocking vision of the enemy when activated. The duration of the Toxic Screen is relative to the amount of toxic fuel she has in her meter.
- X – Viper’s Pit (Ultimate):
Creates a massive, permanent cloud of poison gas in an area around Viper. Enemies inside are revealed to Viper, and their vision is limited as their health decays.
Viper is a specialist Controller who excels at holding and controlling a site. Many would consider her to be the first agent to be a controller with sentinel traits. Using her snake bite and Toxic Screens, she can stop the attack from pushing onto the site. Her abilities reward a patient, tactical style of play in VALORANT. During the VALORANT Game Changers Championship 2025, the agent had the joint-highest pick rate alongside Omen at 58%. The only map where Viper wasn’t used during the tournament was on the map of Pearl, where Astra was the go-to pick.
- Primary Strength:
Viper has incredible area denial and post-plant control using her abilities. Her ultimate ability, Viper’s Pit, can completely cover an entire plant site, giving her and her team a massive advantage once activated.
- Major Weakness:
Viper’s abilities are highly dependent on her ‘fuel’ meter. Due to this, the amount of flexibility one gets using her abilities is less. She is also a map-specific agent, being effective on maps with open areas, such as Icebox.
Sova Guide
Abilities
- Q – Shock Bolt:
Fires an explosive arrow that damages enemies in an area that can be bounced off surfaces.
- C – Owl Drone:
Deploys a pilotable drone that can tag enemies with a revealing dart. The drone can be blinded or shot by the enemies.
- E – Recon Bolt (Signature):
Fires an arrow that, upon impact, reveals the location of nearby enemies.
- X – Hunter’s Fury (Ultimate):
Fires up to three wall-piercing energy blasts that damage and reveal enemies to Sova.
Sova’s primary role is to gather information for his teammates. A good Sova player uses their Recon Bolt and Owl Drone to scout for enemy positions around the map. At the same time, he must communicate to his team the ideal path to attack. One must note that learning lineups for his abilities, like the Recon Bolt and Shock Bolt, is crucial to maximizing his potential. During the VALORANT Game Changers Championship 2025, the agent had the third-highest pick rate at 41%. He was used just above Fade on all maps other than Split, where Fade was the de facto pick.
- Primary Strength:
Sova has the best information-gathering abilities in the game. His Recon Bolt and Owl Drone provide invaluable intel on the enemy’s location during attack and defence.
- Major Weakness:
Sova’s abilities have a loud sound cue and can be easily shot or avoided by enemies. His abilities are highly dependent on lineups, making him a tricky agent for new players to master.
Fade Guide
Abilities
- Q – Seize:
Throws an orb that, upon hitting the ground, creates an area that holds enemies in place, deafening and providing a ‘decay’ effect on their health.
- C – Prowler:
Creates an entity that will chase the first enemy it sees or the first trail it finds, near sighting them if it reaches them. Players can steer the ability using their mouse in the direction they would like it to go.
- E – Haunt (Signature):
Throws an orb that reveals enemies in its line of sight.
- X – Nightfall (Ultimate):
Unleashes a wave of nightmare energy that deafens, decays, and leaves a trail on all enemies that get hit by it.
Fade is an aggressive initiator agent. Unlike Sova, her utility is more active and tailored for close-range duels. Her ultimate is a powerful tool for retakes and gathering information. During the VALORANT Game Changers Championship 2025, the agent had the forth-highest pick rate at 39%. The only map where the agent wasn’t used was on Abyss where Sova was the most used agent due to his ability to clear multiple angles using his abilities.
- Primary Strength:
Fade is excellent at punishing enemies who are holding tight angles or are grouped up in a given part of the map in VALORANT.
- Major Weakness:
Fade’s utility is more easily countered than that of other initiator agents like Sova. Her abilities are also designed for more aggressive plays, which can make her vulnerable if she overpeaks in certain situations. This resulted in her being isolated and taken down by the enemy without providing any impact.
A-Tier Agents Explanations
Neon Guide
Abilities
- Q – Relay Bolt:
Fires an energy bolt that bounces once off a surface, and it stuns all enemies in the targeted area.
- C – Fast Lane:
Creates two parallel walls of blue static electricity that block vision. It also damages enemies who pass through these walls.
- E – High Gear (Signature):
A toggle ability that allows Neon to sprint forward. While sprinting, she can also slide a maximum of 2 times.
- X – Overdrive (Ultimate):
Allows Neon to fire a beam of electricity from her fingertips, which is entirely accurate and resets the duration after each kill.
Neon is an aggressive duelist who thrives on speed and the surprise element. She excels at disrupting enemy setups and creating space for her team in given moments. During the VALORANT Game Changers Championship 2025, the agent had a 100% pickrate on the map of Sunset. She was the second most used duelist in the tournament only behind Yoru.
- Major Strength:
Neon’s primary strength is her speed. Her ultimate ability, Overdrive, is one of the most potent abilities in the game, allowing her to kill multiple enemies in one go.
- Major Weakness:
Neon is a very high-risk, high-reward agent. Her fast-paced play style can lead to overextending and dying without getting a single kill in a given round.
Yoru Guide
Abilities
- Q – Blindside:
Fires a fragment that serves as a flash to blind enemies.
- C – Fakeout:
Creates a copy of Yoru that runs forward, imitating footsteps to trick enemies.
- E – Gatecrash (Signature):
Activates a dimensional tear that can be thrown and teleported to.
- X – Dimensional Drift (Ultimate):
Equips a mask that allows Yoru to become invisible and invulnerable to enemy damage for a given period of time.
Yoru is a master of deception and misdirection. He excels at flanking, taking duels, and creating chaos with his teleports to confuse his opponents. During the VALORANT Game Changers Championship 2025, the agent was the most picked duelist agent in the tournament. He was used on all maps other than Sunset, as Neon was the de facto pick with a 100% during the entire tournament.
- Primary Strength:
Yoru’s greatest strength is his unpredictability on the map. A good Yoru can force the enemy team to constantly guess his location, creating openings for his teammates to take advantage.
- Major Weakness:
Yoru’s teleports and ultimate are very loud and can be easily tracked by experienced players. He relies heavily on the element of surprise, which can be challenging to maintain against a coordinated team in higher ranks of VALORANT.
Clove Guide
Abilities
- Q – Meddle:
Throws a fragment of essence that explodes after a short delay, temporarily “decays” enemies caught.
- C – Ruse (Signature):
Projects a view of the battlefield to create vision-blocking clouds. These can be placed even after the clove dies in the round.
- E – Pick-Me-Up:
Instantly absorbs the life essence of a fallen enemy to gain a temporary health and speed boost.
- X – Not Dead Yet (Ultimate):
Upon dying, if Clove has their ultimate available, they can revive themselves after a brief delay. To stay alive, Clove must get a kill or an assist shortly after reviving.
Clove is a unique Controller who can play aggressively due to their self-sustain and abilities after dying in a given round. Unlike other controllers, Clove doesn’t need to stay in a safe spot all the time. While not having the highest pickrate in VALORANT Esports, the agent is one of the most used in the ranked ladder. According to
vstats.gg, Clove has the highest pickrate on the ranked ladder at 62%. This stat is on the lobbies of matches that are diamond or higher on the VALORANT ranked ladder.
- Primary Strength:
Clove’s biggest strength is their ability to control the flow of the game even after being eliminated. Their ability to smoke after dying is crucial, as it allows their team to continue pushing or defending.
- Major Weakness:
Clove’s smokes are not present for long duration or as versatile as other controllers, and they cannot be retrieved once placed.
Raze Guide
Abilities
- Q – Blast Pack:
Throws an explosive pack that detonates on command, launching Raze or anyone else caught in the blast. It deals a small amount of damage.
- C – Boom Bot:
Deploys a bot that travels in a straight line, bouncing off walls. It locks onto and chases the first enemy it sees, exploding for heavy damage.
- E – Paint Shells (Signature):
Throws a cluster grenade that, upon hitting a surface, splits into smaller grenades that also explode.
- X – Showstopper (Ultimate):
Equips a rocket launcher that fires a single, large explosive rocket that deals massive damage to anyone caught in its enormous blast radius.
Raze is a pure entry fragger who specializes in creating chaos and dealing massive damage.
- Primary Strength:
Raze has the best explosive utility in the game. She can force enemies out of corners and onto a site with her Paint Shells and Boom Bot.
- Major Weakness:
Raze has no utility for herself, unlike other duelists who have flashes or smokes. She provides little to no information for her team, making her reliant on the rest of her team’s abilities.
Image Credits: Riot Games
How to Use the Valorant Tier List Effectively: Tips for Choosing the Right Agent
Pick According to the Map
Specific agents are ideal on certain maps, not all. This is because all maps in VALORANT have different layouts and structures. For example, a map like Haven has three sites. Thus, it will be important for agents to be able to rotate. Another point is that, as shown on the Sunset map, using smoke to block angles in the middle of the map makes it more challenging for the defense team to take sniper shots. Another example is an agent like Neon: due to the layout of the map, her ability to move around swiftly works in her favour.
Balance Your Team Composition
While playing ranked, each player must know their agent and the play style that suits them. If a player is playing as an initiator like Fade or Gekko, their main goal is to support their team. On the other hand, if someone plays smokes like Omen and Viper, their goal must be to provide smokes and stay alive until the very end to support the team. If one feels a bit underconfident about their aim, they can play an initiator or controller agent whose primary use case is using its abilities.
Counter the Enemy’s Composition
Knowing which agents are most picked on a given map is quite helpful. During ranked players, a well-versed player can predict the enemy team. As a result, they can select agents to counter the enemy team’s composition. For example, on the map of Ascent, the go-to picks of agents are Sova, Killjoy, and KAY/O. The reason for this is that Killjoy’s ultimate Lockdown can only be destroyed by Sova’s ability Hunter’s Fury or KAY/O’s ability FRAG/MENT.
Prioritize Comfort and Skill
It must be stated that comfort over an agent is the most crucial aspect of playing VALORANT. For example, while Astra might not be the best controller in the game, there might be some players who dominate ranked matches with her. The reason is that they know how to play Astra to the highest potential.
Best Valorant Agents for Beginners
Below is a list of the best agents for beginners to use in competitive play:
- Sova
- Omen
- Phoenix
- Sage
- Cypher
- Breach
- Brimestone
Best Valorant Agents for Every Valorant Map
If you are curious to know about which VALORANT agents are the
best on each VALORANT map, you can check out an in-depth article here. Within this, we go over the best 3-4 agents that players can use on every single map within the VALORANT Competitive pool.
Best Valorant Agents on Console
Below is a list of the best agents for new VALORANT players to use in competitive play on Console:
- Sova
- Omen
- Phoenix
- Sage
- Cypher
- Breach
Valorant Agents 2026 FAQs
What are the best Valorant agents for each role?
The best Controller Agent is Omen. The best Initiator is considered to be Sova. Yoru is the best Duelist whilst Killjoy is best Sentinel.
Who are the S-tier agents in Valorant?
The S tier agents are those VALORANT agents that are the best picks on multiple maps. These include the likes of Omen, Sova, Viper and Fade.
Who is the easiest agent in Valorant?
The easiest agent to play on VALORANT is Sage. The reason being that the agent can heal her teammates and herself.
Who’s the least-picked agent in Valorant?
Since his launch,
Harbor
has become the least picked agent within the game. A major reason being that his abilities aren’t as useful as other agents thus remaining a niche pick on most teams.
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