How does Ranked work in Valorant?

Looking to join the upper echelon of Valorant players? Well you can't do that without knowing the ins and outs of Valorant's Ranked ladder. Before you start your Ranked journey, though, you'll need to win 10 unrated games. After you've completed those, Competitive Mode will be available, but you won't be ranked right away.

Placement Matches

Similar to most competitive games, Valorant has you complete five placement matches to determine where you'll be starting your Ranked climb. The placement system is a bit complicated. On the surface, it's as simple as "more wins = higher rank, more losses = lower rank." But there is an additional system in place to analyze your performance during your games (even if you lose) that could provide a boost to your starting rank. So if you manage to pull an impressive KDA in your matches but just can't clutch victory, Riot makes sure that is reflected in your starting rank.

Matchmaking Rating

The next system you should understand is Matchmaking Rating (MMR). MMR is an invisible system that helps match you with other players who are similar in skill. If you win more, you have a higher MMR. In some cases, your MMR can be higher than your in-game rank. This is how you can be paired with players in the rank above you.

Related: How long does it take to play a Valorant game?

Divisions

There are eight divisions for Ranked play in Valorant:

• Iron
• Bronze
• Silver
• Gold
• Platinum
• Diamond
• Immortal
• Radiant

Iron through Diamond tiers have three numbered sub-tiers, listed one through three, with three being the lower rank. When you reach Immortal and Radiant, your rank is determined by a flat point score.

Rank Rating

Upon completion of a match, you will either gain or lose Rank Rating (RR) depending on if you won or lost and your individual performance. You'll need 100 RR to advance tiers. So if you were Iron three and wished to rank up to Iron two, you would need to earn 100 RR. It is possible for you to skip tiers entirely if you are a skilled player. Valorant is very consistent about placing players in the lobbies that are reflective of their skill level, and if you dominate in an Iron game, you will sometimes earn more RR.

For a win, you'll take home 10 to 50 RR. For a loss, you'll lose anywhere between 0 to 30 RR. And for a draw, it's around 20 RR. Even with a floor of 0 RR, however, a loss can still result in demotion to a lower rank. That said, you will have the opportunity to climb back up, as upon demotion, you won't start at lower than 80 RR.

For more on Valorant, check out How to Mark locations in Valorant on Pro Game Guides!