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Valorant system requirements

Valorant system requirements, recommended PC builds, and more!

Updated: Apr 27, 2023 3:08 pm
Valorant system requirements

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The Valorant system requirements are here to stay, so we take a look at what it takes to run Valorant. Ever since the game released, it has been praised for it’s gameplay, new maps, and new agents. One thing has remained the same though, the nice and inclusive system requirements. It’s no secret by now that it isn’t too difficult to run this competitive FPS shooter, and that’s for good reason.

FPS players enjoy their high framerates, so Riot had that in mind when building the game. Even with the advent of new content making it’s way into the game over the years, the fps remains high. But what kind of hardware do you need to run Valorant? We talk you through the kind of specs you need in order to run at 30 fps, 60 fps, and 144+ fps.

Valorant system requirements

Now we can move on to those all-important Valorant system requirements. Luckily for you, there are a few different categories to tuck into. You’ll notice that the Valorant system requirements really aren’t too hard to achieve. Riot have done a fantastic job of making the game accessible to as many people as possible. There have been some interesting updates too though.

One of which is the announcement that Valorant ended support for Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 machines. That means you’ll have to be on Windows 10 or 11. Speaking of Windows 11, Valorant also requires TPM 2.0 and UEFI Secure Boot in order to run.

Valorant minimum requirements

The minimum requirements are aimed at 30 fps gameplay.

  • CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 / AMD Athlon 200GE
  • RAM: 4 GB
  • HDD: ~20-30 GB of storage space
  • GPU: Intel HD 4000 integrated graphics / AMD Radeon R5 200
  • OS: 64-bit Windows 10 / Windows 11
  • DirectX: Version 11
  • Screen Resolution: 720p
  • Network: Broadband Internet connection

Recommended specs are designed for 60 fps gameplay.

  • CPU: Intel Core i3-4150 / AMD Ryzen 3 1200
  • RAM: 4 GB or more
  • HDD: ~20-30 GB of storage space
  • GPU: NVIDIA Geforce GT 730 / AMD Radeon R7 240
  • OS: 64-bit Windows 10 / Windows 11
  • DirectX: Version 11
  • Screen Resolution: 1080p
  • Network: Broadband Internet connection

Valorant high-end requirements

The high-end requirements are built around achieving 144+ fps.

  • CPU: Intel Core i5-9400F 2.90GHz / AMD Ryzen 5 2600X
  • RAM: 4 GB or more
  • HDD: ~20-30 GB of storage space
  • GPU: NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti / AMD Radeon R7 370
  • OS: 64-bit Windows 10 / Windows 11
  • DirectX: Version 11
  • Screen Resolution: 1080p
  • Network: Broadband Internet connection

Valorant game details

Valorant is a competitive 5v5 character-based tactical shooter from League of Legends’ developer, Riot Games. Leveraging all the know-how and experience from over a decade at the helm of one of the most popular multiplayer games on the planet, Riot Games turned it’s attention to the first-person genre with an eye on dethroning eSports mainstays Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Overwatch.

  • Release Date: June 2nd, 2020 (Windows)
  • System Requirements: Low-Medium
  • Genre: Tactical First-person Shooter
  • Developer: Riot Games
  • Publisher: Riot Games

In Valorant, players play 24-round matches in teams of five players with the objective being to plant or defuse a bomb in a fashion similar to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. By blending lethal gunplay where each weapon has weight and impact with characters endowed with unique abilities, players engage in tactical confrontations on expertly designed maps where creativity and coordination are encouraged. It’s the tactical precision of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive coupled with the creative possibilities afforded by Overwatch-like abilities.

Among these abilities are poison clouds, barriers, wall-piercing pulse arrows, and smoke bubbles. Valorant currently has 20 different agents to play. Success will depend mainly on shooting skills, accuracy, and tactics, with the abilities playing more of a supportive role.

Alongside these gameplay elements, Riot Games is also investing heavily in the back end with 128-tick servers, robust anti-cheat measures, and system requirements that allow a large selection of players to jump into Valorant and hit 30 FPS comfortably. The developer has also struck a deal with ISPs over the world to implement a service called Riot Direct, which opens up a direct conduit between players and Valorant’s service to ensure a ping of less than 35 ms for most players.

Best hardware for Valorant

With Riot Games laudable aim of bringing Valorant to as many players as possible, the system requirements for the tactical shooter are relatively tame for lower-specification machines, before jumping up a bit in terms of demand if you want to hit those high frame rates. But, overall, even the top-spec requirements aren’t excessive by modern standards.

The minimum system requirements are geared towards 30 fps at 720p, even on integrated graphics like Intel HD 3000. This is an impressive feat, and just shows how well Valorant will run on a multitude of different machines and hardware.

The recommended system requirements will net you a solid 60 fps at 1080p. They do require a dedicated GPU in the form of at least an NVIDIA Geforce GT 730, but this isn’t exactly asking for the moon given that the GPU was released over eight years ago and is available for under $100.

Finally, and rather unusually, Riot Games has provided system requirements for those that want to play Valorant at gloriously high frame rates. The high-end system requirements will guarantee 144 fps at 1080p with, we imagine, the settings on ultra. You’ll need at least an NVIDIA GTX 1050 Ti, but this again isn’t a huge ask given more powerful models have superseded the card.

Can I run Valorant?

To figure out whether your PC can run Valorant, you’ll initially need to know what components you have. We suggest paying close attention to the CPU, GPU, and RAM as these have the most significant impact on performance. If you need a helping hand checking your system spec, we’ve put together an easy to follow step-by-step guide, how to check computer specs

With your PC specifications in hand, compare them to the minimum, recommended, and high-end requirements for Valorant that we’ve listed further down for convenience. While the minimum will get the game running, we suggest aiming for the recommended requirements, if at all possible. The logic is that if you exceed them, you’re less likely to encounter performance issues when running the game.

We aren’t all that happy with how tedious it can be to determine whether a PC is equipped to run this or that game. In that spirit and to simplify the task for our readers, we are developing a bespoke utility to scan any given PC for its hardware components and return a detailed list of the components. The idea is to make cross-referencing game requirements easier. It’s still under wraps as of writing, but we’ll publish an update when it’s up and running.

What gaming PC do we recommend for Valorant?

To run Valorant, we recommend our $500 build as a good foundation. Although the game can hit 30 fps with integrated graphics, we much prefer to err on the side of caution and opt for a build with a dedicated GPU. 30 fps is fine, but PC gaming truly comes into its element at frame rates above 60.

We’ve cut costs by choosing AMD components that offer a better price to performance ratio than Intel or NVIDIA counterparts. Don’t let the lower price of this hardware fool you; they pack a significant punch.

The build features an AMD Ryzen 2600 processor, Radeon RX 570 with 4 GB of GDDR5, 16 GB of DDR4 3000 MHz, and a roomy 240 GB ADATA SSD. With these components, you’ll be venturing into high-end system requirements territory and can expect to hit the 144 fps promised by Riot Games.


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