As VALORANT’s player base grows and the game continues to develop, many players might wonder which agents are the most popular in the ranked ladder. While we know Jett has dominated the VCT since the beginning and that playing without a Viper on Breeze is a sin, many might wonder what agents the players sitting at home are locking in.
So here is a list, from most to least picked, of all of the agents in VALORANT.
The data in this article is from Valorbuff, a resource page that uses data from every rank and every mode. The pick rate data is presented differently from some other data-tracking sites. The percentage below represents the percentage of competitive games or teams where that agent is present, across all ranks.
| Rank | Agent | Pick Rate |
| One) | Reyna | 57.1 percent |
| Two) | Jett | 47.6 percent |
| Three) | Sage | 43.1 percent |
| Four) | Omen | 41.4 percent |
| Five) | Raze | 37.1 percent |
| Six) | Skye | 29.9 percent |
| Seven) | Brimstone | 28.0 percent |
| Eight) | Killjoy | 27.8 percent |
| Nine) | Sova | 19.5 percent |
| 10) | Chamber | 19.4 percent |
| 11) | Phoeix | 18.0 percent |
| 12) | Cypher | 17.9 percent |
| 13) | Breach | 14.7 percent |
| 14) | Viper | 12.9 percent |
| 15) | Fade | 12.5 percent |
| 16) | KAY/O | 11.4 percent |
| 17) | Neon | 10.2 percent |
| 18) | Yoru | 10.1 percent |
| 19) | Astra | 8.0 percent |
| 20) | Harbor | Zero percent |
1) Reyna – 57.1 percent pick rate
Since her release, Reyna has been considered one of the best VALORANT agents to breeze through the ranked ladder with. A good Reyna player can make a huge difference for any team, especially in lower ranks. Reyna players are easily able to get team or match MVP if they hit their shots and take smart duels.
This is the reason why many players choose to lock Reyna because playing her well means you’ll make a big impact and therefore have the potential to gain large amounts of RR to rank up. Others think Reyna’s simple kit makes her utility easy to use and understand.
Despite her high pick rate across every VALORANT rank, Reyna is not a popular pick in pro play, where duelist players prefer Jett. During the first two weeks of the 2023 VCT season, Reyna was actually one of two who didn’t get picked at all.
Reyna’s dominance on the ranked ladder has actually also fallen so far in 2023. In Aug. 2022, Reyna had a nearly 80 percent pick rate.
2) Jett – 47.6 percent pick rate
For a long time, Jett was a very overpowered agent who wouldn’t get punished for playing extremely aggressively. She received several rounds of nerfs in late 2021, and the developers landed on today’s version of Jett, where the main change is the mechanic of her dash. By having to anticipate the timing of her dash ability, Jett is less spontaneous but still ranks high in terms of overall pick rate.
The reason why Jett continues to have such a high pick rate is similar to the reason Reyna is also high on this list—Jett makes a lot of impact with her aggressive style, and more impact for your team generally means more RR.
Unlike Reyna, Jett is a staple VALORANT agent in both ranked and pro play, where she was the top duelist played in the 2022 VCT. Her pick rate continues to be high in the 2023 leagues.
3) Sage – 43.1 percent pick rate
Sage is another staple agent in the ranked ladder. The general consensus is you can never go wrong by including a Sage in your VALORANT team composition, and for players looking to take a supportive role she is probably the easiest sentinel to play. She is a popular choice for first-time players. Her abilities are also unique, with no other agent having such solid wall or resurrection abilities.
With Harbor’s introduction, the Sage Wall isn’t as strong as it used to be. Professional teams are vying for a multi-walled, utility-based combination that agents like Viper and Harbor can provide. Sage, however, is lacking in utility, besides her wall and slow orbs.
Whether the ranked community agrees is something that’ll become more apparent. But for now, she’s still a strong pick for matchmaking.
4) Omen – 41.4 percent pick rate
Omen is a classic agent for any VALORANT fan. Many players who want to play a controller agent and provide smokes for their team will start with Omen first because his smokes are easy to place and his teleport gives him a lot of mobility. His flash is also very powerful, and his utility allows him to make creative plays that can result in aces and flashy clutched rounds.
Other controller agents have come in and out of the meta, but for the last year, Omen has been a mainstay in ranked play as the most selected controller. Though, as we will soon see, a certain iPad-wielding soldier is catching up.
5) Raze – 37.1 percent pick rate
Raze is another duelist that is very popular in ranked, and she has benefitted from a meta so far in 2023 that favors close-ranged engagements. Her main stomping ground used to be on Bind, but her pick rate actually rose when Bind came out of the map pool just due to the meta change.
Many players in ranked play like using Raze because of the chaos she can cause with her grenades and satchels. If you have very strong utility mechanics, you can seriously blow up the lobby (literally) on Raze.
With three duelists in the top four most-picked agents, it’s clear most players prefer the role to any of the others in the game. While you’ll never see a composition with three duelists on the professional stage, it’s far from uncommon in a ranked lobby.
While her Boombot isn’t as powerful as it once was, it’s still an effective means of clearing closer angles before your squad pushes.
6) Skye – 29.9 percent pick rate
Similar to Jett, Skye used to be one of the most overpowered agents. With a wide range of abilities that includes flashes, stuns, and healing, this initiator was a powerful choice expected to make an impact. After she received a lot of nerfs in 2021, she became less popular as an initiator and now comes in third in her class. In the right hands, Skye is still a very strong agent, but a lot of people in lower ranks don’t have the skill to use her effectively.
Her flashes may have a draw-time effectiveness attached, but if you hold the flash for longer, you can blind opponents for extended periods of time. She’s climbing the ranks in normal play, and she’s topping the professional pick rates, according to the VCT: Masters Tokyo 2023.
7) Brimstone – 28.0 percent pick rate
Brimstone is a controller that has recently come back into fashion. He has always had a decently high pick rate both in ranked and professional play, but in the past, he has seemed a bit lackluster compared to other controller agents. Lately, it seems like more people are going back to the classic VALORANT protocol leader to control their map sites.
Brimstone’s smokes and utility favor a more relaxed and defensive playstyle, which many players might not enjoy, seeing as duelist is the most popular role. He is still useful on most maps in the game and when played correctly can turn a game around.
He’s an incredibly solid agent with great utility. There’s nothing really wrong with Brim, so why not use him?
8) Killjoy – 27.8 percent pick rate
In 2022, Killjoy majorly fell out of fashion in favor of other sentinels, or even a Viper to watch the flank. The main issue with Killjoy is her utility is ranged, meaning her turret and bot won’t be active if they are far away from her. This seriously hinders her kit and made other agents without this restriction a better choice in the previous meta.
But with the addition of Lotus, another three-site map, and the general trend of a meta that sees agents taking closer engagements with each other, Killjoy has suddenly shot way up in the ranks. Her utility is just so strong for watching rotations and catching enemies in places your team might never expect.
This rise of Killjoy on the VALORANT ranked ladder has been accompanied by her also coming back into fashion in professional play. For instance, Killjoy was picked 59 percent of the time in the VCT: Masters Tokyo 2023.
Odds are, we’ll see the ranked scene adjust to match the pros soon enough.
9) Sova – 19.5 percent pick rate
Sova is the most-played initiator in VALORANT, despite being the only initiator to not have any blinds or flashes. In general, initiator is the least popular agent class, since many initiators have complicated kits with a bit of a learning curve. Sova suffers less from this problem.
The community has also been making lineups for both Sova’s recon and shock darts since the game came out, making him a decently popular character. Having a Sova on your team is really helpful because he is one of the best agents to use to get information. Though Sova certainly excels on some maps more than others, he likely won’t ever completely go out of fashion.
10) Chamber – 19.4 percent pick rate
Chamber experienced one of the greatest falls from dominance of any character in recent competitive game. He was once the go-to pick for any professional player who had strong aim and would tear up a ranked lobby in the same way. Unfortunately, nerf after nerf continued to hit the agent until he became a shadow of himself. He has, however, risen slightly from his lowest point of a sub-20 percent pick rate.
His 2023 buffs made him a more viable pick, however, it’s not enough to have the teleporting agent climbing his way back to the top spot.
11) Phoenix – 18.0 percent pick rate
Phoenix’s pick rate has greatly benefitted from a round of buffs he received towards the latter half of 2022. Though he won’t be reaching the same heights as Reyna or Jett any time soon, the agent is in a much better place than he was a year or two ago, when choosing him was basically a meme.
12) Cypher – 17.9 percent pick rate
Fans had been calling for Cypher buffs for months, and once he finally got them, his pick rate went right up. Cypher has even seen an increase placing him on par with Sova in the pro scene. Cypher jumped up to an 18 percent pick rate in Masters Tokyo 2023, and it seems the community is slowly catching on.
13) Breach – 14.7 percent pick rate
Though Breach saw a heightened pick rate once players figured out his usefulness on Fracture, he still remains the least-picked initiator in ranked. While his flashes are useful, the map design affects his kit a lot, which is why he is seen almost always on Fracture but much less on other, more open maps.
He’s undeniably packed to the brim with utility, making him an integral pick in your games. He’ll be able to clear angles for duelists and is even a solid post-plant agent.
14) Viper – 12.9 percent pick rate
Viper usually maintains a consistent pick rate because she is considered a staple character on some maps, especially in higher ranks. Her utility makes her useful as a controller and also as a lurker who can watch flanks.
June 2023 nerfs to Viper’s kit made her pick rate drop significantly. Her fuel regeneration was an important part of her arsenal, and now it’s been taken down a peg, it’s impacted her stats. However, players who enjoy a lurking but still active playstyle often tend to lock in Viper.
15) Fade – 12.5 percent pick rate
Fade is another strong choice as an initiator, and her blinds are easy to use since they follow a path straight to an enemy. There is no risk of blinding your teammates, making her a low-risk choice, especially for people branching into the initiator role for the first time.
She’s dropped off in the professional scene. While this may be a problem for Fade mains, other agents like Breach.
16) KAY/O – 11.4 percent pick rate
Another initiator, KAY/O is an agent that tends to have a higher pick rate in higher ranks. His utility, while powerful, can be difficult to use effectively at first, and he is an agent that definitely takes practice. In pro play, coordinating around a KAY/O is a popular and effective strategy that is harder to execute in ranked.
17) Neon – 10.2 percent pick rate
Though Neon was introduced as an agent that could rival the speed and explosiveness of Jett, her pick rate has never been as high. Many players can agree that she is very fun to play, but that doesn’t necessarily make her the most effective or intuitive agent to pick up.
18) Yoru – 10.1 percent pick rate
Yoru used to have an even lower pick rate before his kit was reworked in early 2022. Long considered the worst duelist in the game, his rework has helped him become less of a laughable pick, but he still struggles to remain relevant.
19) Astra – 8.0 percent pick rate
Astra is one of VALORANT’s least picked agents, but she’s not quite the worst. This is likely due to a combination of the nerfs that saw her star count decrease and star cost increase, but Astra is also generally seen as an intimidating agent for new players since her utility requires a lot of forethought and coordination to be useful.
20) Harbor – 0.0 percent pick rate
This doesn’t mean that Harbor has never been picked in a single competitive VALORANT game in the last month, but he’s been so underused that his pick rate registers as a flat zero on Valorbuff. Harbor needs help; all his water wall abilities make it easy for opposing teams to know where he is, and there’s no disruptive or offensive ability in his entire kit.
Valorbuff is yet to update its data from the last three months to include Gekko or Deadlock, VALORANT’s newest agents.
