Valorant Economy Guide
Precise gunplay, strategy, utility lineups, setups, executes, etc. Those things play an essential role in a tactical FPS such as Valorant. What facilitates all those things is actually getting weapons and utility so you can play out the round.
A key aspect of Valorant is the economy. It dictates how you and your team can buy weapons and abilities to maximize your chances of winning the round and the game.
How do you earn money in Valorant?
Valorant money is called Creds. The amount of Creds you will get each round depends on your performance in the past round. If you win, you get more than if you lose. However, you get some extra money if you lose a couple of rounds in a row. Also, you get money for kills and Spike plants.
- Round Win - 3000 Creds
- Round Loss - 1900 Creds
- Two Round Losses in a row- 2400 Creds
- Three or more Round Losses in a row - 2900 Creds
- Kill - 200 Creds
- Spike Plant - 300 Creds
If you lose but survive the round, you save your weapon. However, you get only 1000 Creds, so it is usually worth dying to the spike(enemy team won't get money for it) unless you can save a more expensive weapon such as Operator, Vandal, or Phantom.
You start the game with 800 Creds, so you can only afford pistols in a "Pistol Round." The maximum amount of Creds you can accumulate is 9000, and you won't keep anything over that limit. It ensures your team won't get too ahead and encourages you to share the money with your team.
Managing the economy
When it comes to managing the economy in a Valorant match, you always want to plan ahead. Sometimes, you and your team won't have enough money to buy any weapons. In that case, it is best to save the money and have a competitive buy next round.
Also, it is of utmost importance to coordinate buys with your teammates. 99.9% of the time, if one player buys, you should all buy. Also, if you decide to save the Creds, everyone should follow as it gives you the most chances of winning the next round.
A couple of standardized types of buys cover most of the situations your team will face throughout the match.
- Full Buy - rifles or sniper with full armor and all abilities
- Partial/Half Buy - spend money on everything you can afford, but have enough to guarantee a Full Buy in the next round
- Force Buy - buy all you can afford without saving. Usually in the final round of the half or when you have to win a round. It can be used to catch the enemy off guard. For example, in the second round of the half, if you lose the Pistol Round
- Full Save/Save - Don't spend Creds at all, maybe upgrade a pistol, but make sure you have enough for Full Buy next round
- Bonus Round - if you win first two rounds of the half, keep the SMGs you carried on in the third round even though you have money to upgrade
You ideally want to full buy every round, but it is very unlikely to happen. That is why you must be strategic about it and make the most out of what you have.
All of the above applies to the whole team, not just one individual. Communicate to your team what you want to do and try to get on the same page.
Guns, remaining abilities, and armor you are able to save from the last round play a big part in the Valorant economy regardless if you won or lost the round.
In case your round goes south, and three of your allies die, leaving you in a 2v5 situation, maybe it is a good idea to save two Vandals and forfeit the round. Sometimes it is not worth putting next round buy in jeopardy just because you feel like you can win that 1v3 clutch. Unless you are Derke or Yay, then it's okay.
Stay tuned for more Valorant content and future guides on Gamercraft.