Valorant Ranked Rules: Decay, Placements & Party Limits

Rank decay, placement matches and party restrictions in Valorant Competitive. These are the current rules from Riot's competitive FAQ.

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Last reviewed against official sources November 8, 2026

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Rank decay in Valorant

Valorant has no rank decay: your rank and RR do not drop while you are away. Immortal and Radiant players need to keep playing to stay visible on the leaderboard.

  1. Valo Iron rank emblem
  2. Valo Bronze rank emblem
  3. Valo Silver rank emblem
  4. Valo Gold rank emblem
  5. Valo Platinum rank emblem
  6. Valo Diamond rank emblem
  7. Valo Ascendant rank emblem
  8. Valo Immortal rank emblem
  9. Valo Radiant rank emblem
No rank decay in Valorant
New season

Placements and the season reset

5placement games

A new account plays 5 placement matches; the highest rank you can place into is Ascendant 3.

Season reset

When an act or episode changes you replay placement games before your rank shows again, starting from your hidden MMR. Immortal and Radiant players lose most of their RR at the reset.

When does the Valorant season end? →
Duo and squad

Who can you queue with?

Duos and trios must fit inside a rank window. Lower down it is generous; from Platinum up a party can span at most one tier, matched division to division. Full five-stacks can queue at any ranks, with an RR penalty when the ranks are far apart.

  • Valo Iron rank emblem
    Valo Bronze rank emblem
    Iron · Bronze
    Anyone from Iron up to Silver
  • Valo Silver rank emblem
    Silver
    Anyone from Iron up to Gold
  • Valo Gold rank emblem
    Gold
    Anyone from Silver up to Platinum
  • Valo Platinum rank emblem
    Valo Diamond rank emblem
    Valo Ascendant rank emblem
    Platinum · Diamond · Ascendant
    Players within one tier of you, matched by division (Platinum 2 with up to Diamond 2)
  • Valo Immortal rank emblem
    Valo Radiant rank emblem
    Immortal · Radiant
    Solo, a duo, or a full five-stack only
Party sizes
Solo, duo, trio or a full five. Never four. Immortal and above: solo, duo or five only.
Exceptions
Five-stacks ignore the rank window but earn reduced RR when ranks are spread out or include Immortal or Radiant players.
Sources

Where these rules come from

Every rule on this page comes from the developer’s own patch notes, support pages or announcements, and is re-checked whenever a new season or patch lands. Rules we could not confirm there are left out rather than guessed.

How rare is each Valorant rank? →Every Valorant rank explained →

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Does Valorant have rank decay?

No. Your rank and RR stay where they are while you are away; you only replay placements when an act or episode changes.

Why can't I queue with my friend in Valorant?

Duos and trios must fit a rank window. From Platinum up, within one tier. A full five-stack can always queue together, at a reduced RR gain.

Can you play ranked as a four-stack?

No. Competitive allows solo, duo, trio or a full five.