How to get weapon skins in VALORANT

Weapon skins are one of the most important aspects of VALORANT to both its growing player base and the developers behind the game. For players, skins are a status symbol and a method for making the game even more visually appealing, while for Riot, they represent the game’s primary form of revenue.

VALORANT features dozens of weapon skins that can match almost any aesthetic a player is trying to follow or create. There are a few different ways to acquire skins, although most skins will cost you.

How to acquire VALORANT weapon skins

Store

The easiest way to get weapon skins is to purchase them from the in-game store. Players must buy VALORANT Points to purchase skins from the store and can buy points in increments of $5, $10, $20, $35, $50, or $100.

The store will display a featured bundle at the top of the store, which rotates out every few weeks. Players can get the most value by purchasing the entire bundle or can purchase individual skins or items from within a bundle.

Players also have a rotating store with skins that refreshes every 24 hours. These skins have typically appeared in previous bundles and only return for a short period. These cosmetics vary in price based on rarity. Make sure to buy any skins you’ve been looking for since there’s no guarantee they’ll appear in your store again soon. 

Night Market

The Night Market is a special version of the store that only appears for a limited time a few times per year. When the Night Market releases, players will have six heavily discounted skins to pick from.

Related: 10 best Vandal skins in VALORANT

For both the Store and the Night Market, players won’t see listings for skins they already own.

Battle pass and agent contracts

Each VALORANT Act features a battle pass with premium and free items for players to unlock. These include gun buddies, player cards, sprays, and weapon skins. You can unlock multiple weapon skins by completing the battle pass within the allotted time. The final tier for every battle pass is always a melee skin.

There are also a few skins that are available for free through in-game challenges. Each agent has a 10-tier contract that players can unlock with XP. The final reward for each contract is a skin for a secondary weapon like the Sheriff or Ghost. This is an excellent way to unlock multiple secondary skins without paying. 

VALORANT skins don’t affect the game at all and are strictly cosmetic items. Don’t feel pressured to purchase skins since they only customize your loadout and provide no advantage.