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7 Best VPNs for Valorant (Reduce Ping) in 2024

Last updated: January 17, 2022

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If you are a fan of Valorant, you might be upset to discover that you will not be able to play Valorant from some locations around the globe.

Don’t worry too much, though! Using one of the best VPNs for Valorant, you will be able to access Valorant from anywhere in the world.

Valorant is a free 5v5 FPS game (developed by Riot Games) that is a favorite among online gaming aficionados.

Unfortunately, some countries have blocked this online game from its residents, and others have blocked the VoIP chat feature, which makes playing Valorant pretty tricky.

Using reliable VPN software, users can hide their IP addresses in a blocked location from Valorant servers.

Keep reading to find out how to unblock Valorant using a VPN service from locations in which this game is restricted.

In a Hurry? Here Are 7 Best VPNs for Valorant

Why You Need a VPN for Valorant

There are actually a few reasons why it is necessary to have a VPN for playing Valorant.

First, using a VPN service will ensure that you can play Valorant from any region in the world. Since Riot Games bans you from changing the region of your Riot account, connecting to a server in the same location each time you play Valorant will let you roam the world and still stay connected to this account region.

A Valorant VPN is also an important way to protect you while gaming, keeping you safe from malware, hackers, or any potential DDOS attack.

Using a VPN service for Valorant is also a good way to ensure that you are given unrestricted access to the Valorant server list and to the game’s full range of features. And while it is known that a VPN can increase ping, in many instances a VPN can actually lower your lag and ping, giving you a more reliable, stable connection.

At the same time, it is crucial to keep in mind that not all VPN services will offer you these benefits. We have reviewed dozens of VPNs on the market to find the ones that will actually work at delivering these useful benefits when playing Valorant. Keep on reading to find out how to choose a Valorant VPN that will deliver the most bang for your buck.

How to Choose the Right VPN for Valorant

When you are looking to play Valorant, it is important that you use a VPN that has proven to have the necessary features to make your gaming successful.

A good VPN for Valorant should have a large network of servers spread around the world so that you can always find one that is close enough to your actual location to keep your ping low.

Your VPN servers should also be proven fast enough to give you a smooth experience when you play Valorant.

Anytime you are looking to play games online, it is important to make sure your VPN has adequate security features, like the highest level of encryption, a no-logs policy, and Kill Switch.

7 Best VPNs for Valorant

If you are looking for the best VPNs for Valorant, keep reading! We have tested out over 3 dozen VPNs and have narrowed it down to the best VPN services that will help give you unrestricted access to Valorant from your physical location:

Devices compatible with ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is a premium VPN that is our choice for the best VPN for Valorant.

ExpressVPN has more than 3,000 lightningfast servers in more than 94 countries, so you can always find fast, reliable connections locally from any country in the world.

ExpressVPN encrypts your Internet traffic with militarygrade encryption, and it offers a nologs policy, an automatic Kill Switch, DNS leak protection, and split tunneling, which allows you to send some of your traffic through your encrypted VPN tunnel while sending other web traffic through your regular local servers.

You can download this VPN app or browser extension on all major devices and platforms, including Mac, Windows, Android, iOS, and more; and VPN users can connect as many as 5 devices to a single user account, so you can be playing Valorant on your Android while your family members use their VPN connection to connect to other geo-blocked services, like BBC iPlayer, Hulu, or Netflix.

While the one drawback of ExpressVPN is that it is more pricey than its competitors, we think that it is well worth the extra few dollars per month to ensure that you have the fastest speeds and reliability for your gaming. If you are not sure if you agree, you can test it for yourself with ExpressVPN’s 30day moneyback guarantee, and cancel for a full refund if you are not satisfied.

Pros:

  • 30-day money-back guarantee
  • Network Kill Switch
  • Secure VPN protocols
  • Based in privacy-friendly British Virgin Islands
  • Unlimited bandwidth
  • 5 simultaneous connections
  • High-speed servers

Cons:

  • More expensive

2. NordVPN

Devices compatible with NordVPN

NordVPN is another fast and reliable VPN service, with over 5,200 servers in 60 countries worldwide.

Nord offers advanced security features, like militarygrade encryption, a nologs policy, Open VPN Internet protocol, a Double VPN feature, split tunneling, and a Kill Switch to kill your Internet in the event that your secure encrypted connection cuts out unexpectedly.

With NordVPN, you can also easily unblock popular streaming services like Hulu, BBC iPlayer, Amazon Prime Video, Disney Plus, and over 10 Netflix libraries, and you can also access Nord’s Smart DNS option.

This VPN can be connected to your Mac, Android, iOS, Linux, Windows, and more devices, but if you want to use the split tunneling feature, this is only available on your browser extensions.

As with ExpressVPN, you can test this service for up to 30 days with its moneyback guarantee before having to be locked into a long-term plan. If you want to cancel your plan, you can easily chat with one of the livechat customer service representatives who are available 24/7, and your plan will be canceled in minutes without having to even pick up a phone.

Pros:

  • Based in privacy-friendly Panama
  • 24/7 live-chat support
  • 6 simultaneous connections
  • Kill Switch
  • No data caps
  • Unlimited bandwidth

Cons:

  • No Split tunneling on mobile apps

Devices compatible with Surfshark

Surfshark is one of the cheapest VPNs, offering access to over 3,200 VPN servers in more than 65 countries around the world.

This VPN service also offers top online privacy and security features, like a nologs policy, split tunneling, and AES 256bit encryption to encrypt your personal data.

With Surfshark, you can also unblock popular streaming services, like Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and more, and you can connect as many devices as you want to a single user account, which is something that ExpressVPN and NordVPN don’t offer.

Pros:

  • 24/7 live-chat support
  • 30-day money-back guarantee
  • Unlimited simultaneous connections
  • Based in privacy-friendly British Virgin Islands
  • Top privacy and security

Cons:

  • Some slower servers

Devices compatible with CyberGhost

CyberGhost is another great, affordable VPN for Valorant, with over 7,500 VPN servers in more than 90 counties, so you can be certain there will be a CyberGhost server in any country you are trying to access, as well as one near your actual location.

CyberGhost has great online protection with AES 256bit encryption, an automatic Kill Switch, and a strict nologs policy.

You can connect CyberGhost to your Mac, Linux, Windows, iOS, or Android, Apple TV, Smart TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, router, or more, and you can connect up to 7 devices simultaneously to a single user account.

One of the most appealing features of CyberGhost is its 45day moneyback guarantee, so users can test this VPN for a month and a half with zero strings attached and then cancel for a full refund.

Pros:

  • 45-day money-back guarantee
  • 7 simultaneous devices
  • 24/7 live chat support
  • AES 256-bit encryption

Cons:

  • Slower speeds

Devices compatible with UltraVPN

UltraVPN is a VPN that is not as remarkable in size but is pretty impressive in speed.

This VPN has just over 100 servers in about 50 countries, but these servers span all of the continents, so there should always be one close enough to your location so that you can be gaming without much decrease in speed or increase in ping.

UltraVPN offers top security and privacy features like AES 256bit encryption, a nologging policy, and a Kill Switch (firewall) that will cut your Internet activity if your encrypted connection cuts out, protecting your actual IP address from being revealed. If you are looking for a VPN that offers split tunneling, however, this is not the one for you.

Aside from its small server size, another drawback of UltraVPN is the fact that it is based in the United States. While it does have a no-logs policy, just the fact that it is located in a country that is a member of the 5/9/14 Eyes information-sharing alliance will turn off some prospective users, and, for this reason, it might be best to simply go with one of the VPNs above it on our list.

Pros:

  • 30-day money-back guarantee
  • Live-chat support
  • AES 256-bit encryption
  • Servers on all continents

Cons:

  • No split tunneling
  • Based in the USA
  • Small server size

Devices compatible with PIA

Private Internet Access (PIA) is another affordable VPN that has a huge network of over 29,000 servers from which to choose, spread across 78 countries.

Using PIA, you will find apps for every major operating system, so you can connect your computer, devices, smartphones, and even routers, using up to 10 devices simultaneously to a single account.

In terms of privacy and security, PIA offers OpenVPN protocol, AES 256-bit encryption, a Kill Switch, and perfect forward secrecy.

When we tested it , we found that PIA speeds were pretty decent on servers nearby, allowing us to access gaming and streaming sites with minimal effect on our speeds. When we accessed our gaming and streaming on servers further away, our speeds did suffer quite a bit, though. This means that it is really only a good VPN for Valorant if you are able to find a server that is a shorter distance from your actual location.

You can test PIA for up to 30 days with its 30day moneyback guarantee and reach out to PIA customer support for a refund if you choose. The problem with this, however, is that live chat support for PIA was pretty inconsistently available. When we reached out to them the first time, no one answered, and all we got was a prompt after a while to open an online ticket for support. When we were finally able to reach online chat, they were useful and informative, but we definitely need to bump PIA down on our list for this lack of reliability.

Pros:

  • 30-day money-back guarantee
  • No-logs policy
  • Good security
  • Live-chat support
  • 10 simultaneous devices

Cons:

  • Based in privacy-unfriendly USA
  • Live chat is not reliable
  • Slower speeds on long-distance servers

IPVanish

IPVanish is another VPN that will work well for Valorant, with over 2,000 servers spread across more than 45 countries, offering access to more than 40,000 IP addresses.

As far as security and privacy features, IPVanish is pretty impressive, with a nologs policy, a Kill Switch, and AES 256bit encryption. It is, however, based in the privacy-unfriendly US, so if you want to use a VPN outside the information-sharing alliance, this is not the right one for you.

While IPVanish has good speeds and can unblock streaming services like Netflix on most servers, it cannot get past many of the VPN blocks that you would hope to bypass, so we would recommend going with one of the VPNs higher on our list if your priority is streaming geo-restricted content.

You can connect IPVanish to your Android, Mac, iOS, Windows, Linux, Amazon Fire TV, Chromebook, router, and more, and you can use it on an unlimited number of devices simultaneously.

Pros:

  • 30-day money-back guarantee
  • Unlimited simultaneous devices
  • 24/7 live-chat support
  • Good speeds

Cons:

  • In privacy-unfriendly US
  • Can’t unblock major streaming sites

Can I Use a Free VPN to Play Valorant?

Using a free VPN sounds tempting, but we would recommend passing on the temptation.

While free VPNs may seem like the answer to saving a few bucks per month, in reality, they rarely meet the criteria to help you access the services you are trying to unblock in the first place.

For starters, free VPNs tend to have very small server networks with very few servers from which to choose. This leads to crowding on the servers they do have, and slower speeds for gamers. On top of this, if you want to make sure to minimize any speed loss by connecting to a server that is local, you may not have this option if you are using a free service with such a limited array of VPNs and VPN locations from which to choose.

So, if you are aiming to play your games with lower ping and faster speeds, a free VPN may serve the exact opposite purpose.

Free VPNs also very rarely offer the privacy and security features needed in order to actually protect users when gaming. It is important to use a VPN that will help prevent DDoS attacks, hackers, and malware from causing you harm, and these free alternatives may actually hand your information over to these parties that threaten your safety.

Instead of offering a no-logs policy, many free VPN services actually have been known to sell user data to third parties to make a profit. Since free VPN services do not make money from a subscription fee, this is what many have to do to make a dime.

The best option for playing Valorant safely and effectively is to use a premium VPN service, like ExpressVPN, and test it for a month with a 30day moneyback guarantee (or even a 45-day guarantee for CyberGhost!). This will give you access to an excellent VPN with great speed and the best privacy and security assurances for what is, essentially, a free month-long trial!

How to Unblock Valorant Regions 

To play Valorant from a different region, follow these steps:

  1. Choose a reliable Valorant VPN and subscribe with your account details.
  2. Download your VPN software to your device from your VPN provider’s official site.
  3. Sign in to your VPN app with your new credentials.
  4. Connect to one of the VPN server locations in a different region where VoIP and/or Valorant are permitted.
  5. When you are connected to your VPN server, go to the Riot games site and add new account details to create a riot account/Valorant account (registered in that region).

Note: Any time you are playing Valorant, you will need to be connected to your VPN server in the country in which you registered your new account.

While connecting to a VPN server will help give you access to Valorant from all over the world, there are a few drawbacks. The main drawback is that connecting to a VPN for Valorant will increase your ping, especially if your Valorant server is a long distance from your VPN server. Since high ping is a killer when it comes to online gaming, you will want to find a way to minimize this risk so you can play online successfully.

To minimize this ping increase, connect to a VPN for Valorant that has servers close to your actual location, and one that has a reputation for fast speeds, like ExpressVPN. ExpressVPN not only is the fastest VPN, but it has servers in 94 countries, so there will always be a VPN server close to your actual Riot servers.

Can I Lower My Ping in Valorant Using a VPN Service?

Well, a minute ago we mentioned how connecting to a VPN server can slow your gaming and increase your ping, but are there instances in which a VPN can actually lower your ping?

When you use a VPN, your actual location is hidden when your traffic is sent through your encrypted VPN tunnel. Because of this extra step of encryption that your traffic takes, it is natural to see a decrease in speed and an increase in ping.

At the same time, this very VPN connection that slows your connection can also help improve your speed and reduce your ping. If you connect to a VPN server that is close to your Valorant server in proximity, your VPN connection can actually help give you more reliable speeds and connectivity.

Because the wrong VPN can cause your speed to suffer, it is especially important to choose a VPN service that offers you access to a range of servers in locations all around the globe. By using a VPN like ExpressVPN that offers servers in over 94 countries, you are much more likely to have the option to find a fast server nearby.

FAQs

What VPN works with Valorant?
Since it is important to choose a VPN that has a VPN with fast speeds and with a broad enough server network, not all VPNs on the market will work well for Valorant. If you are looking for the best VPN for Valorant, while any of the VPN services listed above will work, our top choice is ExpressVPN. ExpressVPN not only has the fastest speeds, but also the broadest network of servers.
Is it legal to use a VPN with Valorant?
Yes. It is perfectly legal to use a VPN for Valorant. (Keep in mind, though, that performing any activities with a VPN that are illegal without your VPN does not make these activities kosher.)
How do I bypass Valorant region lock?
To unblock Valorant in a blocked location, all you need to do is use one of the Valorant VPN services listed above. Using a VPN for Valorant, you can create and use multiple accounts for your gaming in different regions.

When you connect to a VPN server in the location you choose, your IP address and the country you are actually in are concealed and your traffic is encrypted. Then, all that is visible to Valorant will be your VPN server location in the region that you are trying to access.

What is the best VPN server for Valorant?
The best VPN server to connect to for Valorant is dependent on your actual location since the best VPN for Valorant should be one close enough to your region to ensure that your ping does not increase too much.

The best server choice should also be one that is not too crowded with users since your speed will suffer if the server is too heavily used. This is why we highly recommend passing on any free VPN services, where crowding is typically more of a concern.

Best VPN for Valorant: Conclusion

If you want to use the best VPN for Valorant, our top recommendation is ExpressVPN.

Based on our tests, ExpressVPN came out on top as the fastest VPN, whether we were using it for gaming, streaming, or torrenting.

On top of this, with servers in 94 countries around the world, this VPN provider gives users the best chance of finding a server that is close in proximity to its actual location, reducing the chances of high ping when gaming.

ExpressVPN, and all of the VPNs on our list above, offer great privacy and security features, with AES 256-bit encryption and no-logs policies to ensure your private activity is kept private at all times.

Since all of these VPNs also offer users a money-back guarantee, you can check any of them out for yourself with no strings attached.

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