Best Valorant skins: Vandal, Phantom, Knife, & more

Valorant has had a lot of skins in the years since it came out, with all sorts of themes from serious standard military fare to seller Nerf guns and everything in between.

The sort of person who runs a Glitchpop Vandal is very different from the type who runs a Reaver, and the type of skin you prefer says a lot about you as a player. Or perhaps you just bought whichever one was on sale at the time, which is fair.

Either way, here are the best Valorant skins in for the most popular and meta-essential weapons. Sure, there are times when buying something like the Ares makes sense, but honestly you’ll be sticking to the same few staple weapons for most of your time in Valorant.

Best Vandal skins

Even if you’re the type who prefers the Phantom, it’s hard to deny that this AK-style weapon is an absolute classic. Nothing quite like getting that one-tap headshot.

Valorant Champions 2021 Vandal

• Valorant point cost: 2,675 (No longer available)

This skin will never be available in the store again, but it’s definitely the best Valorant Champions skin that’s ever been released. If you own this, consider yourself lucky.

Sentinels of Light Vandal

• Valorant point cost: 2,175

This Vandal was part of a crossover with a League of Legends event, and the clear look of this Vandal has made it a fan-favorite skin.

Glitchpop Vandal

Valorant point cost: 2,175

I’m a Glitchpop Vandal enjoyer personally. It’s hard to pick a top 3 Vandal skins considering just how many solid skins this gun has, but Glitchpop makes the cut for me.

Best Phantom Skins

The Phantom is a bit more of a spray-and-pray weapon than the Vandal, having a much tighter spread in exchange for shorter one-shot kill range on headshots.

Minima Phantom

Valorant point cost: 1,275

This is a very love-it-or-hate-it kind of skin. Either you’re a fan of the sharp edges and slick, minimalistic look of this skin, or you aren’t. Either way, this is arguably the best skin in the Minima line, and it nails the aesthetic they were going for.

Recon Phantom

Valorant point cost: 1,775

The image of this skin doesn’t show the full breadth of just how cool this thing is. The recon Phantom not only has some color variations, but it also gets random tactical attachments like a foregrip or flashlight.

BlastX Phantom

Valorant point cost: 2,175

In the realm of joke-y skins, this is one of the best. It’s very well executed when it comes to bringing a sort of toy Nerf gun to life, with the bullets even creating small suction cup darts on the wall when they land. If you like goofy skins, this is a great choice.

Best Classic Skins

The classic is a surprisingly reliable sidearm, and you’ll always have one unless you decide to buy a different pistol. As such, you’ll want to make sure it looks good when you pull it out.

Prism III Classic

Valorant point cost: Available through FORMATION: Act 2 Battle Pass

There’s something to be said for a nice, simple skin that’s sleek and classy. The Prism III Classic is just that. If you like the look of the default pistol but want a bit more panache, this is the choice for you.

Goldwing Classic

Valorant point cost: Available through REFLECTION: Act 3 Battle Pass

This classic skin has some nice, clean trim along with elegant red accents. Hard to go wrong on this one.

Cryostasis Classic

Valorant point cost: 1,775

This skin is adaptive, giving the player a degree of control over how the skin looks. It’s such a departure from the way this weapon normally looks, and that’s a good thing in this case.

Best Spectre Skins

The Spectre is Valorant’s most popular budget option, offering a great SMG to spray with that does decent damage.

Radiant Crisis 001 Spectre

Valorant point cost: 1,775

Out of all the cell-shaded, comic book-esque skins in Valorant, this is definitely the best-looking one. The Spectre’s angular look really makes this art style shine and make this weapon look worn-in. It’s an underrated choice for the gun.

Prime Spectre

Valorant point cost: 1775

A skin carried by its great color palette and small details. The royal purple grips, golden trim, and bright silver detailing make this one of Valorant’s classiest skins.

Singularity Spectre

Valorant point cost: 2,175

If you’re looking for something a little more unconventional, the Singularity Spectre may be the skin for you. Its bizarre fractal structure combined with striking purple lighting and great animations make this skin an easy sell for the budget SMG.

Best Operator skins in Valorant

The Operator is Valorant’s signature one-shot sniper rifle, a staple of any tactical shooter. With it being one of the most iconic weapons in the game, you’ll want to get a skin that properly conveys just how much power it has.

Infantry Operator

Valorant point cost: 875

A hugely underrated pick on this weapon. It’s reminiscent of early 19th-century rifles like the Mosin Nagant and Kar98k, and, for those of us who grew up playing games like Medal of Honor and old-school Call of Duty games, this Operator skin is a treat.

Origin Operator

Valorant point cost: 1,775

The Origin skin line can be hit or miss, but this is one of the coolest skins in Valorant. It really fits with the bizarre construction of these Origin skins, and has some really incredible reload and inspect animations to boot.

Ion Operator

Valorant point cost: 1,775

What more is there to say? The Ion Operator is a classic. It’s one of the first skins that was ever released for the Operator, and many players swear by it to this day. Myself included.

Knife Skins

Knives aren’t typically used much in combat, but they’re a bit of a status symbol. Seeing as you run faster with your blade out, you’ll be running around with a melee weapon pretty often. Your choice of knife skin is akin to a status symbol; you don’t wanna be caught dead with a lame knife.

Kuronami no Yaiba

Valorant point cost: 5,350

These chained-together blades are just so fun to mess with and twirl around. Sure, getting a butterfly knife and spamming inspect is fun and all, but having actual blades you can spin is just too good to pass on.

Ruyi Staff

Valorant point cost: 4,350

Not quite a knife, but still really damn cool. If you’re the sort of person who’d rather spin around a big staff than wield a blade, this is the melee weapon for you.

Ignite Fan

Valorant point cost: Timed exclusive for Valorant’s launch in China (No longer available)

It’s not overly clear how this fan is supposed to cut things, but it looks really, really cool. Any fan blade is a great choice, but the Ignite one in particular is fantastic.

If you’re interested in checking out Valorant for yourself why not check it out using PC Game Pass, you’ll get a load of exclusive benefits including access to all agents and a 20% XP boost Or if you want to know how we’re celebrating the rest of PC Gaming week be sure to check out the full schedule here.