Everything you need to know about all the best budget-friendly but still good-looking skins in VALORANT.
VALORANT is one of the most popular FPS games of 2021 bringing in tactical gameplay and agents with unique abilities. But one of the most striking aspects that sets this game apart from the other tactical shooters is its wide assortment of spectacular weapon skins.
VALORANT has a total of 5 tiers of skins which are Select Edition, Deluxe Edition, Premium Edition, Exclusive Edition, and Ultra Edition skins. The lowest tier of skins only provides a re-color of the skin while the higher tiers have additional effects like different firing sounds, different gun bodies, animations, sounds, effects, color variants, and cool graphics at the last kill known as finishers.
Skins can realistically benefit gameplay to a degree by making the gun sounds and animations a bit less distracting like the Prime Vandal but usually, it is just Placebo and there are no actual advantages. Consequently, some skin’s sound effects and animations actually worsen gameplay according to some people by distracting them like the Singularity Phantom.
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How much does the Cheapest VALORANT skins cost
The skins in VALORANT come in 5 tiers as explained above and each tier has its own fixed price range. The Select Edition is the cheapest skin tier in VALORANT requiring just 875 VP each. With 1000 VP costing $10 USD (North America regional prices) you can get a Select Edition skin for 10 bucks.
In comparison, Deluxe Edition skins cost 1275 Vp or around $15, Premium Edition skins cost 1775 Vp or around $20, Exclusive Edition skins cost 2175 VP or under $25, and Ultra Edition skins cost 2475 VP or around $25. (You can only purchase either 1900 VP for $20 or 2525 VP for $25 so you’d have to purchase the latter amount for either Exclusive Edition skins or Ultra Edition skins.)
So you can see, the expenses of the higher-tier skins can rack up really fast. Although they do have additional audio and visual features which makes them worth the price. But for people who cant afford to break the bank for expensive skins, Select Edition skins can be a budget-friendly alternative.
- Read More: Best VALORANT Agents for Beginners in 2021
All the Select Edition Skins
We have compiled all the Select Edition skins that have been released in VALORANT so far. There has been a total of 6 bundles released and although you cannot purchase them as a bundle anymore, they will appear in the store in rotation for 875 VP for each weapon skin.
Luxe Collection
The Luxe Collection features a slightly modified weapon model in a blue theme and has been in the game during the Beta period and actually used to have Color variants back then. Red (Level 1), Blue (Level 2), Brown (Level 3), and White/Gold (Level 4) were the available variants. For the official release, Riot decided to put it in the Select category and made blue the only available variant.
Available Weapons:
- Operator
- Vandal
- Spectre
- Ghost
- Judge
- Melee
Galleria Collection
The Galleria collection features a recolor of the basic weapons in red/brown themes. They feature colored smokes, Flowers, and a Rabbit. Overall a pretty decent collection.
Available Weapons:
- Phantom
- Marshall
- Guardian
- Classic
- Bucky
Rush Collection
The Rush collection features a recolor of the default weapons in a racy white/Red/blue theme. They also feature the number 00 on the stocks of the gun which means there will be 00 missed shots when you’re using this skin. (Or it could also be 00 hit shots depending on the user)
Overall this is one of the better-looking Select Edition skin collections and almost all the skins except the Ares are worth buying depending on the gun you want.
Available Weapons:
- Judge
- Bulldog
- Phantom
- Frenzy
- Ares
Convex Collection
The Convex collection is another recolor with a cool futuristic white/green theme and matte black grips. This makes the guns pretty stylish and definitely worthy of purchasing if you like the simple white theme.
Available Weapons:
- Spectre
- Sheriff
- Operator
- Judge
- Bulldog
Prism II Collection
The Prism II bundle is another version of the Prism bundle but this time around they are in a metallic hot pink color instead of navy. We think this hot pink/matte black color combo looks pretty stylish and some skins from this bundle like the Sheriff and Vandal are worthy purchases.
Available Weapons:
- Vandal
- Shorty
- Bucky
- Sheriff
- Stinger
Sensation Collection
Do you like color? If you do, then the Sensation bundle is the one for you. Featuring a crazy pattern of vivid colors, the sensation bundle features some great-looking skins especially the Odin and Vandal.
Available Weapons:
- Vandal
- Frenzy
- Judge
- Stinger
- Odin
Smite Collection
With a cool-looking blue gradient with lightning, the Smite collection seems very promising. Bring out your thunderous plays with the Phantom and the Odin and smite your opponents with the Smite Collection.
Available Weapons:
- Odin
- Phantom
- Melee
- Classic
- Judge
Infantry Collection
The Infantry collection is the latest collection released by Riot as a Select Edition bundle. With so many higher-tier guns getting all the focus, it was very thoughtful of Riot for introducing such a unique collection at such a low price-point.
Fans of the WWII era of guns will feel right at home with these guns showcasing wooden stocks and bare-metal features. The ADS of these guns look like the classic guns of olden times and will be liked by fans of Battlefield I and Call of Duty World War 2. Also, this Infantry Guardian makes the signature pinging noise of the M1 Garand, a nice touch by the devs.
Available Weapons:
- Operator
- Ares
- Guardian
- Ghost
- Spectre
Best cheap VALORANT skins
There is not that much variety in the Select tier of skins like the upper tiers but that doesn’t mean there aren’t any skins worthwhile in this tier. There are a few gems hidden in this tier and considering the price, they definitely deliver bang for the buck. Here are the best cheap VALORANT skins:
Rush phantom: The cool graphics in the Rush phantom looks very aggressive and definitely the best Phantom Select Edition skin in Valorant in our opinion.
Smite Odin: The Thunderous might of the Smite Odin is definitely a force to be reckoned with and those who know a little about Norse Mythology or even Pop culture can easily recognize the connection between the skin’s theme and the weapon’s name.
Convex Operator: There aren’t many cheap operators in VALORANT that look this slick as the Convex Operator which is why it is regarded as one of the best in its class.
Sensation Vandal: The vivid looks of the Sensation Vandal make it an easy recommendation. Especially those of you who transitioned from CS:GO will be at home with this skin as it resembles the colorful skins of the Ak-47 from that game.
Infantry: It was very hard picking the single best skin from this collection so ended up recommending three. The Infantry Ares feels just like an MG and feels great to use. The Infantry Specter looks robust and players will feel at home running and gunning with this skin.
Lastly, the Infantry Operator just looks so different and unique from the rest of the Operator skins in the game it has to be recommended. Although personally, we think this skin would suit the Marshall more. Overall, you can’t really go wrong with any skin from this bundle making it our favorite.
VALORANT Select Edition Skin tier list
- S-Tier: Infantry Collection
- A-Tier: Rush Collection, Prism II Collection
- B-Tier: Sensation Collection, Smite Collection
- C-Tier: Galleria Collection, Convex Collection
- F-Tier: Luxe Collection
The Infantry collection is the most unique of them all, so no doubt it is in the S-tier. We love the aggressive style of the Rush Collection, especially the Phantom and Metallic hot Pink Vandal of the Prism II collection looks gorgeous. The Sensation and Smite skins are somewhat passable but we wouldn’t recommend any skins from the Galleria Collection or the Convex collections except for the Phantom and Operator respectively. As for the Luxe collection, just don’t bother.
How to buy Select Edition Skins?
To buy Select Edition Skins, you really need to be lucky as you do with every other skin in the game. You need to wait until you get any skin of your choice in the Daily market rotation. The skins cost 875 VP each so you need to have at least that amount of VP purchased in your account. Then it is simply a matter of clicking the “Purchase” option and you have your cool new skin!
Should you Buy a Select Edition Skin?
There are quite a few unique Select Edition Skins and if you really love a specific one you should definitely go for it. But to those of you who only want a colorful loadout on a budget, there is an even cheaper alternative compared to purchasing multiple Select Edition Skins.
For the majority of the players out there considering Select Edition skin because of its price, we would like to discourage it as there is a much better alternative to own multiple nice skins at a budget. To purchase a Select Edition skin you will need $10 USD worth of VP but for the same price, it is a far better option to purchase a Battle Pass instead.
With a Battle pass, you can get 12 different Weapon Skins along with a Melee Skin! With the quality of the battle pass skins improving every Act thanks to the hardworking devs, the battle pass skins are on par with and sometimes even better than the Select Edition skin. And the best part is you can get over a dozen of them for the price of just 1 Select Edition skin.
This is why purchasing the Battle pass is highly recommended over purchasing a Select Edition skin unless you really love a specific skin from the Select Collection.
