VALORANT Agent Unlock: VP, Kingdom Credits, Free Path

One of the most common questions new players ask is whether agents are free, and the honest answer is: most of them are, if you are willing to play. Only five agents are available the second you make an account, but the other 25 are reachable with free currency or a timed event. This guide covers every unlock path so you are never stuck wondering why an agent is greyed out.

The full roster and roles are in our all agents list, and the VALORANT hub has the rest of the basics.

The five free starters

These five are unlocked at account level 0, before you have earned a single credit:

• Brimstone (Controller)
• Jett (Duelist)
• Phoenix (Duelist)
• Sage (Sentinel)
• Sova (Initiator)

They cover at least one agent in every role, which is enough to learn the game’s shape before you commit to a main.

Kingdom Credits: the slow free currency

Kingdom Credits (KC) are earned by playing any mode and spent only on agents and cosmetics — you cannot buy them with real money. Each agent costs 8,000 KC. Because KC only comes from playtime, this is the dependable free route, just not the fast one.

VALORANT Points: the paid shortcut

VALORANT Points (VP) are the premium currency you buy with real money. Each agent costs 1,000 VP. If you want an agent today and do not want to wait, this is the only paid option.

Free Agent Tokens

A Free Agent Token unlocks any single agent the moment you claim it. Riot hands these out through events and account milestones rather than selling them, so treat one as a shortcut you earn, not one you purchase. When a token is active, an agent that would normally cost 8,000 KC or 1,000 VP instead costs the token.

The 28-day recruitment event

When a new agent launches, Riot runs a 28-day Agent Recruitment Event. During that window you can unlock the new agent completely free by earning 200,000 XP, and crucially, Kingdom Credits and Free Agent Tokens are switched off for that agent — you must use the XP path. The current example is Hush, who arrived with Patch 13.09. If you start playing near a launch, the recruitment event is almost always cheaper than saving 8,000 KC.

Game Pass and practice modes

While an Xbox Game Pass subscription is active, every agent is unlocked. Separately, the Range and All Random One Site modes unlock the full roster for practice no matter your progress — useful for testing an agent before you commit KC or VP to it.

Which path should you take

• Just started: play the five free starters and grind KC. Do not spend VP on an agent you have not tested.
• New agent just dropped: grind the 200,000 XP recruitment event. It beats saving 8,000 KC on the clock.
• Want it now and will pay: 1,000 VP.
• On Game Pass: everything is already unlocked — save your KC for cosmetics.

VALORANT is free-to-play like THE FINALS, so the roster is designed to be earnable; the only thing VP really buys you is time.

Related guides

• All 30 VALORANT agents — every agent by role and how each unlocks.
• VALORANT game hub — roles, ranked, economy, and more.
• THE FINALS beginner’s guide — another free-to-play shooter where the roster is earnable rather than paywalled.