Radianite Points & skin upgrades

You need Radianite Points (RP) in Valorant for skin upgrades – that is, to upgrade your skins. What Radianite exactly is, how you get it and what these skin upgrades have to do with the value of your skins is explained simply here.

What are Radianite Points?

Radianite Points are a separate currency with which you can upgrade skins you already own. Many higher-tier skins have several levels: only through Radianite do you unlock additional variants (colors), effects, sounds and finishers.

Radianite Points and Valorant Points – the difference

Both are currencies in Valorant, but they serve different purposes. With Valorant Points you buy the skin in the first place – in the shop, the Night Market or as part of a bundle. Radianite Points only come into play afterwards: they unlock the further upgrade levels of a skin you already own. In short: VP gets you the skin, Radianite makes more of it. The two currencies can't be freely converted into each other – so you consciously decide whether to invest in new skins or in upgrading existing ones.

Radianite Points in detail – the workshop for your skins

Radianite Points, RP for short, are the second fixed currency in the game alongside Valorant Points. While you buy actual skins with VP, Radianite is something like the tool in the workshop: it changes nothing about your account and can't be exchanged back into cash, but always sits in a specific skin you already own. The name alludes to the glowing material from the game world that stands there for energy and special powers – in the menu you recognize it by the small orange crystal symbol next to your VP counter.

The difference in the role of both currencies is important. VP is your entry ticket: without it no new skin comes into your locker. Radianite, on the other hand, is pure refinement. It turns a purchased skin into the best version of itself by unlocking additional levels, colors and effects. You can play a skin entirely without Radianite – it then looks like in the cheapest preview. Only the invested Radianite brings out the animations, sounds and finishers that many lines are known for in the first place.

This is exactly why many new players confuse the two currencies. A typical disappointment: you buy an expensive set, equip the weapon and are surprised that the spectacular muzzle flash from the trailer is missing. The reason is almost always that the skin is still on the base level and the Radianite for the higher levels hasn't been invested yet. Whoever has understood this separation plans their purchases much more relaxed.

How you collect Radianite – Battle Pass and buying with VP

There are essentially two ways to get Radianite: the patient one and the fast one. Both reach the goal but differ significantly in what they cost you.

The Battle Pass as the main source

By far the most economical source is the Battle Pass. Over the course of an act you unlock various rewards level by level, and a fixed share of them is Radianite. Whoever plays the pass through normally over the weeks accumulates enough Radianite on the side to upgrade several skins – without spending an extra cent, provided you play anyway. This partly applies even to the free track of the pass (so far 30 RP per act, 60 RP in the Act 6 pass per the official preview), but the stronger Radianite rewards lie in the premium variant (100 RP plus 30 RP in the epilogue tiers).

The Battle Pass is therefore the base supply for most players. A good rhythm is to put the Radianite collected over an act specifically into the one or two skins you play most at the end. That way you have a visible result at the end of each season instead of distributing the points aimlessly.

Topping up with Valorant Points

If the collected Radianite isn't enough, you can top it up directly with Valorant Points. Riot offers tiered packs for this: smaller amounts cost proportionally a bit more, larger packs are a touch cheaper per point. For rough orientation the simple rule of thumb 1,000 VP = €10 still applies, so you can easily convert the VP price of a Radianite pack into euros.

Radianite prices: what do the RP packs cost?

Pack	Price in VP	Euro estimate	Price per RP
20 Radianite Points	1,600 VP	≈ €16	80 VP
40 Radianite Points	2,800 VP	≈ €28	70 VP
80 Radianite Points	4,800 VP	≈ €48	60 VP
For comparison: premium Battle Pass	1,000 VP	≈ €10	10 VP (based on the 100 RP of the premium track; plus 30 RP in the epilogue and 30 RP for free)

The table shows why buying directly rarely pays off: even the largest pack costs 60 VP per Radianite Point, while the premium Battle Pass delivers 100 RP on the premium track alone for 1,000 VP – plus 30 RP in the epilogue tiers and the 30 RP of the free track that every player gets. That adds up to as much as 160 RP per act.

Mathematically, though, topping up is the more expensive variant. A single upgrade level quickly costs – converted from VP – a few euros, and for a fully built skin that adds up. The purchase is worth it above all when you're only one level or one color variant short of a favorite skin and don't want to wait until the next Battle Pass. As a permanent solution, the Battle Pass is almost always the smarter choice.

How much Radianite do you need to upgrade a skin?

Short answer: every level upgrade costs 10 Radianite Points (RP) and every extra color variant (chroma) costs 15 RP. A premium skin with four levels and three extra color variants – such as the Reaver Vandal or the Prime Vandal – therefore needs 3 × 10 + 3 × 15 = 75 RP to be fully upgraded. Level 1 and the base color are included when you buy the skin.

Upgrade	Radianite Points	Example
One level (e.g. level 1 → 2)	10 RP	VFX, animations, finisher
One color variant (chroma)	15 RP	unlocks after the last level
Premium skin, 4 levels + 3 extra variants	75 RP	Reaver Vandal, Prime Vandal
Skin with 4 levels, no purchasable variants	30 RP	Champions 2026 Phantom
Special case ORA by OneTap (Ultra): last level 25 RP	55 RP (melee 35 RP)	Gun 10 + 10 + 10 + 25, melee 10 + 25

Radianite cost per skin tier (as of October 2026)

The central question before every upgrade is: how much Radianite does a skin devour until it's complete? The exact number depends on the line, but there are reliable reference values. Each level upgrade costs 10 Radianite, each color variant (chroma) 15 Radianite. Most premium skins have about four such levels, plus the color variants, each of which again requires its own portion of Radianite.

On balance you should count on usually 30 to 75 Radianite per gun for a fully built premium skin including all color variants (special case ORA by OneTap: 55 RP). Skins without purchasable variants sit at the lower end, Premium, Exclusive and Ultra collections with three variants at the upper end (up to 75 RP per gun). The following overview helps you sort it out:

In practice this means: the Battle Pass stock collected over an act is often just enough for one high-end skin plus leftovers. Whoever wants to fully upgrade several skins at the same time can hardly avoid topping up with VP – or some patience over several seasons.

Which skins even use Radianite?

A widespread misconception is that every skin can be upgraded. That's not true. Whether a skin accepts Radianite at all depends on its tier – and the cheapest skins come away empty-handed here. How the individual tiers are structured is explained in detail in our overview of the Valorant skin tiers.

Roughly: Select skins (875 VP) have neither upgrade levels nor variants, and Deluxe skins (1,275 VP) usually don't either – exceptions are a few melee upgrades. These skins are built the way they are, and Radianite changes nothing about that. Only from the premium tier upward does Radianite unfold its full effect, because these skins usually possess several levels with animations, sounds and finishers. The absolute top class, the Ultra and exclusive lines, is the most elaborately designed and rewards invested Radianite with the most spectacular effects.

For your buying decision, a simple maxim follows: not every cheap skin is a good basis for upgrading. If you're specifically looking for a weapon you'll later make shine with Radianite, pay attention to the tier already when buying. A plain entry-level skin stays plain, no matter how much Radianite you had – while a premium skin only shows what's in it with Radianite.

Variants, Chroma colors, VFX and finishers

Radianite doesn't simply unlock a higher number but concrete content. It's worth knowing what exactly is in the levels of a high-end skin so you can judge whether the investment is worth it for you.

Upgrade levels and VFX

The upgrade levels are the centrepiece. With each level the visual effects, VFX for short, get stronger: the muzzle flash becomes more striking, the inspect menu animates, additional movements and lights appear when reloading. At the highest level the skin often gets a completely distinct appearance that has little in common with the base level.

Finishers and sounds

Many premium and Ultra lines unlock their own finisher on the upper levels – a small staging that plays when you eliminate the last opponent of the round. On top come custom sound effects for firing, reloading and equipping. This acoustic layer in particular is often underestimated but makes up a large part of a line's recognizability.

Chroma color variants

In addition to the effect levels, many skins come with several color variants, often called Chroma. That's the same skin in a different coloring – for example red, blue or gold instead of the standard color. These variants usually each cost their own portion of Radianite and are purely visual. Whoever wants a particular color to match their setup best factors in this Radianite.

Is upgrading really worth it?

Whether Radianite is worth it is ultimately a question of perspective. In terms of gameplay an upgrade brings exactly zero advantage – your hits, your damage and your range stay identical. It's all about looks, sound and the good feeling of playing a weapon in its most beautiful form. Whoever only asks about the benefit in the match can ignore Radianite entirely.

On the other side is the calculation of time versus joy. You hold your main weapon hundreds of times over a season. If a strong animation and a satisfying sound give you a little bit more fun every round, that's worth the manageable Radianite outlay for many players – especially when the Radianite comes from the Battle Pass anyway and costs nothing extra. It only gets critical when you start topping up expensive Radianite for weapons you barely play.

An honest rule of thumb: upgrade the one or two weapons you buy most often and leave the rest on the base level. That way you get the greatest noticeable effect for your Radianite without scattering it broadly. The expensive building-out of a rarely used secondary weapon, on the other hand, is almost always wasted Radianite.

Radianite and the total value of your collection

Radianite also has an interesting side when it comes to the value of your locker. A fully upgraded skin contains not only its VP purchase price but additionally the invested Radianite – and this Radianite, whether from the Battle Pass or bought with VP, also has a value. In a sense a fully built premium skin is therefore worth more than the same skin sitting only on the base level.

No official trading value arises from this, because skins can be neither sold nor traded in Valorant. Still, it's appealing to see how much value has accumulated in your locker over the years – the sum of purchased skins and the Radianite invested in them. This is exactly where Valorant-Spind comes in: the free Windows tool reads your locker locally on your PC and converts the value of your collection into euros automatically, without login and without data leaving the device. The base value of a skin is set by its skin tier; how to calculate the value of your entire collection is shown by the Valorant-Spind calculator.

That way you get a realistic figure for your entire inventory and see which lines make up the largest share. This helps not only curiosity but also the conscious handling of future purchases and upgrades: whoever sees in black and white how much is already in the locker perhaps thinks a moment longer before the next top-up of Radianite.

An example calculation over a whole season

To make the numbers more tangible, a worked example helps. Imagine you play regularly for an act and unlock the premium Battle Pass. Over the weeks a solid stock of Radianite accumulates – enough to fully build one high-end skin and still have a few points left for a second. You decide to upgrade your favorite Vandal from a premium line.

The three level upgrades (levels 2 to 4) together cost you 30 Radianite. After that a red color variant appeals to you, which requires another portion. In total you end up at 45 Radianite for this one fully built Vandal – points that in this case cost you not a single extra cent because they come from the pass. That's exactly how the system is intended: whoever plays anyway refines their favorite weapon practically on the side.

The calculation looks different if you lack patience mid-season and want to fully build a second skin immediately. Then you lack the Radianite from the pass and would have to top it up with Valorant Points. Converted via 1,000 VP = €10, that quickly adds up to a double-digit euro amount for a single weapon. In most cases it's more worthwhile to wait until the next act and use the fresh Battle Pass Radianite instead of topping up expensively.

Common misconceptions about Radianite

A few misconceptions persist around Radianite that lead to bad purchases. The first: that Radianite and VP are the same thing. They're not – VP buys the skin, Radianite refines it, and the two can't be converted into each other. The second misconception is that an expensive bundle automatically comes with all effects. The purchase price covers only the base level; you unlock the spectacular levels only with Radianite.

A third, expensive misconception is the assumption that every skin can be upgraded. Select skins accept no Radianite at all, and Deluxe skins only have upgrades in exceptional cases. And finally some believe an upgrade brings an advantage in the match – that's never the case. Radianite is one hundred percent cosmetic. Whoever keeps these four points in mind makes much better decisions around upgrading.

Tips for the sensible use of Radianite

Finally, a few practical rules with which you use your Radianite as well as possible and avoid expensive missteps:

• Collect from the Battle Pass first, only top up with VP in an emergency. The pass is by far the cheapest source.
• Invest specifically in your one or two most-played weapons instead of distributing the Radianite broadly. The noticeable effect is greatest this way.
• Check the tier before buying a skin. Upgrades mainly exist from the Premium tier upward – Select skins have none, Deluxe skins only in exceptional cases.
• Plan color variants separately. Chroma costs additional Radianite and is purely visual – only necessary if the color really matters to you.
• Equip a skin first and only upgrade it when you're sure about the design. A quick glance at the preview saves trouble later.
• Keep track of your inventory. With Valorant-Spind you see at a glance which skins you own and what value your collection has overall.

If you heed these points, you get the greatest possible effect out of every single Radianite point – and end up at the end of a season with one or two really nicely built favorite skins instead of many half-finished ones.

Read more

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

How many Radianite Points do you need to upgrade a skin?

You need 10 Radianite Points per upgrade level and 15 per color variant. A premium skin with 4 levels and 3 color variants needs 75 RP when fully upgraded (3 × 10 + 3 × 15).

What do you need Radianite Points for in Valorant?

With Radianite Points you upgrade skins you already own and unlock additional variants, effects, sounds and finishers.

How do I get Radianite Points?

You get Radianite via the Battle Pass (30 RP per act for free in previous passes, up to 160 RP with the premium pass including the epilogue; the Act 6 pass already gives 60 RP for free per the official reward preview), via event passes (usually 20 RP) and the new player contract – or you buy it directly with Valorant Points.

Do Radianite upgrades increase a skin's value?

In a sense yes: in a fully upgraded skin, Radianite is invested in addition to the VP price, which is why it holds more value than the same skin without upgrades.

What do you need Radianite for in Valorant?

For upgrading your skins to higher levels and variants. Upgrades mainly exist from the Premium tier upward; Select skins have none, Deluxe skins only in exceptional cases (e.g. a melee upgrade).

How much Radianite do you need to upgrade a skin?

One upgrade level costs 10 RP, one color variant 15 RP. To fully upgrade a gun you need, depending on the skin tier: Select 0 RP, Deluxe usually 0 RP, Premium and Exclusive usually 30 to 75 RP, Ultra 55 to 75 RP (ORA by OneTap: 55 RP). Melee skins usually cost 10 to 35 RP.