Whether the input lag is low or not, it greatly affects your enjoyment in VALORANT, an aim-based game. But the good news is, you can reduce the input lag by tweaking some settings.

Try these fixes:

You may not need to try them all; simply work your way down the list until you find the one that works.

  1. Install all Windows updates
  2. Delete temporary files
  3. Disable Windows game mode
  4. Update your device drivers
  5. Disable fullscreen optimizations
  6. Set Priority to high
  7. Optimize in-game settings

1. Install all Windows updates

Before jumping into the nitty gritty optimizations, it’s very important to make sure that you’re running on the latest version of Windows 10. It’s fast, free, and easy to download and install. The latest version of Windows 10 features many exclusive new optimizations for most games. To install Windows updates:

On Windows 10

  1. On your keyboard, press Win+R (the Windows logo key and the R key) to invoke the Run box. Type or paste control update and click OK.
  2. Click Check for updates. Windows will then check for available updates. (Or click Restart now if it prompts “Restart required”)

On Windows 11

  1. On your keyboard, press the Windows Logo key and the I key (Win+I) to open the Windows Settings app.
  2. Click Windows Update on the right.
    win 11 update windows 1
  3. Then click Check for updates. Windows will then check if there are any newly released updates. If so, it will automatically download and install the updates for you. It might take some time.
  4. You may repeat these steps until it prompts You’re up to date when you click Check for updates to make sure you have all the updates installed. Restart your computer when it’s done.

If this doesn’t help you fix the input lag issue in Valorant, don’t worry. There are other fixes you can try.


2. Delete temporary files

As the name suggests, temporary files are the kind of files that store temporary data that is created by Windows itself or the programs. But they take up some hard drive space which makes it less responsive. To reduce input lag, you’re supposed to delete those files and it won’t cause any problems.

Here’s how you can delete temporary files:

  1. On your keyboard, press the Windows logo key and R at the same time to invoke the Run box. Type %temp% and then press Enter on your keyboard.
  2. Delete all the files in the temp folder. (Press Ctrl and A at the same time to select all the files. Then right-click and select Delete.)
    delete temp files to remove edit delay on Fortnite
  3. If a window pops up saying that The action can’t be completed, simply check the box Do this for all current items and click Skip.
  4. Now go to your Recycling Bin from your desktop. Right-click on it and select Empty Recycle Bin.
  5. Click Yes.

After deleting the temp files, play VALORANT and check if you can edit faster.


3. Disable Windows game mode

Game Mode is a feature in Windows that focuses system resources on games when enabled. It was supposed to make gaming a much better experience, but it seems the opposite is true. The fact is it compromises input delay. To reduce input lag, you should disable game mode.

On Windows 10

  1. On your keyboard, press the Windows key and the I key at the same time to open Settings. Select Gaming.
    disable windows 10 gaming features disable game mode
  2. Select Game Mode on the left side panel, and toggle the option to Off.

On Windows 11

  1. On your keyboard, press the Windows key and the I key at the same time to open Settings.
  2. Select Gaming, and Game Mode.
  3. Make sure that the toggle for Game Mode is set to Off.

After you’ve done these, play VALORANT and check if it’s more responsive. If your input lag is still so high, try the next fix below.


4. Update your device drivers

Your device drivers, mouse, keyboard and graphics drivers in particular, can greatly impact your gameplay. To make your control feel more responsive, you need to check if there are drivers updates available.

How to update your device drivers

To update your device drivers, you can head to Device Manager to check for updates one by one. Or go to the manufacturers’ website to download and install the latest drivers corresponding with your system.

But if you don’t have the time, patience, or computer skills to update drivers manually, you can do it automatically with Driver Easy.Driver Easy will automatically recognize your system and find the correct drivers for it. You don’t need to know exactly what system your computer is running or risk downloading and installing the wrong driver. Driver Easy handles it all.

You can update your drivers automatically with either the 7 days free trial or the Pro version of Driver Easy. It takes just 2 clicks, and you get full support and a 30-day money-back guarantee with the Pro version:

  1. Download and install Driver Easy.
  2. Run Driver Easy and click the Scan Now button. Driver Easy will then scan your computer and detect any problem drivers.
  3. Click the Activate & Update button next to the flagged device to automatically download and install the correct version of this driver.

    Or click Update All to automatically download and install the correct version of all the drivers that are missing or out of date on your system (You’ll need the Pro version for this – when you select Update All, you’ll get a prompt to upgrade. If you’re not prepared to purchase the Pro version yet, Driver Easy provides a 7-day trial at no cost, granting access to all Pro features like fast downloads and easy installation. No charges will occur until after your 7-day trial period ends.)
  4. After updating, restart your computer to take effect.
The Pro version of Driver Easy comes with full technical support. If you need assistance, please contact Driver Easy’s support team at support@drivereasy.com.

After updating your drivers, restart your computer and play VALORANT to check if the input lag has been reduced. If the input lag is still so high, try the next fix below.


5. Disable fullscreen optimizations

Fullscreen optimization is a feature designed to improve your PCs performance during gaming sessions. But there are certain games that are particularly affected by low FPS and input lag issues when players enable fullscreen optimizations. To solve the issue, you should disable fullscreen optimizations:

  1. On your keyboard, press the Windows logo key + R at the same time to invoke the Run box.
  2. Open C:/ Riot Games/ VALORANT/ live/ ShooterGame/ Binaries/ Win64.
    VALORANT Win64 Shipping file path
  3. Select the Compatibility tab. Check the box Disable fullscreen optimizations. Then click Apply > OK.
    VALORANT disable fullscreen optimizations

After applying the changes, play VALORANT and you should be able to see a noticeable difference. If it’s still so laggy, try the next fix below.


6. Set Priority to high

Even though your computer is able to handle VALORANT, you need to set the game’s priority to high if you want your game to be more responsive.

Here’s how to do this:

  1. Make sure you’ve opened VALORANT.
  2. On your keyboard, press the Windows logo key + R at the same time to invoke the Run box. Then type taskmgr.
    open Task Manager
  3. Select the Details tab. Locate VALORANT. Right-click it and select Set priority > High.
    VALORANT set priority to High

Now play VALORANT and check if your the input lag is reduced.


7. Optimize in-game settings

Sometimes, settings by default may not give you the best results. Instead, you can optimize them to get the best gaming experience.

Here are the recommended settings:

  1. Open VALORANT. Click on the two lines located on the top left of the screen. Then select SETTINGS.

    optimize in-game settings VALORANT
  2. Under the VIDEO tab, select the GENERAL subtab. Then set Fullscreen for the Display Mode.
  3. Select the GRAPHICS QUALITY subtab. Set these recommended settings for VALORANT:
    Material Quality: Med
    Texture Quality: Med
    Detail Quality: Med
    UI Quality: Med
    VSync: Off

Once you save the changes, play VALORANT and you should be able to achieve low input latency.


Hopefully, this post can give you a significant improvement to gameplay. If you have any ideas or questions, feel free to leave us a comment below.

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