How to Uninstall Valorant

Valorant, Riot Games’ highly popular tactical first-person shooter, has gained millions of players worldwide. While it offers an intense and competitive gaming experience, there may come a time when you want to remove it from your system. Whether you’re freeing up space, troubleshooting issues, or simply taking a break from the game, learning how to uninstall Valorant properly is important. Like many modern games, uninstalling Valorant is not just about removing the game files but also ensuring that associated programs like Riot Vanguard (the anti-cheat software) are fully deleted.

In this blog post, we’ll guide you through the step-by-step process on how to uninstall Valorant, covering both the game and its additional components, such as Riot Vanguard. By the end of this guide, you’ll know exactly how to remove Valorant from your system entirely.

Why You Might Want to Uninstall Valorant

Before diving into the steps of how to uninstall Valorant, let’s take a moment to consider why you might want to remove the game. There are several reasons why someone might uninstall Valorant:

1. Storage Management: Valorant, like many modern games, takes up considerable space on your hard drive. If your system is running low on storage, removing large games can help free up space for other applications.
2. Troubleshooting: If you’re encountering issues such as crashes, bugs, or performance problems, uninstalling and reinstalling Valorant can sometimes fix these issues.
3. Taking a Break: Valorant is a fast-paced, competitive game, and sometimes players may want to take a break from the pressure of ranked matches. Uninstalling the game can help you avoid the temptation of playing.
4. Switching to Another Game: If you’re moving on to another game or have found other interests, uninstalling Valorant can be a way to declutter your system.

Whatever the reason, knowing how to uninstall Valorant is essential to keep your system running smoothly.

How to Uninstall Valorant from Windows

Valorant is available for Windows PCs, and uninstalling the game requires more than simply removing the application itself. You’ll also need to uninstall Riot Vanguard, the anti-cheat software that runs in the background whenever you play Valorant.

Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to uninstall Valorant from a Windows PC.

Step 1: Close Valorant and Riot Vanguard

Before you begin the uninstallation process, make sure that Valorant and Riot Vanguard are not running on your system. To check:

1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open the Task Manager.
2. Look for Valorant and Riot Vanguard in the list of active processes.
3. Right-click on them and select End Task to close both applications.

This ensures that no files are in use when you begin the uninstallation process.

Step 2: Uninstall Valorant via Control Panel

The next step in how to uninstall Valorant is to remove the game through the Control Panel. Follow these steps:

1. Press the Windows Key on your keyboard and type Control Panel.
2. Select Control Panel from the search results to open it.
3. Click on Programs > Uninstall a program.
4. Scroll through the list of installed programs until you find Valorant.
5. Right-click on Valorant and select Uninstall.

This will remove the game from your system, but Riot Vanguard is still installed, so you’ll need to take additional steps to fully uninstall Valorant and its components.

Step 3: Uninstall Riot Vanguard

Riot Vanguard is an anti-cheat software that automatically installs when you play Valorant. While it helps maintain a fair playing environment, you’ll want to remove it if you’re no longer playing the game.

To uninstall Riot Vanguard:

1. Go back to the Control Panel and stay in the Programs > Uninstall a program section.
2. Scroll down the list of installed programs and find Riot Vanguard.
3. Right-click on Riot Vanguard and select Uninstall.

Riot Vanguard will now be removed from your system.

Step 4: Delete Remaining Valorant Files (Optional)

Even after uninstalling Valorant and Riot Vanguard, some leftover files may still remain on your computer. To completely remove all traces of the game:

1. Open File Explorer and navigate to the folder where you installed Valorant. By default, this will likely be located in C:\Riot Games\Valorant.
2. Delete the Valorant folder.
3. Next, navigate to C:\Program Files and delete the Riot Vanguard folder if it exists.

This will ensure that all files related to Valorant and Riot Vanguard are deleted from your system.

Step 5: Restart Your Computer

Once you’ve followed all the steps, restart your computer to complete the uninstallation process. This will ensure that any lingering services related to Riot Vanguard or Valorant are fully terminated.

Congratulations! You’ve successfully learned how to uninstall Valorant from your Windows PC.

How to Reinstall Valorant (If Needed)

If you’re uninstalling Valorant due to troubleshooting reasons or simply taking a break, you might want to reinstall the game later. Here’s how to do it:

1. Visit the official Valorant website at playvalorant.com and download the game client.
2. Install the client by following the on-screen instructions.
3. Riot Vanguard will be automatically installed during the installation process.

By reinstalling the game, you can often fix issues like bugs, crashes, or performance drops. This is a key reason why understanding how to uninstall Valorant properly is important—it allows for a clean reinstall later.

Common Issues When Uninstalling Valorant

While how to uninstall Valorant is generally a straightforward process, some users may encounter problems. Let’s address some of the common issues you might face and how to solve them.

1. Valorant or Riot Vanguard Won’t Uninstall

If you’re having trouble uninstalling Valorant or Riot Vanguard, try using a third-party uninstaller tool like Revo Uninstaller or IObit Uninstaller. These programs can force uninstall stubborn applications and remove leftover files.

2. Error Messages During Uninstallation

Sometimes, you may encounter error messages when trying to uninstall Valorant or Riot Vanguard. This can be due to corrupted files or services still running in the background.

• Solution: Restart your computer and try uninstalling the software again. If the issue persists, boot into Safe Mode and attempt the uninstallation from there.

3. Riot Vanguard Service Still Running

If Riot Vanguard services are still running after uninstallation, you may need to manually stop them.

• Solution: Open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc), find vgc.exe or Vanguard, and end the task. You can also disable Riot Vanguard from Services by typing services.msc in the Windows search bar and stopping the vgc service.

By resolving these issues, you can ensure a smooth uninstallation process and fully remove Valorant and its components from your system.

How to Uninstall Valorant on Mac

Valorant is not officially available on macOS, so players must use workarounds like Boot Camp or virtualization software to run the game. If you’ve installed Valorant on a Mac using one of these methods and want to uninstall it, the steps will be similar to those on a Windows PC, but with a few Mac-specific adjustments.

Step 1: Boot into Windows (Using Boot Camp)

If you’re using Boot Camp to run Valorant on your Mac, boot into your Windows partition. Once in Windows, follow the same steps outlined above for how to uninstall Valorant.

Step 2: Remove Valorant from Virtual Machine

If you’re using a virtual machine (like Parallels or VirtualBox) to run Windows on your Mac:

1. Open the Windows virtual machine.
2. Follow the same Windows steps to uninstall Valorant and Riot Vanguard.

Once uninstalled, you can delete any remaining Valorant or Riot-related files from your Mac’s system.

Conclusion

Uninstalling Valorant is a relatively simple process, but it’s important to make sure you fully remove both the game and Riot Vanguard to free up system resources. In this guide, we’ve covered how to uninstall Valorant on Windows, including steps for uninstalling Riot Vanguard and deleting leftover files. We’ve also addressed common issues you might encounter during the uninstallation process.

Whether you’re uninstalling Valorant to troubleshoot issues, free up space, or simply take a break from the game, knowing how to uninstall Valorant properly ensures that your system remains clean and optimized. And, if you ever decide to jump back into the world of tactical FPS games, reinstalling Valorant is just as simple.