Tested: Why Is Valorant CPU Intensive on My PC?

If you’re wondering why Valorant is so CPU intensive on your PC, I’ve been there, and yep, I tested a bunch of stuff myself. At first, I thought something was wrong with my PC, but turns out, this game really leans on your processor way more than I expected.

And even if your graphics card is chill, your CPU might still be sweating hard in the background. In this article, I’ll walk you through what’s causing that CPU spike, the things I personally tried to smoothen it out, and a few easy fixes that worked for me.

I’m not a tech expert, just a regular Valorant player trying to stop my PC from sounding like it’s about to take off. So if your game’s laggy or glitchy for no reason, this might help you too.

What’s Really Eating Up Your CPU When You Play Valorant

So here’s the thing, Valorant might not look super heavy, but it still eats up a lot of CPU. The main reason? It’s constantly checking for cheats, tracking in-game actions, and managing all your inputs in real time. Unlike GPU-heavy games that lean more on graphics, Valorant throws a lot at your processor.

I noticed my CPU usage jump like crazy even in the lobby. Plus, stuff like Riot Vanguard (their anti-cheat) runs in the background the whole time. And if you’ve got too many apps or tabs open, yeah, that just makes it worse.

Turns out, Valorant isn’t the only thing stressing the CPU, some random background stuff was also at play. If you’ve ever seen your CPU hit 100% when you’re not even gaming, you’re not alone. I had that issue too and wrote about it right here

Your CPU ends up juggling more than it should, and that’s when the stutters and spikes kick in. So even if nothing “looks” wrong, there’s usually stuff happening behind the scenes that’s eating up your system power without warning.

Here’s What I Tried to Make Valorant Run Smoother

First thing I did was close everything else running on my PC. No Chrome, no music, nothing, just Valorant. Helped a little. Then I lowered my in-game settings. Even though it’s not a graphic-heavy game, dropping shadows and textures gave my CPU some breathing space.

I also set the Valorant process to “High Priority” in Task Manager, and that made a small but noticeable difference. Another thing? I made sure Windows Game Mode was turned on. And I checked for background updates (you’d be surprised how often those slow things down).

Lastly, I restarted my PC before gaming sessions to clear up memory. It wasn’t one big fix that solved everything, it was a bunch of small ones that together made my CPU usage drop and the game run smoother.

Easy Fixes That Helped Me Lower CPU Load Fast

Here’s a few simple things that really helped me get my CPU usage down without digging too deep into complicated stuff. First, I turned off hardware acceleration in browsers and Discord. That alone made my system feel less crowded.

Then I disabled a few startup programs I didn’t need running every time I booted up my PC. Super easy to do from Task Manager. I also updated all my drivers, especially my chipset drivers. Old ones can mess with performance more than you’d think.

Another thing I did? Set a custom power plan to “High Performance” instead of letting Windows decide. My game ran better and no more weird CPU spikes.

If you’re on Windows 11, turning off background animations helped a bit too. All in all, these were small, non-scary changes that really worked. My CPU runs way cooler now when I load up Valorant.

I also updated all my drivers, especially my chipset drivers. Old ones can mess with performance more than you’d think. For more detailed steps on updating drivers and other fixes, I found this guide helpful: How to Fix High CPU Usage in Valorant? Here Are 4 Ways for You!.

FAQs

Why is Valorant so CPU heavy instead of GPU heavy?

Because it depends more on your CPU to track real-time movements and anti-cheat stuff constantly.

Does Riot Vanguard affect CPU usage?

Yep, it runs in the background all the time and can use up CPU even when Valorant isn’t open.

Can background apps really cause 100% CPU with Valorant?

Oh yes. Even open tabs or music apps can mess with your CPU if they’re running at the same time.

Will upgrading RAM help with CPU usage in Valorant?

Not directly, but more RAM can help overall system smoothness, which might lower CPU strain a bit.

Conclusion

So yeah, Valorant can be super CPU heavy even when it doesn’t seem like it. I tested a bunch of stuff myself, and thankfully, small tweaks really helped. You don’t have to upgrade your whole system, just clean things up, turn off what you don’t need, and give your CPU some space to breathe. Trust me, it makes a big difference.