diff --git a/assignment-client/src/avatars/AvatarMixerSlave.cpp b/assignment-client/src/avatars/AvatarMixerSlave.cpp
index dd25aa4c4b..584d3d0e6a 100644
--- a/assignment-client/src/avatars/AvatarMixerSlave.cpp
+++ b/assignment-client/src/avatars/AvatarMixerSlave.cpp
@@ -185,8 +185,8 @@ void AvatarMixerSlave::broadcastAvatarData(const SharedNodePointer& node) {
 
         AvatarSharedPointer thisAvatar = nodeData->getAvatarSharedPointer();
         ViewFrustum cameraView = nodeData->getViewFrustom();
-        std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority> sortedAvatars = AvatarData::sortAvatars(
-                avatarList, cameraView,
+        std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority> sortedAvatars;
+        AvatarData::sortAvatars(avatarList, cameraView, sortedAvatars,
 
                 [&](AvatarSharedPointer avatar)->uint64_t{
                     auto avatarNode = avatarDataToNodes[avatar];
diff --git a/interface/src/avatar/AvatarManager.cpp b/interface/src/avatar/AvatarManager.cpp
index d806c042b9..6b426bcde8 100644
--- a/interface/src/avatar/AvatarManager.cpp
+++ b/interface/src/avatar/AvatarManager.cpp
@@ -164,8 +164,8 @@ void AvatarManager::updateOtherAvatars(float deltaTime) {
     ViewFrustum cameraView;
     qApp->copyDisplayViewFrustum(cameraView);
 
-    std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority> sortedAvatars = AvatarData::sortAvatars(
-        avatarList, cameraView,
+    std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority> sortedAvatars;
+    AvatarData::sortAvatars(avatarList, cameraView, sortedAvatars,
 
         [](AvatarSharedPointer avatar)->uint64_t{
             return std::static_pointer_cast<Avatar>(avatar)->getLastRenderUpdateTime();
diff --git a/libraries/avatars/src/AvatarData.cpp b/libraries/avatars/src/AvatarData.cpp
index e7ec201aa1..6e4553ff8a 100644
--- a/libraries/avatars/src/AvatarData.cpp
+++ b/libraries/avatars/src/AvatarData.cpp
@@ -2324,20 +2324,20 @@ float AvatarData::_avatarSortCoefficientSize { 0.5f };
 float AvatarData::_avatarSortCoefficientCenter { 0.25 };
 float AvatarData::_avatarSortCoefficientAge { 1.0f };
 
-std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority> AvatarData::sortAvatars(
-    QList<AvatarSharedPointer> avatarList,
-    const ViewFrustum& cameraView,
-    std::function<uint64_t(AvatarSharedPointer)> getLastUpdated,
-    std::function<float(AvatarSharedPointer)> getBoundingRadius,
-    std::function<bool(AvatarSharedPointer)> shouldIgnore) {
+void AvatarData::sortAvatars(
+        QList<AvatarSharedPointer> avatarList,
+        const ViewFrustum& cameraView,
+        std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority>& sortedAvatarsOut,
+        std::function<uint64_t(AvatarSharedPointer)> getLastUpdated,
+        std::function<float(AvatarSharedPointer)> getBoundingRadius,
+        std::function<bool(AvatarSharedPointer)> shouldIgnore) {
 
-    uint64_t startTime = usecTimestampNow();
-
-    glm::vec3 frustumCenter = cameraView.getPosition();
-
-    std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority> sortedAvatars;
     {
         PROFILE_RANGE(simulation, "sort");
+        uint64_t now = usecTimestampNow();
+
+        glm::vec3 frustumCenter = cameraView.getPosition();
+        const glm::vec3& forward = cameraView.getDirection();
         for (int32_t i = 0; i < avatarList.size(); ++i) {
             const auto& avatar = avatarList.at(i);
 
@@ -2356,10 +2356,9 @@ std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority> AvatarData::sortAvatars(
             // FIXME - AvatarData has something equivolent to this
             float radius = getBoundingRadius(avatar);
 
-            const glm::vec3& forward = cameraView.getDirection();
             float apparentSize = 2.0f * radius / distance;
             float cosineAngle = glm::dot(offset, forward) / distance;
-            float age = (float)(startTime - getLastUpdated(avatar)) / (float)(USECS_PER_SECOND);
+            float age = (float)(now - getLastUpdated(avatar)) / (float)(USECS_PER_SECOND);
 
             // NOTE: we are adding values of different units to get a single measure of "priority".
             // Thus we multiply each component by a conversion "weight" that scales its units relative to the others.
@@ -2375,10 +2374,9 @@ std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority> AvatarData::sortAvatars(
                     priority += OUT_OF_VIEW_PENALTY;
                 }
             }
-            sortedAvatars.push(AvatarPriority(avatar, priority));
+            sortedAvatarsOut.push(AvatarPriority(avatar, priority));
         }
     }
-    return sortedAvatars;
 }
 
 QScriptValue AvatarEntityMapToScriptValue(QScriptEngine* engine, const AvatarEntityMap& value) {
diff --git a/libraries/avatars/src/AvatarData.h b/libraries/avatars/src/AvatarData.h
index 12209d9c31..c2240f400f 100644
--- a/libraries/avatars/src/AvatarData.h
+++ b/libraries/avatars/src/AvatarData.h
@@ -597,9 +597,10 @@ public:
 
     static const float OUT_OF_VIEW_PENALTY;
 
-    static std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority> sortAvatars(
+    static void sortAvatars(
         QList<AvatarSharedPointer> avatarList,
         const ViewFrustum& cameraView,
+        std::priority_queue<AvatarPriority>& sortedAvatarsOut,
         std::function<uint64_t(AvatarSharedPointer)> getLastUpdated,
         std::function<float(AvatarSharedPointer)> getBoundingRadius,
         std::function<bool(AvatarSharedPointer)> shouldIgnore);