The economy of Counter-Strike 2 governs what money you receive after each round. You can receive variable financial rewards for killing enemies and completing objectives in rounds. There are even bonuses for losing rounds. Whatever cash you receive enables you to purchase better guns, grenades, and utilities. Counter-Strike 2’s economic system significantly impacts matches since it determines what both teams can purchase for rounds. This is how the CS2 economy works for competitive Counter-Strike 2 matches.
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The Buy Menu
The buy menu displays what you can and cannot afford to purchase, along with your current budget total. All players on both teams start with $800 at the beginning of matches. This is only sufficient for purchasing pistols, to begin with. There are two pistol rounds during a game, one at the beginning and the other when the teams switch sides.
The buy menu includes a figure for the amount of cash you’re guaranteed to have next round based on current spending. This figure can help with economic management and planning in Counter-Strike 2. There’s also a drop box on the buy menu that shows weapons other players in your team have dropped.
The buy menu
Objective Rewards
You’ll receive the biggest rewards for winning rounds and completing objectives. Objectives include planting and defusing bombs and wiping out the other time. These are the CS2 economy cash rewards for completing objectives:
- $3,250 for eliminating all players on the enemy team.
- $3,500 for exploding (detonating) a bomb.
- $3,250 for winning with an expired countdown.
- $3,500 for defusing a bomb.
All the above CS2 economy rewards are team-based ones given to all players on the side that wins the round. However, there are also a couple of individual bonuses. Players who defuse or plant a bomb receive an extra $300.
The start of a CS2 match round
Kill Rewards
Killing players gives you individual cash bonuses. Thus, the more kills you get, the more capital you’ll accumulate. However, not all the guns in Counter-Strike 2 offer the same cash per kill. Weaker weapon types typically offer better kill rewards. These are the variable kill rewards in Counter-Strike 2:
- Shotguns: $900
- Knifes: $1,500
- Machine gun: $300
- SMG: $600
- Assault rifles: $300
- Grenades: $300
- P90: $300
- CZ75-Auto: $300
- AWP: $100
The knife is the weakest weapon with the highest cash per kill. Yet, regularly playing with a knife can be downright suicidal. Shotguns are better for players seeking to rack up more cash with kills. SMGs like the MP9, which costs $1,250, also offer good value for players a little strapped for cash.
The MAC-10 machine gun
Round Loss Bonuses
Losing a round gives you variable cash that depends on the number of consecutive round defeats. The amount you receive increases by $500 for every consecutive round defeat. This is what you’ll receive for five consecutive round defeats:
- $1,400: One defeat
- $1,900: Two consecutive defeats
- $2,400: Three consecutive defeats
- $2,900: Four consecutive defeats
- $3,400: Five consecutive defeats
There is a loss counter that tracks your total number of consecutive defeats. The maximum loss counter is four. Thus, losing five in a row and then winning two straight rounds leaves the loss counter at two. The formula for calculating round loss cash is $500 + loss counter + $1,400.
You can see your next potential loss bonus on the scoreboard. Press the Tab key to view the scoreboard. Hover the cursor over Loss Bonus on that scoreboard to see what you’ll get for a round loss.
The scoreboard and loss bonus info
Note that there is no loss bonus for terrorist teams that lose on time. Thus, it’s best to avoid losing on the clock in that respect. However, you’ll also lose all your equipment when killed.
Penalties
Counter-Strike 2 has friendly fire enabled by default, and there’s no in-game option for turning it off. There’s also a -$300 cash penalty for friendly fire that applies whether accidental or not. So, you must be careful to avoid friendly fire for the sake of your budget and teammates.
The Different Budgeting Strategies
Simply spending all, or most, the cash you can every round is not a good way to play Counter-Strike 2, but many beginners probably do that. There are a few different types of round buys for purchasing gear. These are the different budgeting strategies in Counter-Strike 2:
Eco: An eco round is one in which you save all or most of your cash for future rounds. The purpose of having an eco round is to enable you to spend more in the one that follows, ideally with a full buy.
Full buy: A full buy round is one for which you spend all your cash on the best guns and gear available. You’ll need between $3,700-$4,500 to purchase the best gear for a full buy round.
Half buy: This CS2 economy strategy is one in which you spend some of your cash for a round but not all. Thus, it involves a mixture of spend and save for a round.
Force buy: A force buy round is one for which you spend everything you’ve got even when you can’t afford a full buy. Thus, it’s a buying strategy of purchasing whatever you can for a round, regardless of whether it’s top-tier gear.
What budget strategy you should implement for a round depends on your situation in a match. When strapped for cash, consider having an eco or half-buy round to save capital for a future round. Having an eco round will put you at a disadvantage for one round, but you’ll be able to purchase better guns in later ones. This strategy sacrifices one round for a better loadout in the next. Or you might sometimes need to have an eco followed by a half-buy round to save $3,500-$4,500 for a full buy.
The Desert Eagle gun description
It may feel like every round must be a force buy when your team is losing. However, a CS2 match is a marathon, not a sprint. You can afford to lose some rounds for the sake of saving, even when behind in a game. However, force buys become more necessary when one team is closing in on victory, having won nine or 10 rounds.
Much is said about coordinating spending with teammates by keeping an eye on the state of your team’s budget. However, this can only be done through effective communication with other players in your team. Furthermore, you only get about a minute before each round to discuss whether to save or spend. Thus, coordinating a general team budgeting strategy is easier said than done.
Nevertheless, you can try coordinating team spending with communication options available. Press the C key to bring up message options from which you can select to say, “We should spend” or “We should save.” Alternatively, press Y to manually enter messages.
Message options in Counter-Strike 2
Remember, you can purchase guns for your teammates. If you have much more cash than other players in your team, consider buying decent weapons like the AK-47 and dropping them at the beginning of rounds. These guns will become available for players in your team to pick up. Sharing excess capital with additional weapon purchases for teammates can give you a better chance of victory.
More efficient CS2 economy optimization will enable you to win more competitive Counter-Strike 2 matches. You will then climb the game’s ranking ladder with a better win-loss match ratio.
