CS2 Weapon Tier List
A community-style ranking of CS2 guns by buy round and impact. This is an opinion, not an official ranking — your mileage varies with playstyle, economy and aim.
Tier lists are subjective. We have grouped weapons by the round they tend to shine in and how much damage they put out, leaning on the same community-derived figures that power our damage calculator. Click any gun to see its full per-hitbox breakdown and shots-to-kill.
AWP (the pick)
The one-shot sniper. Almost any clean hit is lethal and it has effectively no practical falloff — the most impactful gun on the server when you can afford it.
- AWP — 115 base damage, 98% armour penetration.
Full-buy rifles
The guns you want on a full-buy round. High base damage and strong armour penetration; the AK-47 one-taps a helmeted head at most ranges.
- AK-47 — 36 base damage, 78% armour penetration.
- M4A1-S — 38 base damage, 70% armour penetration.
- M4A4 — 33 base damage, 70% armour penetration.
- AUG — 28 base damage, 90% armour penetration.
Force-buy / eco standouts
Cheap but punchy. The Deagle one-taps heads, and these pistols and budget rifles win rounds you were not "supposed" to win.
- Desert Eagle — 53 base damage, 93% armour penetration.
- Galil AR — 30 base damage, 78% armour penetration.
- FAMAS — 30 base damage, 70% armour penetration.
Pistol-round staples
Your opening-round sidearms. Lower armour penetration means body shots take more hits against Kevlar — aim high.
How we grouped them
Higher base damage and higher armour penetration generally mean fewer shots to kill, especially against an armoured target. But economy, fire rate, spray control and your own aim all matter as much as raw damage — so treat these tiers as a starting point for discussion, not a rule.
Want the exact numbers behind a placement? Open any weapon page above, or model a specific hitbox, range and armour state in the CS2 damage calculator.