CS2 Skin Glossary

Last updated: 6 August 2026

1. Float Value

The number between 0.00 and 1.00 baked into every skin that determines how worn it looks — lower means cleaner.

An orange-text skin variant with a built-in kill counter, tracked separately from the regular (non-StatTrak) version of the same skin.

A gold-text skin awarded from Souvenir Packages during Major broadcasts, commemorating a specific match rather than being case-dropped.

The five condition tiers — Factory New, Minimal Wear, Field-Tested, Well-Worn, Battle-Scarred — a skin is bucketed into based on its float value.

A fixed number baked into each skin drop that decides exactly where its pattern falls — the same number Valve's files call the "paint seed".

The distinct color variants — Phase 1–4, Ruby, Sapphire, Black Pearl, and Emerald — that the Doppler finish produces depending on pattern index.

How much of a Fade-finish weapon is covered by its color gradient, calculated from pattern index — higher percentages sell for more.

Steam's mandatory waiting period — normally 7 days, longer after a recent security change — before a newly received item can be traded again.

Community slang for Case Hardened weapons whose pattern index lands on an unusually high, sought-after share of blue coloring.

A container that drops one random skin from its fixed pool when opened with a key, weighted so rarer skins are far less likely.

A themed set of skins tied to one game update or operation — obtainable from a matching case, or sometimes as a rare drop after a match.

A weapon or knife with no finish applied at all — the plain, default-look item, still fully tradeable and sometimes valuable on knives.