Can You Sell CS2/CSGO Skins For Real Money?

The simple answer is yes, you can sell your Counter-Strike skins for real-life money!

Understand Your Skin’s Rarity and Value

Before selling your skins for cash, let’s take a step back to understand that every skin has its own value and price.

Though they are not tangible goods, these virtual items are always tradable and marketable, meaning skins can be transferred to other players. This availability for movement allows skins to have real-world value. Counter-Strike skins come in seven primary rarity levels.

• Consumer Grade (Gray)
• Industrial Grade (Light Blue)
• Mil-Spec (Blue)
• Restricted (Purple)
• Classified (Pink)
• Covert (Red)
• Exceedingly Rare Special Item (Gold)

Skins normally go up in value as it increases in rarity, but there are several other factors that add onto a skin’s price.

• Condition: Counter-Strike skins come in different wears, which represents the condition of the skin and whether it has lots of tears, or looks like it has come fresh off the factory. A skin with a good condition will be priced higher than when it is in a low condition. There are five condition categories: Factory New, Minimal Wear, Field-Tested, Well-Worn, Battle-Scarred.
• Pattern: Certain Counter-Strike skins such as the Case Hardened and Doppler have different patterns. Buyers are often willing to overpay for skins with rare patterns. Usually, these rare patterns have less than a 1% chance to obtain.
• StatTrak/Souvenir Feature: Regular skins will have their StatTrak or Souvenir version, which is significantly more expensive. StatTrak puts a kill tracker on the weapon, while Souvenir applies four golden stickers.

If you are unsure of how much your weapon skin is worth, you can always do a quick google search to find out. When searching for your skin’s price, make sure the details such as condition and features are matching correctly.

The primary way to sell Counter-Strike skins is doing it through the Steam Community Market. The Steam Market is the official marketplace platform that is overseen by Valve itself, the creators of Counter-Strike and the owners of the Steam platform. This regulated marketplace ensures there cannot be scamming or malicious activities, and is entirely safe to use for beginners.

Pros of selling on the Steam Market:

• Transactions are always secure, as Valve essentially acts as the middleman in transactions between buyers and sellers.
• You can sell your items for real money, which will be received in the form of a Steam Wallet balance. You can purchase other skins or Steam games using these funds.
• Very straightforward interface and selling procedure.

Cons of selling on the Steam Market:

• The biggest disadvantage of the Steam Market is you cannot convert or withdraw your funds in cash. Your money is stuck within the Steam ecosystem.
• Additionally, sellers are met with a 15% transaction fee, which is absurdly high compared to third-party websites.

If you are a beginner in Counter-Strike and are inexperienced in the trading scene, the Steam Market is your best bet since you won’t get scammed or get taken advantage of. It is the easiest way to sell skins if you are planning on buying other skins with the received funds.

How to Sell Skins on the Steam Community Market 

As mentioned earlier, the Steam Community Market is fully regulated under Valve’s supervision. Here is a step-by-step guide of how you can sell your skins on it.

• Open your Steam desktop client.
• Hover your cursor over “Community” and select “Market.”
• On the right side of your screen, click “Sell an item.”
• In the list of games, click “Counter-Strike 2.”
• You will see a list of all your marketable skins. Select your desired skin.
• On the bottom right, you can see what your skin is currently selling for.
• List your price, and take into account that there is a 15% transaction fee.
• Finally, list your item on the market. Once it has been sold, the funds will automatically go into your Steam Wallet

The “real” way to sell Counter-Strike skins for real money is through third-party websites, not the Steam Market. As discussed earlier, funds from selling skins on the Steam Market will be stuck as a Steam Wallet balance that cannot be withdrawn for real money.

That is why most experienced traders turn to third-party websites, as they offer real-life cashout options such as Bank Transfer, Cryptocurrency, PayPal, and more.

Even though third-party websites are not protected by Valve, they are generally trusted and won’t let you get scammed. Make sure to choose a reputable website and beware of impersonation scams.

Pros of selling on third-party websites:

• You can sell skins for actual real money, since these websites offer real-world payment methods.
• Sellers are imposed with a lower transaction fee compared to the Steam Market, as third-party websites only take a 2 to 8% cut.

Cons of selling on third-party websites:

• There are higher risks of falling into scams or fraudulent activities. Experienced traders have no issues, but newer players become very vulnerable.
• Potential delays in deliveries and withdrawals, compared to Steam’s instant transactions on the Steam Market.
• More complicated transaction process compared to the Steam Market.

Things to do Before Selling on Third-party Websites

Before we tell you how to sell on third-party websites, there are two things to address.

Ensure Your Account Can Trade

First, you must ensure that your account does not have trading restrictions. Instead of selling the item directly to the market, users must send their skins to the website through a Steam Trade Offer.

So, we must check to see if your account has trading privileges. You must have Steam Guard enabled, which is Steam’s 2FA (two-factor authentication) system to trade skins from your account. After enabling Steam Guard, there is a 15-day waiting period before you can begin trading. Additionally, you must not have any ongoing trade bans that can come from breaking Steam rules.

Choosing the Correct Website

When choosing a third-party website to purchase from, make sure to pick a trusted and reputable platform so you do not get scammed. To check a website’s reputation, look for website reviews on places such as TrustPilot and see testimonials and feedback from community members.

Most prominent trading websites sponsor professional Counter-Strike teams, so you might see their logos on the player jerseys. Esports organizations will only partner up with trusted websites, so a trading site sponsoring a Tier 1 team is most likely a safe choice.

Security is also important. Make sure the website has security certifications such as SSL Encryption, and uses secure methods for making transactions. Do not go on a shady site that offers shady payment methods.

Good trading websites are very transparent with their fees. When transacting on these websites, the sellers are often paying the fee. So, look for a website that has low commissions so you can get the maximum value out of your sales.

Finally, ensure the website supports the payment methods you prefer. Don’t go selling your skins on a website blindly, only to see that you can’t withdraw your funds because there are no payment methods you can use. Some of the most trusted CSGO trading sites include:

• CS.Money
• BUFF163
• Skinport
• Bitskins
• DMarket

How to Sell Skins on Third-party Websites

The procedure to sell a skin on a third-party platform is more complicated than the Steam Market. Here are the steps.

• Log in to your Steam account on the third-party website. This will link your inventory and profile details to the website. 
• Now, select which skins you would like to list on the website. 
• After confirming the price, your skins will be listed on the marketplace unless you have chosen an instant sale option.
• Most trading sites are based on a Peer-to-Peer (P2P) system, so you must wait for a buyer to purchase the skin.
• Once the item has been sold, the website will tell you to send a trade offer containing the skin to the buyer. Make sure to triple-check the profile details to avoid getting scammed.
• After the buyer has received the item and completed the order, you will receive funds on the website.
• Using the website funds, you can purchase other Counter-Strike skins or withdraw the money using the payment methods available.

Remember that you must set competitive prices on your skins so buyers will be interested in purchasing them. Otherwise, your overpriced skins will be covered by other listings.