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CSGO/CS2 Launch Options

Launch options are, as you might've guessed from the name, options (or "settings") that apply when you launch Counter-Strike 2. They can do all sorts of things including changing your client's tickrate, setting your FPS, defining an autoexec and adjusting technical settings.
Launch Options icon

Launch Options Guide

Best Launch Options in 2024

Counter-Strike is known for allowing players to customize as many settings as they’d like, ensuring they have the best gaming experience possible. On top of console commands, Valve has also given players the opportunity to explore launch options, which can further enhance how a player’s Counter-Strike client runs.

What Are CSGO Launch Options?

In CSGO, launch options are command arguments that can change the behavior of how a player’s Counter-Strike client will behave and launch. 

Most launch options are used to improve the performance of the game or to customize certain aspects of in-game settings. Overall, it is recommended that only advanced users mess with launch options, but at the end of this guide, you’ll already be an expert in them. 

As the name suggests, launch options are options that will be applied every time you boot up Counter-Strike, so you don’t have to adjust the same settings every single time you launch the game.  

Where Are CSGO Launch Options Located?

Unlike in-game settings and console commands, launch options are not found within the Counter-Strike client. Instead, you can mess with them directly through the Steam client. 

Here is a step-by-step guide of how you can navigate to your CSGO launch options:

Launch the Steam client. 

Next, go to the Library section which will display a list of all your Steam games.

Then, look for Counter-Strike Global Offensive in the list of games.

CS2 Properties

Right-click on CSGO and hit the Properties button.

In the new window that is opened, click on the General settings.

Finally, look for the section that reads “Launch Options.” 

CS2 Launch Options

You can enter your desired launch options in the text box provided. Launch options are separated by a space. You should not enter any commas or hyphens to separate multiple launch options.

Launch Options Everybody Should Be Using

We told a white lie when we said that launch options aren’t a “one size fits all” tool. There are some launch options that will be useful for everyone, but the benefit they provide can be fairly small, so to be clear: they aren’t a magic solution for bad aim!

Make sure not to separate any of these commands with commas, as Steam will only use spaces to separate launch options. Feel free to remove any of them you don’t want. 

Now that we’ve understood what launch options are and where to locate them, here is a complete list of the best launch options you should consider using. Most of these options are intended to enhance your game’s performance and increase your FPS.

After you have read what all the launch options above will do to your game, you can fit all of them into your launch options with no limit. If you want to include all of the options listed above, you can copy and paste this combination of launch options and be on your way!

-console -novid -nojoy -fullscreen -tickrate 128 -high -freq 144 -d3d9ex +fps_max 0 +clI_forcepreload 1 +r_drawparticles 0 +r_dynamic 0
What Do These Do?
-console
This launch option is used to enable the developer console for Counter-Strike permanently. You can also activate it through the in-game settings, but it could be disabled if you reset all your settings to its default state. So, we highly recommend enabling the console through your launch options.
-novid
This launch option will disable the annoying trailer video that is played every time you launch Counter-Strike Global Offensive. We’ve all seen the intro video a million times, and all it does is slow down the launching of your game. So, turning it off will result in faster boot-up times.
-nojoy
For some reason, Counter-Strike automatically enables joystick support for players who play the game using controllers. If you are not planning to play using a joystick controller in the future, this launch command will disable joystick support. Doing this will improve your game’s performance, and you should expect a slight FPS boost.
-fullscreen
This launch option will force Counter-Strike to permanently run in full screen mode, which is ideal to get the best performance out of your laptop or computer. You will see a significant FPS boost playing in full screen compared to full screen windowed. Additionally, this launch option ensures your cursor won’t slip to your other display if you’re running double monitors.
-tickrate 128
Global Offensive is notoriously known for running their servers on 64 ticks, which is not ideal and makes the game feel a little choppy. Fans demand Valve to run their servers on 128 ticks, which will provide players with a seamless experience. For now, you can only use this launch option to run your private matches on 128 ticks to see how it feels.
-freq 144
This launch option is used to adjust your game’s frequency and refresh rate. In the example provided, we’ve set the value to 144, which supports monitors with a 144 Hz display. You can change the values between 60, 75, 12, 144, 165, 240, 265, 285, or 360 depending on your monitor’s refresh rate.
-d3d9ex:
This launch option is used to turn on Direct3D 9Ex technology, which is what “d3d9ex” stands for. This essentially unloads a computer’s processor at 40%, which may help computers run Counter-Strike better if it is played in full screen mode. However, this launch option doesn’t help everyone, so make sure to run a test before permanently keeping it in your launch options list.
+fps_max 0
This launch option is used to adjust the maximum frames per second your game can get. By changing the value to 0, we are essentially removing the limit, allowing your computer to get as many frames as possible. However, removing the cap could lead to mild FPS drops and fluctuations.
+cl_forcepreload 1
This launch option is used to load everything in the game before loading in. If this launch option is enabled, you might notice that loading into a match will take way longer, but you will have better performances when playing since everything is already loaded in. This is a highly recommended launch option for players with weak setups.
+r_drawparticles 0
Like any other video game, Counter-Strike also has particle effects that add detail to the game’s graphics. However, particle effects are incredibly small and barely noticeable. This launch option is used to remove particles which will give you a noticeable performance boost.
+r_dynamic 0
This launch option is used to disable dynamic lighting, which is a visual detail that only serves for aesthetic purposes. If you don’t care too much about how nice your game looks, enabling this launch option will result in slight improvements in performance.
-softparticlesdefaultoff
may increase the performance of CS2 by disabling the blending of particle effects with the background. This reduces the load on your graphics card (meaning there's more GPU power for other graphics-related processing).
-high
isn't a launch option that we've included in the above copy text because it can cause some issues for a small portion of computers. It will make the CS2 process higher priority, and therefore, your computer will give resources (RAM, CPU, etc) to CS2 instead
+violence_hblood 0
may not work for later CS2 versions. Some sources are reporting that it works on their setup but we couldn't confirm this after testing on several different PCs. It should remove blood from the game. We've added it to this list because at worst it will do nothing and at best, it will work for a sizeable portion of users.

CS2 Launch Options Used By Professionals

Professional players are geared with the best computers, so they don’t have to worry about performance issues and cutting graphics for better performance. However, they still use several non-performance launch options to optimize their game. So, if you do not have a low-performing setup and wonder what launch options to use, maybe this section of the article will help! 

Here are a few examples of launch options that professional players use:

 

  • dev1ce: -console -novid -freq 360 -tickrate 128 +exec config.cfg 
  • TenZ: -freq 240 -novid -tickrate 128
  • XANTARES: -freq 360 -novid -console -tickrate 128 -d3d9ex
  • b1t: +fps_max 500 -freq 360 -console -tickrate 128 -novid 
  • YEKINDAR: -novid -console -tickrate 128 +fps_max 999

 

We can conclude that the three most-used launch options in Counter-Strike are: -novid, -console, and -tickrate 128. 

Autoexec Launch Options

An autoexec launch option isn't needed for CS2 but the command does still work, so we've included the steps to set this up below.

An autoexec is simply a text file with a list of commands that are executed when you start CS2. This is useful because often commands will return to their default value when you restart your game, commands in your autoexec will keep their values.

After placing your autoexec file (named autoexec.cfg) in the “SteamSteamAppscommonCounter-Strike Global Offensivecs2cfg” folder, set the following launch option to make it work:

+exec autoexec.cfg

If your autoexec file isn’t named autoexec.cfg, replace +violence_hblood 0 with the name of your autoexec file.

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Launch Options List

Below you can find a list of all known (and working) launch options for CS2 on Steam. Note that launch options starting with + are actually just console commands (cvars) but work as launch options as well – we have included these are they are commonly mislabeled as launch options, and may be useful for some players.

-vulkan
This launch option switches your game's rendering API from DirectX 11 to Vulkan. Vulkan is a newer 3D graphics API (released in 2016) that, depending on what components your computer users, may improve CS2 performance.
-dxlevel [60 / 70 / 80 / 81 / 90 / 91 / 95 / 98 / 100 / 110]
This launch option sets your game's DirectX API version. 110 is the current value used in CS2 (DirectX 11). It's only recommended that you change this if you are having issues with DirectX 11.
-allow_third_party_software
This launch option allows third party applications to interfere with CS2. Some software like OBS Game Capture may not work without this launch option. IMPORTANT NOTE: this command can lower your Trust Factor which may affect your matchmaking experience (it is not known whether or not it does for sure or the level of effect it may have).
-fullscreen
This launch option forces CS2 to start in fullscreen mode.
-fullscreen
This launch option will force CS2 to start in fullscreen mode.
-refresh [refresh rate here]
This launch option will set the refresh rate of your game, simply replace [refresh rate] with your screen's refresh rate for maximum performance. The refresh rate is in (hz) which will be specified on the monitor you have.
+exec [file name]
This launch option will execute all commands within a certain file - simply replace [file name] with the name of the file that you want to be executed which is usually located in "SteamSteamAppscommonCounter-Strike-2csgocfg" folder.
+mat_disable_fancy_blending 1
This launch option disables fancy blending of texture resources within the game, and can often improve your FPS.
+cl_forcepreload 1
This is a common console command that is used to force the games preloaded models.
-high
This launch option makes CS2 run at the "highest priority" on your system. In turn, this means that CS2 will run at the highest priority and prioritise it over applications that are currently running on your system
-low
This is the exact opposite of the -high launch option. Thus setting CS2 to the lowest priority, can affect in-game performance.
-softparticlesdefaultoff
This launch option makes CS2 render particles without the featuring feature, sometimes known as (scene depth blending).
+fps_max [amount]
This launch option will set the maximum frames per second that your game will run at. You will need to replace [amount with the amount of fps that you want to set your game to Setting it to 0 ("-fps_max 0") will remove any limit, making your game run at the highest FPS possible that your system is capable of.
-nohltv
This launch option will turn off all TV source features.
-console
This launch option will make the client open the console by default on launch.
-nojoy
This launch option makes the game get rid of the joystick functionality which can decrease the amount of RAM it uses. Allowing your in game performance to improve.
-forcenovsync
This launch option will force CS2 not to use VSync. VSync will sync the vertical refresh rate of your monitor to the FPS of your game. VSync is known to prevent screen tearing. However it has been to known to cause input lag, so using this launch option is not recommended.
-threads [amount]
This launch option will set the amount of processor threads that the game will use for example (_threads 8 will make CS2 use 8 threads.) It's not recommended to use this option and it can cause system instability, the game is developed to ensure it maximises thread usage without the need for this specific launch option.
+violence_hblood 0
This launch option will remove blood from the game. If you want to remove blood & gore from your game then this is the command to use. It has also been noted to improve FPS slightly.
-language [language name]
This launch option within CS2 will set the default language to use replace [language name] with "-language English" will make CS2 start in default English.
-width [width]
This launch option will set the width of your in-game CS2 window for example (width 1080) will set the width to 1080.
-height [height]
This launch option will set the height of your CS2 window in pixels (height 1080) will set the height to 1080.
-x [position horizontally]
This launch option will set the position of your CS2 window on the X-axis on your monitor.
-y [position vertically]
This launch option will set the position of your CS2 window on the Y-axis on your monitor.
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Frequently Asked Questions

Since launch options are intended for advanced users, it’s natural to have certain questions or doubts surrounding them. Here are some frequent questions surrounding launch options that we hope will clarify your doubts.

Why should I use launch options?

Launch options are primarily used to enhance your Counter-Strike client’s performance, often resulting in a boost in frames per second. Additionally, certain launch options can help you customize your settings to make the game feel better. 

Where can I find the CSGO launch options?

Counter-Strike launch options are not found within the in-game client. Instead, you can find the launch options in your Steam client. Go to your Steam Library and go to Counter-Strike’s Properties section. Then, find the launch options section under General settings. 

How do I set CSGO launch options?

The launch options section will include a text box, which is where you will input your desired options. You can immediately type in your launch options and separate multiple options by using a space. 

Can I use multiple launch options?

Yes, you can always use multiple launch options at a time. Valve has not set a limit to how many launch options you can input, so feel free to include as many as you’d like. Just remember to separate these commands using a space, not a comma. 

How do I remove a launch option?

If you don’t like what a specific launch option is doing to your game, you can always remove it easily. Go to your launch options section and simply delete the option from the text box. Additionally, you can also remove all your launch options by deleting everything.