CS2 Knife Types: All 20 Knives and Their Cases
Updated · 5 min read
CS2 has 20 knife types, from the 2013 Karambit to the 2024 Kukri. See every knife, the cases that drop it, and what makes each blade look and move differently.
Counter-Strike 2 has 20 knife types, not counting the default T and CT knives that every player starts with. The first five date from 2013, when CS:GO’s Arms Deal update put knives into weapon cases, and the newest is the Kukri Knife, added with the Kilowatt Case in February 2024. Each one is a cosmetic rare special item (★) tied to specific cases, and the table below lists all 20.
All 20 CS2 knives at a glance
Knives are listed in the order they were added. Short case names are used, so « Spectrum » means the Spectrum Case. Knives without a link here can be found in the CSDROP wiki weapons index.
| Knife | Added | Cases | What sets it apart |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bayonet | 2013 | The 16 original-knife cases (listed below) | A straight military bayonet whose basic design goes back to World War II. |
| Flip Knife | 2013 | The 16 original-knife cases (listed below) | A folding knife with a back-swept, Persian-style blade and a fine point. |
| Gut Knife | 2013 | The 16 original-knife cases (listed below) | A hooked notch, the gut hook, is cut into the spine of the blade. |
| Karambit | 2013 | The 16 original-knife cases (listed below) | A claw-like curved blade, held in a reverse grip with a finger ring. |
| M9 Bayonet | 2013 | The 16 original-knife cases (listed below) | Based on the M9 rifle bayonet, a later military design than the plain Bayonet. |
| Huntsman Knife | 2014 | Huntsman Weapon Case, Spectrum, Spectrum 2, Operation Riptide, Dreams & Nightmares | A tactical fixed blade with an angular tanto point. |
| Butterfly Knife | 2014 | Operation Breakout, Spectrum, Spectrum 2, Operation Riptide, Dreams & Nightmares | A balisong whose two handles swing around the blade, which its flipping draw and inspect animations show off. |
| Falchion Knife | 2015 | Falchion Case, Spectrum, Spectrum 2, Operation Riptide, Dreams & Nightmares | A curved clip-point blade modelled on the medieval falchion sword. |
| Shadow Daggers | 2015 | Shadow Case, Spectrum, Spectrum 2, Operation Riptide, Dreams & Nightmares | A pair of push daggers, one in each hand, swung like punches. |
| Bowie Knife | 2016 | Operation Wildfire, Spectrum, Spectrum 2, Operation Riptide, Dreams & Nightmares | A full-tang survival knife with a sawback spine. |
| Navaja Knife | 2018 | Horizon, Danger Zone, Prisma, Prisma 2 | A small Spanish-style folding knife with a marbled enamel handle and a tapered blade. |
| Stiletto Knife | 2018 | Horizon, Danger Zone, Prisma, Prisma 2 | An Italian-style switchblade with a spring-loaded blade. |
| Talon Knife | 2018 | Horizon, Danger Zone, Prisma, Prisma 2 | A karambit-style curved blade with an ivory handle, brass rivets and toothed ridges. |
| Ursus Knife | 2018 | Horizon, Danger Zone, Prisma, Prisma 2 | A fixed tanto-point survival knife with a faceted blade and a striking pommel. |
| Classic Knife | 2019 | CS20 Case | The knife from earlier Counter-Strike games, brought back for the series’ 20th anniversary. |
| Nomad Knife | 2019 | Shattered Web, Fracture, Fever | A folding lock-blade hunting knife with a broad, sturdy blade. |
| Paracord Knife | 2019 | Shattered Web, Fracture, Fever | A fixed-blade survival knife with paracord wrapped around the handle. |
| Skeleton Knife | 2019 | Shattered Web, Fracture, Fever | An open, skeletonized frame with a taped grip and a finger hole. |
| Survival Knife | 2019 | Shattered Web, Fracture, Fever | A tactical knife with a serrated edge, a gut hook and a handle held on by hex nuts. |
| Kukri Knife | 2024 | Kilowatt, Gallery | A forward-curving blade in the shape of the traditional Nepalese kukri. |
The original five knives (2013)
The Bayonet, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Karambit and M9 Bayonet always appear together. All five drop from the same 16 cases:
- Original finishes: CS:GO Weapon Case, CS:GO Weapon Case 2 and 3, Operation Bravo, Winter Offensive, Operation Phoenix, eSports 2013, eSports 2013 Winter, eSports 2014 Summer, Operation Vanguard and the Revolver Case.
- Chroma finishes: Chroma Case (January 2015), Chroma 2 (April 2015) and Chroma 3 (April 2016).
- Gamma finishes: Gamma Case (June 2016) and Gamma 2 (August 2016).
The Chroma cases gave these knives six new finishes: Doppler, Marble Fade, Tiger Tooth, Damascus Steel, Rust Coat and Ultraviolet. The Gamma cases added six more: Gamma Doppler, Lore, Autotronic, Black Laminate, Bright Water and Freehand. With the 12 original finishes and the unpainted vanilla version, each of the five comes in 25 versions.
Chroma-era knives (2014 to 2016)
Five new knives arrived between 2014 and 2016, the same stretch in which the Chroma cases refreshed the original five. Each one launched as the only rare special item in its own case:
- Huntsman Knife: Huntsman Weapon Case, May 2014
- Butterfly Knife: Operation Breakout Weapon Case, July 2014 (Valve’s Operation Breakout post)
- Falchion Knife: Falchion Case, May 2015, during Operation Bloodhound
- Shadow Daggers: Shadow Case, September 2015
- Bowie Knife: Operation Wildfire Case, February 2016
In 2017 the Spectrum and Spectrum 2 cases brought these five back in the six Chroma finishes. The Operation Riptide Case (September 2021) and the Dreams & Nightmares Case (January 2022) then gave them the Gamma finishes, so this group has the same 25 versions per knife as the originals.
Knives added in 2018 and 2019
The Horizon Case (August 2018) introduced four knives at once: the Navaja, Stiletto, Talon and Ursus. They returned in the Danger Zone Case (December 2018), then in Chroma finishes in the Prisma Case (March 2019) and the Prisma 2 Case (March 2020).
Five more followed in 2019. The CS20 Case, released in October 2019 for Counter-Strike’s 20th anniversary, holds the Classic Knife, which is still the only knife found in just one case. Operation Shattered Web added the Nomad, Paracord, Skeleton and Survival knives in November 2019. The Fracture Case (August 2020) reused them in original finishes, and the Fever Case (March 2025) gave them Chroma finishes for the first time.
None of these nine knives has Gamma finishes. The Classic Knife also has no Chroma finishes, only the 12 original finishes and its vanilla version.
The Kukri Knife and the CS2 era
The Kukri Knife is the only knife added since Counter-Strike 2 launched. It arrived on February 6, 2024 in the Kilowatt Case with the original finishes (Valve’s February 6, 2024 release notes), then returned in the Gallery Case, which came out through the Armory on October 2, 2024. Like the Classic Knife, it has only the original finishes.
The Fever Case, added to the Armory on March 31, 2025, brought no new knife model. Its rare special items are the four Shattered Web knives in Chroma finishes.
Cases are no longer the only way to get a new knife. Since October 22, 2025, a trade up contract can turn five Covert items into a knife from the collection of one of the items you put in. Five StatTrak Covert items return a StatTrak knife, and five regular Covert items return a regular knife or a pair of gloves (the October 22, 2025 update notes).
FAQ
How many knife types are in CS2?
There are 20, from the five 2013 originals to the Kukri Knife added in February 2024. The default T and CT knives are not counted, because every player has them without owning an item.
Do different knives play differently?
No. Every knife is cosmetic and deals the same damage as the default knife. In April 2017 Valve also unified the deploy time of all knives at exactly 1.0 seconds (release notes for April 20, 2017). What differs is the model and its animations.
Which knives have Doppler and Gamma Doppler finishes?
Doppler, part of the Chroma set, exists on 18 knives: every type except the Classic Knife and the Kukri Knife. Gamma Doppler is limited to the ten knives added before 2017, meaning the original five plus the Huntsman, Butterfly, Falchion, Shadow Daggers and Bowie.
Can you get a knife without opening a case?
Yes. You can trade for one or buy one from another player on the Steam Community Market, and since October 2025 a trade up contract of five Covert items can produce one. The knife always comes from the collection of one of the items you put in.
Put it to use on CSDROP
Open cases, battle other players and upgrade your skins, with provably fair results.