How much do CS2 players earn: million-dollar salaries even without tournaments

Counter-Strike 2 is considered one of the top games in esports in terms of viewership, sponsorship, and income. While this esports discipline does not have the highest earnings in terms of prize money when compared to Dota 2, that does not mean players do not earn millions at the same time.

Coaches operating in this branch of esports do not only earn considerable sums competing in tournaments but are also sponsored, shift stages, and sign ad deals and transfer contracts.

Earnings of Professional Players in CS2

At relevant esports competitions, professional players win considerable amounts. For instance, a team that wins a Major can expect approximately a million dollars and the biggest percent is shared among the players. According to HLTV, in the last year, Natus Vincere’s s1mple earned more than $500,000 solely from prize money.

As with any industry, it’s crucial that players are compensated by the franchises they sign with and get paid through sponsorships. Esports superstars like dev1ce from Astralis can expect a salary upwards of $250,000 to $500,000 a year from their teams less other bonuses and sponsorships from companies such as HyperX or Intel To better put this into perspective, players have the potential of making millions of dollars due to advertisement and team salaries alone when compared to tournament prize winnings.

Credit: PGL/Astralis

Streaming is equally a great source of income. A lot of players bring in thousands of dollars on a monthly basis from streaming platforms such as Twitch and YouTube due to advertisements, subscriptions, and donations. NAVI's player s1mple is widely known for his great income through streaming, and it’s quite possible that his earnings from his streams may surpass the salary of most CS2 clubs combined.

Salaries of Pro-Players in CS2

The wages paid to professional players of Counter Strike 2 are very diverse based on the countries they come from, the rank of their team, and the personal skills of each player.

How Much The Highest Level Teams Pay Their Players:

• Astralis: Players such as dupreeh (Peter Rasmussen) and dev1ce (Nicolai Reedtz) were able to accumulate prize earnings of over $2 million throughout their careers spanning csgos and cs2s. However, some team salaries may not be as lucrative. Per various sources, it appears that dev1ce type players can earn in the region of $40,000 monthly which is corroborated in several reports like Mauisnake's analyses and from the former players themselves.

• Natus Vincere (NAVI): s1mple (Oleksandr Kostyljev) is one of the richest players with his prize money earnings crossing the $1.7 million mark. From the analyses, NAVI’s salaries apart from s1mple look to be approximately only $120,000 monthly for the whole roster which means that each player can get paid $20,000-$25,000. However, with regards to s1mple, considering his fame and his records, it is no doubt that his earnings would most likely be significantly more.

• FaZe Clan: Based on salary estimates for the best clubs, players earn on average $37,500 during a month which means that stars of the team, like rain (Håvard Nygaard), might have around that value or even higher.

• Team Liquid: Based on the stats, players in Team Liquid receive between $20,000 and $35,000 monthly, which is determined by their position and accomplishments. For example, Twistzz (Russel Van Dulken), who is a key asset to the team, is probably paid more than the lower limit of this range.

Salaries In Tier-2/3 Teams:

• Tier-2/Tier-3 Teams: Newer professional teams who lack significant media backing may earn roughly $1,000 per player per month, while those that actively compete in online tournaments can earn $1,000 - $1,500. This is not a lot compared to the top teams, but it is still a healthy amount for players looking to build their career.

• Regional Differences: In the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States), salaries of players could be lower than that in Europe or the US. For example, players from the upper echelon of CIS teams (top-10) might receive salaries ranging from $700 to $1,200 a month, with the best teams being able to pay upwards of $2,000. If a CIS team breaks into the top-10 global rankings, salaries could go up to $15,000 a month for each player.

The Wealthiest CS2 Players

Dupreeh is currently the richest player in CS 2, having earned no less than $2.2 million throughout his career. It is worth noting that this figure constitutes only his prize money income, and varies significantly from his salary, advertising deals, or sponsorships, which could be more than several times his prize money earnings.

Coaching Earnings in CS2

Most coaches in CS2 teams are on a fixed salary which can be anywhere between $50,000 to as much as $150,000 a year depending on how famous the coach is or how well the team does. Astralis’ coach, zonic, benefits from them being one of the best performing teams in world competitions, hence he is one of the most sought after coaches.

Also, coaches can make money from consulting, public master classes, or providing analysis for media. These multiple streams of revenue can significantly increase their annual earnings.

A lot of CS2 coaches begin their careers as players and switch to coaching once they retire from their playing careers, this allows them to use their skills and reputation for more money. Most importantly, once a player retires, they may not lose value, rather it is the opposite as they might become sought-after commodities for many clubs for their experience or reputation. Many pro gamers turned coaches tend to take advantage of this fact as well.

The Richest CS2 Clubs

They also receive millions from competition, however, it should be pointed out that their income does not primarily come from this prize money. While the prize money may be lucrative, they do not rely on it. The richest club at the moment secondo Esports Earnings is Astralis, a team that has participated in 172 tournaments and has grossed almost 10 million dollars from them. To some, that number might seem small, but in addition to competitions, the team has earned millions from advertising and sponsorship deals, however, the exact amounts are not clear.

Top players and coaches can earn a lot of money from tournaments, contracts, streaming, and sponsorships. However, in the CS2 world the income is highly dispersed.

On the contrary, having relevant expertise or coaching and the required skills are not the only factors that guarantees career success in this domain. In particular, the capability to manage one's personal brand and marketplace competition is at its peak. If managed properly, to the right media, social network, and events, athletes can make significant profit without ever stepping foot in a competition or after their career in professional CS2 is over.