All You Need To Know About CS2 Autoexec Files

Counter-Strike 2 is one of the world’s most customizable games. You can change many settings in the CS2 developer console.

The annoying issue is that they are often lost when the game is restarted. So, to avoid retyping game settings, many gamers have turned to a CS2 Autoexec.

It’s just a matter of time until you start toying around with the idea of personalizing your CS2 experience. Whether you’ve previously played around with the many customization options doesn’t matter. We’ll show you how to create an Autoexec config file for CS2 that will protect your hard work.

What Is a CS2 Autoexec?

A CS2 autoexec is a CS2 game configuration file containing your custom settings. With Autoexec, you can save your settings (such as CS2 crosshairs and buy bindings, sensitivity, and so on) to the game’s local files and have the game automatically load these settings whenever you start the game.

Moreover, thanks to this feature, you can rapidly load up your settings. That’s a huge time-saver. When you play at a LAN or on another computer, you can just copy over your own CS2 autoexec file.

As a result, other players’ and CS2 pro configs are now available to you. Then you may play the game with their config if you’d want to see how they play. It’s simple to change the config and return straight to how it was.

NOTE: Always back up any files you create if they need to be updated or reinstalled.

The benefit of using autoexec cfg files is that your settings can be restored with a simple drag and drop, saving time and effort. That’s especially handy for long-time players who use many custom values and would otherwise have to keep a list of them.

CS2 Autoexec Files for Newbies and Hidden File Extensions

Counter-Strike newbies may find their CS2 Autoexec not working correctly. Why? Because it takes a two-step process to ensure your CS2 Autoexec file functions.

First, open File Explorer. In Windows 10, click the “View” tab at the top. In Windows 11, click “View” → “Show”.

Then check “File name extensions”. From now on, the extension of every file is shown in its name, so you can see whether a file really ends in .cfg.

This matters because a file created in Notepad can end up named autoexec.cfg.txt, which CS2 won’t load. With extensions visible, you can make sure the file is saved as a proper autoexec.cfg.

How to Create an Autoexec for CS2?

As long as you know what you’re doing, creating an Autoexec isn’t tricky. We recommend Notepad++, since it is easy to use and free to download. To make an Autoexec, follow these steps:

1. Open your game’s CS2 config folder. Right-click on Counter-Strike 2 in your Steam library, choose “Manage”, then “Browse local files”.
2. You’ll see an extensive list of files and folders, but don’t be alarmed. Open the “game” folder, then “csgo”, then “cfg” (the full path is usually Steam\steamapps\common\Counter-Strike Global Offensive\game\csgo\cfg).
3. Make use of the right-click menu and choose “New” -> “Text Document.” When you create this file, name it “autoexec.txt” for now.
4. Open up your newly created autoexec.txt file and type in your preferred CS2 console commands, one per line. On the last line, type “host_writeconfig”, which saves your settings to the game’s config.
5. Press ‘File’ -> ‘Save As’ after creating your Autoexec lines. You must double-check your spelling and save the file as “autoexec.cfg”.
6. Your autoexec is now ready to run. The old autoexec.txt file will still be there, but you can delete it. You can edit your autoexec later in Notepad++ by right-clicking it and choosing “Edit with Notepad++”.

How to Run Autoexec in CS2?

Now that you’ve created your CS2 autoexec, add a launch option in your Steam library so the game runs it every time it starts.

1. Access the game by right-clicking on CS2.
2. Select ‘Properties’.
3. On the “General” tab, find the “Launch Options” field.
4. Type in “+exec autoexec.cfg” and close the window.

You are now ready to launch CS2 with your config file!

Best CS2 Autoexec Configuration

There are countless Autoexec configurations out there, each tailored by the personal preferences of different players. In our opinion, these are the best CS2 autoexec settings. Some popular CS:GO tweaks no longer exist in CS2, and we’ve marked them below:

1. Moves the gun model closer to approximate CSS positioning:

• viewmodel_fov “65”
• viewmodel_offset_x “2”
• viewmodel_offset_y “2”
• viewmodel_offset_z “-2”

2. Eliminates arm swiveling during squatting:

• Not available in CS2: the CS:GO commands cl_viewmodel_shift_left_amt and cl_viewmodel_shift_right_amt were removed, so there is no console setting for this anymore.

3. When you run, the weapon doesn’t bobble back and forth:

• Not available in CS2: the CS:GO bob commands (cl_bob_lower_amt, cl_bobamt_lat, cl_bobamt_vert) were removed, so weapon bobbing can’t be turned off from the console.

4. Scales the HUD. In CS2 the range is 0.9 to 1.1 and 1 is the default:

• hud_scaling “1”

5. Sound delay:

• snd_mixahead was a popular CS:GO tweak. In CS2 its default is already 0.001, far below the old “0.05” value, so leave it out of your autoexec.

6. Values for interpolation:

• cl_interp no longer exists in CS2.
• cl_interp_ratio still exists (the default is 2), but with CS2’s sub-tick system we recommend leaving it at the default.

7. Typical rate commands:

• cl_cmdrate and cl_updaterate no longer exist in CS2, which uses sub-tick updates instead of these tick-rate settings.
• rate still exists, but there’s no need to set it in your autoexec, so leave it at the default.

Using the CS2 Config File of a Pro Player

To use the settings of the best CS2 players, you need a copy of their config or a list of their settings. Our CS2 pro settings and configs page lists the settings of many pros. For example, if you want to try NiKo’s CS2 settings, find them there and copy the values you want into your own autoexec.

We suggest that you establish a backup folder for your configuration before beginning this procedure. We like to store this on the desktop, but this is, of course, up to you.

Final Verdict

Adjusting settings in CS2 is easy using the configuration and Autoexec files. Most professional CS2 players have a custom config. Autoexec may access options not available in-game and offer you a little edge over others unaware of this. That is also why Valve and the CS2 developers make more choices accessible in-game.

We hope this advice was helpful, and if you have any comments or suggestions, please do so by reaching out. Also, if you want to trade CS2 skins, be sure to check out SkinsMonkey, where you can trade CS2 items with low fees.

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