CS2 Spray Patterns: 2025 Tutorial

Each CS2 and CSGO player knows that a part of the reason for its popularity is the high skill ceiling. The game features a wide variety of mechanics that players can take advantage of and master. CS2 and CSGO spray patterns are only one of them.

Mastering the spray patterns is the most important skill you need to learn if you want to play at higher CS2 ranks. Here’s everything you need to know to improve your CS2 spray patterns control.

In this article we will be focusing on spray patterns and recoil compensation in CS.

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What Are CS2 Spray Patterns

Each and every weapon in Counter-Strike 2 has its own recoil.

Recoil is responsible for making your gun less accurate during continuous fire, especially in automatic firing mode. The longer you fire your weapon, the more your aim deviates from where you are aiming your CS2 crosshair. This is done to emulate the behaviour of guns in real life and provide players with a more immersive experience.

Recoil vs Inaccuracy

It is no secret that recoil plays a huge role. However, it’s not the only factor. Many new CS2 players assume that recoil is to blame for their missed shots, but inaccuracy also plays a huge role as well.

Inaccuracy is the additional bullet deviation created by various outside factors, such as walking, crouching, jumping, surfing, etc. It can vary from one gun to another and there is no way to compensate for inaccuracy since it is random.

CS2 Weapon recoil, on the other handisn’t random and always follows a specific pattern. Each weapon has a unique CS2 spray pattern. Some weapons have a tight spread while others tend to shoot all over the place. While it’s definitely inconvenient, players can compensate for the CS2 spray patterns by strategically moving their mouse to control weapon recoil.

What Spray Patterns and Recoil Do Guns Have?

As mentioned above, each weapon in Counter Strike: Global Offensive and CS2 has a unique spray pattern. However, the majority of guns tend to deviate upwards when you start shooting from them before they deviate to the left or right. Others start by swaying to either of the sides before deviating upward.

When a weapon is fired continuously, its spray pattern becomes more pronounced, making it essential to understand and control the recoil. If you want to learn the gun’s spray pattern in CS2, the best way to do that is to just fire your weapon for a longer amount of time. You should be able to trace the spray pattern by the bullet holes left.

If we look at the popular AK-47, we will notice that its spray pattern starts by climbing upward while slightly swaying to the left at the same time. Once it reaches its peak, it starts swaying to the right before, and afterwards to the left again. The only way to stop this movement is to stop firing the gun or spend your entire magazine.

Weapons in CS2 can be divided into two categories based on their spray patterns. The first would include weapons that mostly deviate upward with additional sideways movement such as the M4A4, GALIL, FAMAS and AK-47. The other category would consist of guns that have deviated only slightly upward and have no sideways movements such as P2000, Glock-18, SCAR-20, G3SG1, and USP-S.

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Description of CS2 Gun Spray Patterns 

• AK-47

The AK-47 spray pattern tends to climb upwards while at the same time moving to the left. Once it reaches the highest point, the spray pattern moves to the right and then left. Afterward, the spray pattern goes to the right and then keeps alternating from one side to the other. Using burst firing can help control the recoil and improve accuracy during medium-range encounters.

• GALIL

GALIL spray pattern tends to climb upwards similarly to the spray patterns of other assault rifles, however, instead of alternating from left to right, the GALIL spray pattern tends to start swaying to the right, but quickly changes to the opposite side. In the same fashion afterward, it quickly sways in the opposite direction.

• SG 553

When it comes to the recoil and spray pattern of the SG 553, we can say that it is the opposite of the GALIL. This means that instead of the spray pattern being left-oriented, the spray pattern of SG 553 is biased to the right. However, once the recoil reaches its zenith, the pattern will start alternating from side to side with a small dip in the middle.

• G3SG1

The G3SG1 has great accuracy by default so its spray pattern and recoil are easily manageable as a result of that. The spray pattern of the G3SG1 tends to only slightly deviate upwards.

• FAMAS

FAMAS spray pattern tends to quickly go from one side to the other, starting on the right while at the same time deviating upward. The recoil creates a smooth curve and then quickly pulls towards one side.

• M4A1-S

The M4A1-S spray pattern is similar to the spray patterns of the AK-47 and the M4A4, as it tends to climb up until it peaks and then tends to alternate between the left and right sides. It is worth noting that compared to the M4A4, the M4A1-S has a slightly lesser vertical recoil.

• AUG

The AUG recoil pattern always deviates upward until it reaches its peak. Only then, the pattern tends to go sideways. The thing that separates the AUG from other weapons is that its upwards recoil is bigger. The pattern tends to stay the same even when using the scope, however, the bullet spread decreases slightly.

• SCAR-20

Similar to the G3SG1, the SCAR-20 is an extremely accurate rifle straight out of the box, and just like the G3SG1, it has a similar spray pattern with only slight upward and downward deviation.

• MAC-10

Just like the majority of submachine guns in Counter-Strike 2, the MAC-10’s spray pattern deviates horizontally, 15 degrees towards the left to be precise.

• MP7

The MP7 recoil pattern is somewhat unique when it comes to SMGs. It tends to pull slightly to the left, then changes direction while deviating upwards. Once it reaches the peak, the recoil deviates entirely to the left.

• UMP-45

The UMP-45 has a curve to its recoil pattern. When fired, the bullets deviate slightly to the right before changing their direction and deviating to the left while pulling upward at the same time.

• PP-Bizon

The PP-Bizon is a gun that has the most unique spray pattern and is most difficult to master when compared to most guns in the game. The first few shots tend to deviate to the right while those fired afterward tend to sway your gun to the left with the rest of the shots clumping up.

• P90

The recoil pattern of the P90 is very similar to the recoil pattern of the counter-strike assault rifles, however, compared to them, it has more sideways movement. The spray pattern starts by deviating to the left before going upward and then returning to the center.

• NEGEV

The Negev is a machine gun whose spray pattern varies. With that being said, it usually deviates upwards whereupon reaching its peak, it tends to move chaotically and unpredictably, so it can be somewhat difficult to master Negev recoil compensation.

• M249

Like every CS2 machine gun, the M249 spray pattern is huge. The recoil pattern starts by deviating to the left and then to the opposite side while at the same time, constantly deviating upwards. Once you spend around half of your magazine, the spray pattern changes and starts deviating downwards.

• P2000

The P2000 spray only deviates your aim upwards, so recoil control isn’t that difficult.

• Glock-18

The Glock-18 has an extremely tight bullet spread, with the majority of your shots fired deviating your gun upwards, and only a few of them causing your gun to go sideways.

• M4A4

The M4A4 Assault Rifle spray pattern is very similar to the spray patterns of the AK-47. The recoil first climbs up, then alternates between the left and right sides. » Check out the best M4A4 skins according to SkinsMonkey!

• USP-S

The USP-S is an extremely accurate pistol, and its recoil and spray pattern are very easy to manage since the gun tends to only push upwards and doesn’t deviate to the sides.

How To Control Spray And Recoil Compensation

There are a couple of ways you can go about when it comes to managing recoil and controlling your spray pattern. The easiest way to do so is to simply stop firing your weapon for a few seconds and let it reset its crosshairs. This strategy is not optimal though as it limits the fire rate of the weapon.

A much better way to control CS2 recoil and spray patterns is to move your mouse in the opposite direction of the recoil pattern of the weapon. This is not simple to do and requires a lot of practice. However, two of the most important factors that you should focus on are getting the movement right and getting the timing right. Adjusting your mouse sensitivity can also play a crucial role in improving your control over the weapon’s recoil as well.

This means that simply moving the mouse in the opposite direction of the recoil and learning the pattern of the weapon is not enough. To successfully compensate for your recoil you will have to move your mouse in a specific way at a specific time when the bullet is being fired and not overcompensate for your shots. Developing muscle memory through consistent practice is key to mastering recoil control.

How To Figure Out The Recoil Pattern

The easiest way to figure out a spray pattern of a weapon is to simply start your CS2 and join an empty server. From there, simply pick up your favorite weapon and fire at a blank wall. While firing, take note of the way your weapon moves. Afterwards, get closer to the wall and inspect the bullet holes that you made. Doing this will give you a good idea about the spray pattern of your chosen weapon.

Alternatively, you can head to any of the numerous websites that show the bullet spread patterns of all CS2 weapons. Many of these sites also show the pattern that you should follow in order to compensate for the recoil of your weapon as well as the timing.

Alternatively, you can use the Recoil Master map to practice and learn the recoil patterns of various weapons.

Tips And Tricks To Master CS2 Spray Pattern

• Practice makes perfect

In order to master any specific skill, you need a lot of practice, and CS2 spray patterns are no different. The only way to get better at controlling the bullet spread of your favorite weapon is to practice with it. Start by firing at a wall until you feel that you have gained control over the spray pattern. Once you do, try out your new skills in a live match against other players. Incorporating strategic positioning and movement techniques can help maintain accuracy during gameplay.

• Baby Steps

Counter-Strike 2 has a plethora of weapons to choose from, and thinking about having to master the spray pattern for each and every one of them can be scary. Fortunately for you, doing that is not necessary. While mastering spray control of multiple weapons can give you an advantage, it is a long process that will take a lot of time. Start by learning to control the recoil of your favorite weapon first, then expand from there.

• Don’t give up

Recoil compensation can be extremely difficult to master and can take a lot of time. That can become very frustrating and make players want to quit. Don’t give up and keep practicing, and eventually you will get the hang of it. It will feel extremely rewarding when you have a competitive edge over other players due to your hard work and perseverance. Understanding your weapon’s recoil is essential for effective recoil compensation.

Summary

As you can see, learning CS2 spray patterns can be tough work; however, it’s a crucial skill that separates lower-ranked players from the pros. If you’re looking to improve your CS2 skills, make sure you understand how the recoil compensation works with every gun in the game.

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