GuidesOct 27, 20264 min readCS2Sell

CS2 console commands: how to open the console, show FPS and autoexec

CS2 console commands that work in the October 2026 build: how to open the console in CS2, show FPS, set up an autoexec.cfg, and which old commands are gone.

CS2 console commands let you change settings the menu doesn't reach, check your connection and load a whole config in one go. The console is switched off by default, and many commands on CS:GO-era lists no longer exist. Everything below was checked against the game's own command list in the build of October 22, 2026.

How to open console in CS2

Open Settings and stay on the Game tab.
In the Game section, set Enable Developer Console to Yes.
Press the ` key, the one left of 1 on a US keyboard, which is the default binding for the console.

To use a different key, change Toggle Console on the Keyboard / Mouse tab; the Go To Console Key Binding button next to the setting takes you straight there. If the menu row reads "Launched With Developer Console" and can't be changed, a launch option such as -console has switched it on; our launch options guide explains those.

Three commands help you find the rest. find followed by a word searches command names and their help text, help followed by a command describes it, and cvarlist prints the full list.

How to show FPS in CS2

You don't need the console for this. Since February 15, 2024 the Game tab has had a Telemetry section, which Valve added as a "performance diagnostic HUD element". Set Show frame time and FPS to Always, or to If conditions are poor so it appears only when your frame rate drops. The same section can show your ping and network problems such as missed ticks.

The console versions:

cl_hud_telemetry_frametime_show 2 shows frame time and FPS always (0 never, 1 only when poor).
cl_hud_telemetry_ping_show 2 does the same for ping.
cl_showfps 1 draws a simple FPS meter at the top of the screen; 2 smooths it, 3 shows server milliseconds and 4 also logs to a file.

CS:GO's net_graph isn't in CS2. CS2's own cq_netgraph was deleted in the same February 2024 update in favour of the Telemetry options.

CS2 commands worth knowing

Command	What it sets	Range
`sensitivity`	Mouse sensitivity	0.0001–8
`zoom_sensitivity_ratio`	Extra scale when scoped in	0.01–3
`fps_max`	Frame-rate cap	0 means no limit
`volume`	Master volume	0–1
`snd_voipvolume`	Voice chat volume	0–2
`cl_radar_scale`	Radar zoom	0.25–1
`hud_scaling`	HUD size	0.9–1.1
`cl_hud_color`	HUD colour	0 team colour to 10 aqua
`cl_teamid_overhead_mode`	Markers over teammates	0 off to 3 with equipment
`mm_dedicated_search_maxping`	Highest preferred ping to matchmaking servers	25–350
`cl_mute_enemy_team`	Blocks all enemy communication	0 or 1

A few more are tools rather than settings. status prints your connection details, disconnect leaves a server and sys_info prints system information to the console. bind puts a command on a key, alias gives a command or a group of commands a name of its own, and toggle switches a setting on and off. Valve has limited what a bind may combine since August 2024; our Snap Tap article lists the actions that can no longer share one key.

Some commands only work on a server running sv_cheats 1, such as a private practice match you host. In CS2 that includes noclip, god, cl_showpos, cl_drawhud and even kill, which takes your own life, so none of them work in matchmaking.

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CS2 autoexec: setting up autoexec.cfg

An autoexec is a text file of console commands that runs when the game starts, so settings you keep there come back every launch. To make one:

In Steam, right-click Counter-Strike 2 and use Manage, then Browse local files.
Open game\csgo\cfg. The full path normally ends in steamapps\common\Counter-Strike Global Offensive\game\csgo\cfg; Steam still uses the CS:GO folder name. The older csgo\cfg folder at the top level is the wrong one.
Create a file named autoexec.cfg and check that Windows hasn't saved it as autoexec.cfg.txt.
Write one command per line, for example:

cl_hud_telemetry_frametime_show 2
cl_hud_telemetry_ping_show 2
viewmodel_fov 68
echo "autoexec loaded"

The game's engine contains its own exec autoexec.cfg command, and GameRevolution's setup guide says the file loads at launch. To test it, type exec autoexec in the console; the echo line prints a message when it works. If it doesn't run on start, add +exec autoexec.cfg to your launch options.

Settings you change in the menu are saved by the game separately, under your Steam userdata folder in 730\local\cfg, according to PCGamingWiki. Anything in your autoexec is set again at every launch, so change a value there rather than in the menu or the autoexec will put it back. For crosshair lines, use the new names in our crosshair codes guide; for weapon position, see the viewmodel commands guide.

Old commands that are gone

Commands copied from CS:GO configs that aren't in CS2's list:

net_graph, replaced by the Telemetry HUD.
cl_righthand, replaced by cl_prefer_lefthanded for left-handed weapons.
retry, cl_updaterate and cl_cmdrate.
cl_crosshairgap and cl_crosshaircolor, removed in the September 2026 crosshair rework.
The cl_bob family of weapon-bob settings.

A command that doesn't exist has nothing to change, so these lines only clutter a config. Delete them, and look up the CS2 replacement where there is one.