All CS2 maps 2025: Complete Counter-Strike 2 map list by game mode

Counter-Strike is home to some of the most iconic maps in video game history. Maps like Dust II, Mirage, or Inferno have been in the gaming zeitgeist for over two decades. Those maps remain the map pool to this day, but CS2 also features recent creations that may be less familiar to new players.

Additionally, Counter-Strike contains several game modes that have bespoke maps to match the dynamics of that mode. This guide will outline all CS2 maps and their dynamics, so you can jump into each mode knowing everything you need to know and with full confidence.

Counter-Strike 2 currently features 18 maps over six distinct game modes, with maps playable in the following game modes:

While that may look confusing at first, we can understand the map pool in the following categories:

Ancient is a defusal map created by Valve set amongst an archeological site. A spiritual successor to de_Aztec, the map has been in the Active Duty map pool since May 2021. Ancient was the most played map in the CS2 pro scene in 2024. 

As a comfortable map for many rosters, it has become somewhat of a “middle” or “handshake” map for most teams.

Ancient has only received minor changes since its addition. Notably, CT-spawns were moved significantly back, allowing Terrorists to fight for Mid or Lane early in the rounds. As a result, the current form of Ancient is marginally T-sided at the pro level.

*Filtered by top 50 results in 2025 (as of May 2025)

First added to the game in 2020, but only added to the Active Duty Map pool in 2022, Anubis is set in Ancient Egyptian ruins.

Anubis is currently the most T-sided map in the pool, owing to several characteristics that make it difficult for the defending team. Terrorists can generally get control of large parts of the map with minimal resources, leaving CTs in the dark about where attacks will come from. 

The B site is especially difficult to hold owing to the various entryways into the site that terrorists can make use of, splitting between B Main, Connector, and even taking Mid to get Temple control and entering from the CTs’ flanks.

One of the most iconic maps in all of video-game history, Dust2 re-entered the Active Duty map pool in April of 2024 after two years of absence from pro play. Originally created in 2001, the map was the recipient of a Noclip documentary outlining how the classic map was created. 

It remains relevant to the game to this day, serving as the only available map in the initial version of the CS2 beta, allowing players to experience the graphical upgrades in comparison to the familiar CS:GO version.

Dust II remains one of the most popular maps for casual play and modes such as Premier and Competitive. 

In December 2024, the map was the home of one of the greatest Grand Final maps of Counter-Strike history as Team Spirit and FaZe clashed at the Perfect World Shanghai Major, with Spirit claiming the major in memorable fashion.

Inferno is another Counter-Strike classic. Dating back to 1999, Inferno is home to perhaps Counter-Strike’s most famous and universal callout – ‘Banana,’ the banana-shaped lane between Mid and the B site.

The space is a highly contested piece of real-estate with Counter-Terrorists aiming to prevent Terrorists from scaling to the B site and Terrorists aiming to either move towards the bombsite or gain enough control to fake a B site hit and draw CTs away from A.

In the Active Map pool since 2017, Inferno has had a somewhat troubled history in Counter-Strike 2, with many players feeling like the updated version feels claustrophobic in comparison to its CS:GO iteration. In repose, the match has been patched multiple times to reduce that constricted feeling in certain areas, most recently in the April 1 update, where Banana was widened.

A map that hardly needs an introduction, Mirage is Counter-Strike’s ageless staple. Originally a community map called de_cpl_strike, it was introduced to CS:GO officially in 2013 under its new name.

Mirage has been part of the Active Duty map pool since the pool’s creation, featuring at every Counter-Strike major to date. The map shows no signs of losing popularity as it remains the most played map amongst Counter-Strike’s players.

While the map is well known as an aimers map for online matchmaking, Mirage can have surprising tactical depth at the highest level, so remember to learn a few smokes before jumping into Premier to give your team the edge in your games.

Nuke is another classic map, created by Valve in 1999. The map is widely regarded highly tactical due to several unique aspects that reward teams with good co-ordination and on-point communication.

The map’s two sites are practically on top of each other, meaning a correctly played CT-side can rotate at the drop of a hat down the Vent connecting A site to Lower, so getting control of that area or obfuscating what space you have taken is highly desired by the T side. The only way to achieve that on the T-side is through teamwork, usually in the form of carefully planned utility usage.

Conversely, CTs must relay information quickly and accurately to their team to ensure their teammates are safe in enacting counter-strategies to foil the T’s plans. For example, Terrorists often leave a lurker in Secret to prevent CTs from rotating down Vent. Conveying whether it is safe to drop down the Vent is often the difference between success and failure on Nuke.

Train is the newest addition to the current Active Duty map pool, with the Train remake joining the map pool at the expense of Vertigo in January 2025. While images of Train’s rebuild were part of the promotional material for CS2’s announcement in March 2023, players were left until November 2024 to see the map in-game.

While the new Train has a similar layout to the classic map, it plays significantly differently owing to several significant changes to iconic positions. The map has a smaller footprint, clearer sightlines on A, and no elevated ‘Heaven’ position on A site.

Popdog, now sometimes called Longdog due to its snaking new layout, remains a key part of the map due but lacks its previously famous ladder, which was a highly contested space in CS:GO’s version of the map where teams would exchange their belts of utility to deny or gain access to another pathway to A.

Overall, the new Train is less CT-sided than the previous versions of the map but remains one of the only CT-sided maps in the pro scene.

Overpass is the largest map in CS2 by area, and that fact defines it in many ways. When it left the map pool, it was the most CT-sided map in the pool, with 55.4% of rounds going in favor of the defending side. Terrorists are forced to use utility to take space before reaching the sites, meaning executes can be difficult on Overpass’s bombsites while the CTs can quickly rotate between A and B.

In response, taking connector in the middle of the map is vital for the T side, allowing them to switch their bombsite target quickly and effectively, and allowing site executes to be faked.

Vertigo is the marmite of Counter-Strike 2 maps. Some people love it, some people hate it. It is, at the very least, something different. A highly vertical map, where the ramp section of A acts similarly to Banana on Inferno in the sense that Ts must contest it to hide their real intent.

Despite being a classic map, it has received consistent changes throughout its history, most recently reading the above pictured second entrance to the Elevator area, and adding a catwalk to the edge of the A site. 

Based on the 51st (and 50th) floor of an in-construction skyscraper, Vertigo is the only CS2 Competitive map you can fall off so watch your step.

Basalt is a community map, meaning it was created by a member of the community and not directly by Valve; however, many of Counter-Strike’s most iconic maps started this way. Counter-Strike currently rotates these community maps when it makes changes to the map pool elsewhere, so enjoy Basalt, Edin, Palais, and Whistle while you can.

A Nordic-themed map, featuring a mixture of indoor and outdoor locations. It was first added to CS:GO in 2021, before its removal in 2022. The new version makes use of CS2’s graphical overall to create an aesthetically pleasing playground for players.

Edin is a community map based on Edinburgh’s famous Royal Mile, the area preceding Edinburgh Castle. The map is chock-full of references to Valve’s games, Counter-Strike history, and community memes. Make sure to look at the shop names, street signs, and even license plates to take it all in.

As a map, it features a highly unusual layout with the A bombsite at the far side of the map, where the CT’s spawn and the B bombsite in the center of the map.

Office and Italy are Hostage Rescue maps. While defusal maps are now the predominant form of the game, Hostage Rescue was the original form of the game. This can be seen in the game to this day, as Hostage maps have the original cs prefix in the file names, being called “cs_office” and “cs_italy”.

While Hostage maps are no longer as popular, Office remains a highly played map in Competitive and Deathmatch. Featuring a plethora of right angles and tight spaces, it is a shotgun’s paradise.

For my money, the best-looking Counter-Strike 2 map, Italy, is the other Hostage style map available in CS2. The map was originally created in 2000, with many of its famous spots remaining intact to this day.

The map features a mix between verticality, indoor and outdoor, tight spaces and open areas. The ideal map to warm up to competitive games in Deathmatch.

The majority of Wingman maps are adapted versions of existing defusal maps, which utilize only one of the bombsites, with walls erected to prevent players from entering the wrong parts of the map.

The map layouts of these maps are as follows:

Overpass – B Bombsite: Players have access to the B-site, T-spawn, Connector, and Heaven
Vertigo – A Bombsite: Players have access to A-site, Ramp, Mid, Ladder Room, T-spawn, and CT-Spawn
Nuke – B Bombsite: Players have access to B Bombsite, Lower, and Ramp
Inferno – A Bombsite: Players have access to A-site, Library, Apartments, Top-Mid, and Top-Second Mid

Palais is based on a Paris rooftop, with CTs spawning in a lower position than the T-side, who have quick access to the roof. CTs should therefore be wary of various angles to get peeked from above. Like Vertigo, you can fall off the map, but you can also surf on some of the angled roofs, so it’s arguably worth the risk.

The map features a cat on the Victory/Defeat screen, which makes it a top-tier map for me.

Whistle is the second British map in the pool, featuring a fictional train station called “Henham Station.” The map is relatively small, with the two spawns diagonally facing each other on the other side of the station building. CTs have quick access to the ticket office, so be wary of early fights. 

On the other side of the map is the train yard, which has long sightlines beneficial for Scouts and AWPs. On the site, there is a sign bisecting the bomb site but sightlines exist from the train yard and CT-spawn so planting safely generally requires a smoke to limit potential angles.

Arms Race currently features three maps dedicated to the mode: Baggage, Shoots, and Pool Day. All three maps feature spawn points directly facing each other, allowing teams to quickly engage in aim duels against the opposition.

However, each map significantly differs in characteristics.

Similarly to Vertigo, Baggage is highly vertical in nature so make sure to be aware of potential enemies above and below you when you leave the spawn. 

Sightlines are available from spawn to spawn if standing on nearby boxes, so be wary of early game snipers.

Utilizing the Ancient assets, Shoots is by far the largest and most complex Arms Race map in the pool. Players must advance through a series of buildings in the middle of the map to reach the common battlegrounds and vantage points. 

The map has plenty of crevices and hidey holes, which make getting the shotgun and knife kills easier, so use the terrain to your advantage.

Pool Day is minuscule and, therefore, highly frenetic in nature when you’re in a full lobby. It takes only a few moments to reach the opposite side of the map, so be prepared for rushes and keep your ears pricked to detect fast-flanking enemies. 

Most of all, don’t panic and always carry a towel.

Many of Counter-Strike’s most iconic maps started as community maps. There are thousands of maps, both old and new, available on the workshop, and one of them might end up being your favorite map for private servers with your friends. They may even end up being in the game and in Premier mode in the future.

Currently, the most high-profile workshop map is FMPONE’s remake of Cache which was in the Active Duty map pool for all majors from Cologne 2014 until the 2019 Katowice Major. While a beautiful graphical upgrade, it is yet to be seen whether it will be officially added to the game.

We will have a further series of detailed map guides to help you master each Premier map, but if you want to improve in the meantime, here are a few general tips.

You can also improve on a map by utilizing the Workshop, which has community-made aim maps that replicate other areas in the game but allow players to continuously practice fighting from certain angles, defend sites, etc.

Counter-Strike’s map pool is a fluid pool, usually updating a few times a year after each Counter-Strike major. Make sure to keep up with the current CS2 maps so you know what you can queue for in certain game modes.

Yet, as we have seen, many of Counter-Strike’s maps are over 20 years old. Therefore, hours spent on Counter-Strike maps are not wasted. They become a vital experience for future matches and versions of the game.