– CS2 has two parallel skill systems you’ll actually use: Premier’s CS Rating (a single numeric rating that follows you across the Active Duty pool) and Competitive’s per‑map skill groups (classic Silver through Global Elite, but tracked separately for each map). Premier is where you’ll see your big number and color badge; Competitive shows a distinct badge for each map you play.

– Getting placed:
– Premier CS Rating: you need to win roughly 10 Premier matches to reveal your initial rating. You queue into a pick/ban lobby, play MR12 (first to 13 rounds), and your rating appears once the placement threshold is met.
– Competitive map ranks: each map has its own placement. Expect to win around 10 matches on a specific map before a skill group appears for that map.

– How rating moves:
– Win/loss is the core driver. Round differential matters; a 13–2 win typically yields more rating than a 13–11 squeaker because the system infers a larger skill gap.
– Opponent quality is weighted. Beating a higher‑rated team usually grants more points; losing to a significantly lower‑rated team can sting more.
– Your personal stats aren’t the primary input; impact matters only insofar as it helps win rounds. Farming exits won’t offset losing the match.
– Party size doesn’t freeze progression. Five‑stacks often face tougher opponents; rating gains/losses reflect the expected outcome for your stack vs. theirs.

– Badge colors and leaderboards:
– Your numeric CS Rating is wrapped in a color band that upgrades as you cross thresholds. Think of the colors as broad tiers, not fixed divisions; the exact number is the truth that matchmaking uses.
– If you add a verified phone number and meet the threshold, you can appear on regional and global leaderboards with a live placement. Falling below the cutoff or inactivity can remove you from the board until you play again.

– Inactivity and decay:
– CS Rating doesn’t hard‑decay while you’re offline, but very long breaks can temporarily hide certain competitive badges until you win again.
– Leaderboard visibility is activity‑gated; you must keep playing Premier to retain a listed spot.

– Abandons and penalties:
– Leaving a Premier or Competitive match triggers a cooldown that escalates with repeats. Your team’s resulting loss still affects your rating. If you reconnect and finish, you avoid the worst consequences; if you abandon, expect the cooldown to apply.

– Seasons and resets:
– Valve periodically recalibrates. When it happens, your previous rating acts as a seed; after a short set of matches, the system settles you into the new distribution. Per‑map ranks can also be refreshed when the pool or ruleset changes.

– What actually helps you rank up in MR12:
– Play for round probability, not ego fights. Save in 1vX with no kit/utility; convert guns into future round wins.
– Manage economy tightly. In MR12, one lost full‑buy can flip a half. Plan 2‑round buys (e.g., half‑buy now to full buy next with nades/kits).
– On T side, utility trading and exec timing swing halves; on CT, prioritize kits and early‑round info to avoid expensive retakes.
– Queue consistency beats map roulette. If you care about per‑map skill groups, grind one or two maps consistently to stabilize your rank signal.

– Smurfs and trust:
– Trust Factor still influences who you face, alongside rating. Clean account history, low reports, and legit play reduce the odds of lopsided lobbies.

– Misc facts that trip people up:
– Overtime doesn’t grant outsized rating by itself; only the final match result and the strength of opposition really matter.
– Ties in modes that allow them translate into smaller rating shifts than a decisive win or loss.
– Map‑specific ranks are independent. You can be high on Mirage and lower on Ancient; that’s expected behavior.

– If you’re comparing tiers with friends or sanity‑checking where your number sits in the spread, this is a compact reference: Full CS2 ranking breakdown.