CS2 Trade up Contracts Full Guide

A clear, step by step guide to upgrading skins, understanding odds, and controlling float

Trade Up Contracts are one of the easiest ways to turn a pile of lower tier skins into a shot at something better. The catch is simple. If you do it without a plan, you usually lose value. If you do it with a plan, you can target specific collections, manage risk, and aim for better wear tiers.

You can also use our UPGRADE feature on Daddyskins which kind of works like trade-ups in CS2 👆

Table of Contents

What is a Trade Up Contract in CS2

A Trade Up Contract lets you exchange 10 weapon skins of the same rarity for 1 skin of the next rarity up. Inputs must be either all Normal or all StatTrak, and Souvenir skins cannot be used.

Important rules
• All 10 skins must be the same rarity
• All must be Normal or all StatTrak
• Souvenir skins cannot be used
• Output skins come from the collections used

Input rarity	Output rarity
Consumer Grade	Industrial Grade
Industrial Grade	Mil Spec
Mil Spec	Restricted
Restricted	Classified
Classified	Covert

How Trade Up outcomes work

Your result is chosen from the collections represented by your 10 inputs. If you use skins from multiple collections, your possible outcomes come from those collections, which can dilute your chance of hitting the one you want.

Check	What you want to see
Input count	Exactly 10 skins
Input rarity	All the same rarity
StatTrak status	All Normal or all StatTrak
Souvenir	None included
Collections	Preferably 1 collection if you want clean odds
Outcome pool	You understand every possible result
Float goal	Inputs support the wear you want

Step by step

How to do a Trade Up correctly

• Open CS2 → Inventory → Trade Up Contract
• Decide your target output skin first, not your inputs
• Check which collection that skin belongs to
• Choose your starting rarity (Mil Spec → Restricted is best for most players)
• Buy 10 skins of the same rarity that follow all rules
• Prefer one collection unless you intentionally want split odds
• Check how many possible outputs exist at the next tier
• Buy inputs with floats that support the wear you want
• Double check rules, collections, and worst-case outcome
• Submit the contract and receive 1 upgraded skin

If you don’t want to risk losing money on your CS2 skins you can use Daddyskins EXCHANGE feature to exchange whatever skin you want for something of the same value.

How floats affect Trade Ups

The float of your output skin is based on the average float of your inputs, adjusted to the output skin’s float range.

Why this matters
• Wear tiers massively affect price
• Factory New and Minimal Wear often sell much higher
• Some skins require extremely low floats to hit FN

If you are targeting high value Factory New outcomes, float planning is mandatory.

Mil Spec Trade Ups (best place to start)

Mil Spec to Restricted trade ups are the most popular because
• Inputs are affordable
• Collections are easy to control
• You can learn odds without massive losses

Best practice
Use 10 Mil Spec skins from the same collection as your target Restricted skin.

Mil Spec Trade Ups (best place to start)

StatTrak Trade Ups

StatTrak trade ups follow the same system, but
• All 10 inputs must be StatTrak
• Outputs are harder to sell
• Inputs are more expensive

Only do StatTrak trade ups if you understand liquidity.

Common Trade Up mistakes

• Buying random skins without picking a target
• Mixing collections without understanding odds
• Ignoring float requirements
• Valuing the best outcome instead of the worst
• Treating trade ups like gambling instead of planning