A CS2 demo is the full recording of a match: every round, from every player's point of view. It is the best evidence you can have against a cheater. Here is how to download one, where CS2 stores it, and what you can do with it.
Download a demo in CS2
- Open CS2 and go to Watch, then Your Matches.
- Select the match. If the demo is still available you will see a download button.
- Wait for the download to finish. The match then shows a Watch button.
Valve only keeps official match demos for a limited time, so download the ones you care about soon after playing. Very old matches can no longer be downloaded.
Where CS2 saves demos
Downloaded match demos are .dem files in the replays folder of the game:
- Windows:
Steam\steamapps\common\Counter-Strike Global Offensive\game\csgo\replays - Linux:
~/.steam/steam/steamapps/common/Counter-Strike Global Offensive/game/csgo/replays
If your Steam library is on another drive, start from that library folder instead. The quickest way to get there: in Steam, right-click Counter-Strike 2, choose Manage, then Browse local files, and open game\csgo\replays.
Demos you record yourself with the console command record are saved one level up, in game\csgo.
What you can do with a demo
- Watch it in CS2. Follow the player you suspect in first person, slow it down and use the X-ray view. Our guide: how to watch a CS2 demo, and what to look for: a checklist for reading a demo.
- Share the match, not the file. A demo file is large. The match share code does the same job: anyone can load the exact match with it. See how to get a share code.
- Report with evidence. When you report a player on CSWatch with the share code, we download and read the demo ourselves, so reviewers see per-round stats for every player in that match.
Demo will not download or play?
- No download button: the demo has expired on Valve's side.
- Download fails: try again later; Valve's replay servers sometimes refuse for a while.
- Demo does not play after a game update: older demos can stop working after a big CS2 update. Watch the ones that matter soon after the match.
Got the share code? Check all ten players from that match. Open the match checker