Skins and CS:GO go hand in hand. They hold financial importance other than the cosmetic value that has given rise to a healthy trading network with its own set of benchmarks to set the price. The price of the skins is correlated with the wear rating thus it is something everyone should know of while trading.
WHAT IS THIS WEAR IN CSGO?
Every CS:GO skin comes with a float value(wear rating) out of the case. The case owner has no control over the value as it is something that game decides by assigning it a float value between 0.0 to 1.0. The lower float value translates to a higher selling price, with some added benefits.
The lower float skins have fewer scratches and negligible dark patches and sometimes none altogether. Some skins get shinier with a lower float value, they don’t have any scratches for any float whatsoever, but such skins with high FV will look shady and less shiny than its low FV counterpart.
The float values are categorized for a better overall understanding, follow this guide to learn further.
DIFFERENT WEAR LEVELS IN CSGO
FACTORY NEW (FN)
These are the best looking ones out of the lot with floats ranging between 0.00-0.07. They are usually the most expensive with a substantially higher price than Minimal Wear. Certain lower-end floats sell for absurd sums for what is colloquially referred to as “overpay for float”.
MINIMAL WEAR (MW)
They are more affordable than Factory New skins with a little to no compromise on the quality. Their float value ranges between 0.07 and 0.15. They are usually the most in-demand, given the low price and negligible wear.
FIELD-TESTED (FT)
Ranging between 0.15 and 0.37, Field-Tested is the awkward middle child. Sometimes they are indistinguishable from the Minimal Wear version, with a lower price making it a much more reasonable trade. They often look worse than MW but better than Well Worn or Battle-Scarred which is understandable as it often doesn’t burn a hold in your pockets.
WELL-WORN (WW)
Often referred to as starters tier, Well-Worn ranges between 0.37 and 0.44. They look decent and usable for players just making their way into the world of CS skin trading. They are cheap and often a more reasonable purchase for new players who don’t want to invest too much into the game.
BATTLE-SCARRED (BS)
The worst looking lot of the pack and usually the cheapest. They are the way to go for players who can’t afford the same skins with a lower float value but want it for the sake of having it. But there are exceptions, the most popular example is the worst looking AWP Asiimov with a completely black scope, referred to as “Blackiimov”. It has the highest float value yet more expensive than a Factory New.
HOW TO CHECK YOUR CSGO SKIN’S FLOAT VALUE
To check the wear rating of the skin, head onto your inventory in the CSGO application, and click on view item. The float value will be available below the item description. Other than CSGO inventory, you are better off opting for a 3rd party website, which not only offers the float value but lets you categorize skins by the same along with offering a tentative price. Websites like cs.money and buff163 are a few of the popular ones that offer this functionality.