CS2 Knife Guide

CS2 Doppler Phases Explained

Every Doppler and Gamma Doppler phase — what it looks like, the paint index that identifies it, and what each phase costs per knife with live marketplace prices.

The Phases

Phase 1

Phase 1 example: Butterfly Knife | Doppler - Phase 1

Balanced mix of blue and purple with some pink — the baseline Doppler look.

Phase 2

Phase 2 example: Butterfly Knife | Doppler - Phase 2

The most pink/purple-heavy phase, usually the priciest of the four standard phases.

Phase 3

Phase 3 example: Butterfly Knife | Doppler - Phase 3

Mostly deep blue with black — typically the cheapest standard phase.

Phase 4

Phase 4 example: Butterfly Knife | Doppler - Phase 4

Predominantly blue with hints of purple — a close second to Phase 2 in demand.

Ruby

Ruby example: Butterfly Knife | Doppler - Ruby

Rare all-red phase — one of the three premium Doppler outcomes.

Sapphire

Sapphire example: Butterfly Knife | Doppler - Sapphire

Rare all-blue phase — usually the most expensive Doppler outcome.

Black Pearl

Black Pearl example: Karambit | Doppler - Black Pearl

Rarest standard-Doppler phase: deep black with purple-green shimmer.

Emerald

Emerald example: Butterfly Knife | Gamma Doppler - Emerald

Gamma Doppler's rare all-green phase — the green counterpart to the Sapphire.

The phase is locked in the moment the knife drops — float never changes it. Verify any premium-phase listing against our pattern database and check the float with the float checker before paying a phase premium.

Which Number Actually Sets the Phase

Every phase ships as its own paint kit, and each kit has a fixed paint index — the paint-kit ID an inspect link returns, and the number that decides the phase. It is a different field from the paint seed(or pattern index), the 0–999 value our pattern database covers: the seed shifts pattern placement, but it never changes which phase you have.

The indexes below are read straight out of the CS2 game-file bundle we ship with the site. Note that a phase is not always one number: the Butterfly Knife and Shadow Daggers received their Sapphire, Black Pearl, and Phase 2 kits from a later block than the original knives, the Talon Knife has its own Phase 1–4 block, and the Glock-18 Gamma Doppler another again. Checking a listing against a single remembered number is how people misread those knives.

FinishPhasePaint indexWeapons on that kit
DopplerPhase 1418Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Navaja Knife, Nomad Knife, Paracord Knife, Shadow Daggers, Skeleton Knife, Stiletto Knife, Survival Knife, Ursus Knife
852Talon Knife
DopplerPhase 2419Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Navaja Knife, Nomad Knife, Paracord Knife, Skeleton Knife, Stiletto Knife, Survival Knife, Ursus Knife
618Butterfly Knife, Shadow Daggers
853Talon Knife
DopplerPhase 3420Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Navaja Knife, Nomad Knife, Paracord Knife, Shadow Daggers, Skeleton Knife, Stiletto Knife, Survival Knife, Ursus Knife
854Talon Knife
DopplerPhase 4421Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Navaja Knife, Nomad Knife, Paracord Knife, Shadow Daggers, Skeleton Knife, Stiletto Knife, Survival Knife, Ursus Knife
855Talon Knife
DopplerRuby415Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Navaja Knife, Nomad Knife, Paracord Knife, Shadow Daggers, Skeleton Knife, Stiletto Knife, Survival Knife, Talon Knife, Ursus Knife
DopplerSapphire416Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Navaja Knife, Nomad Knife, Paracord Knife, Skeleton Knife, Stiletto Knife, Survival Knife, Talon Knife, Ursus Knife
619Butterfly Knife, Shadow Daggers
DopplerBlack Pearl417Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Navaja Knife, Nomad Knife, Paracord Knife, Skeleton Knife, Stiletto Knife, Survival Knife, Talon Knife, Ursus Knife
617Butterfly Knife, Shadow Daggers
Gamma DopplerPhase 1569Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Shadow Daggers
1120Glock-18
Gamma DopplerPhase 2570Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Shadow Daggers
1121Glock-18
Gamma DopplerPhase 3571Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Shadow Daggers
1122Glock-18
Gamma DopplerPhase 4572Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Shadow Daggers
1123Glock-18
Gamma DopplerEmerald568Bayonet, Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, Karambit, M9 Bayonet, Shadow Daggers
1119Glock-18

Butterfly Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

M9 Bayonet Doppler Prices by Phase

Karambit Doppler Prices by Phase

Talon Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Skeleton Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Bayonet Doppler Prices by Phase

Stiletto Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Flip Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Nomad Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Huntsman Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Bowie Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Ursus Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Falchion Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Paracord Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Shadow Daggers Doppler Prices by Phase

Survival Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Gut Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Navaja Knife Doppler Prices by Phase

Glock-18 Doppler Prices by Phase

Frequently Asked Questions

What are Doppler phases in CS2?

Doppler is a knife finish that ships as several separate paint kits, one per phase, and the kit you get is decided at unboxing. Phase 1-4 are the standard blue/purple mixes, while Ruby (red), Sapphire (blue), and Black Pearl are the rare premium rolls. Gamma Doppler has its own Phase 1-4 in green tones plus the rare Emerald.

How do I check which phase a Doppler is?

The phase is not shown in the item name on the Steam Market — it is set by the item's paint index, the paint-kit ID an inspect link returns. That is a different field from the 0-999 paint seed (pattern index), which does not affect the phase. Marketplaces like the ones we link display the phase directly; on Steam you read it from the paint index or by inspecting the item.

Which Doppler phase is most expensive?

Among standard phases, Phase 2 (most pink) usually leads and Phase 3 trails. The premium phases sit far above all four: Sapphire and Ruby typically trade at several times a standard phase, with Black Pearl between them depending on the knife.

Can a Doppler phase change with float?

No — the phase is fixed by the paint index forever. Float only affects wear, and Dopplers only exist in Factory New and Minimal Wear, so even that range is narrow.

What is the difference between Doppler and Gamma Doppler?

They're separate finishes: Doppler runs blue/purple/pink with Ruby, Sapphire, and Black Pearl as rare phases; Gamma Doppler runs green/teal with Emerald as its rare phase. Which knives can have which finish depends on the case generation they drop from.