How to Get the Loyalty Badge in CS2
The honest answer: you can't, and here's exactly why
You cannot get the Loyalty Badge any more. Valve handed it out once, automatically, to accounts that had already played CS:GO before the Danger Zone update on 6 December 2018 — the update that made the game free. It is not a task, it is not a rank, and because the item is flagged untradable it can never be bought, traded or gifted. If it isn't already in your inventory, there is no route to one.
This is one of those searches where the useful thing we can do is stop you wasting an evening. There are guides and videos promising a method. There is no method. The badge was a retroactive thank-you, granted in a single sweep, and the window closed the moment the update shipped.
What follows is the primary-source version: what Valve actually said, what the item actually is in the game files, and what you can realistically chase instead.
What Valve actually said
On 6 December 2018 Valve shipped the Danger Zone update and made Counter-Strike free to play. The announcement that went with it is unambiguous:
"All players who played CS:GO before today's update will receive a commemorative Loyalty Badge they can display on their profile. You were there from the beginning, so show it off! Additionally, all existing CS:GO players have had their accounts upgraded to Prime Status."
Two things to pull out of that. First, the qualifying condition is phrased as having played before that update, not simply having the game sitting in a library. Second, the badge and the free Prime upgrade were separate rewards in the same sweep — which is a large part of why the two get muddled up years later. If you want the context around the free-to-play switch itself, we cover it in is CS2 free to play?
What the item is, according to the game files
CS2 still carries the badge in its item definitions, so we can check its properties rather than guess at them. Its in-game description reads:
"This badge commemorates loyal membership in the Counter-Strike community prior to the Danger Zone update." — Strength through loyalty.
Its internal name is Fortius Quo Fidelius, and it is built on CS2's untradable collectible template — the one that sets cannot tradeon the item. That single flag is what makes every "buy a Loyalty Badge" offer a dead end. The badge cannot leave the account it was granted to. It has never had a Steam Community Market listing and it never will.
A small detail that explains a lot of the confusion: the badge reuses the Prime badge icon asset in the game files. People see it on a profile, recognise the artwork, and assume it is something Prime unlocks. It isn't.
The three things people try, and why none of them work
- Grinding for it.There is no XP threshold, no playtime total and no rank that awards it. The grant was retroactive and one-off — nothing about how you play in 2026 feeds into it.
- Buying it. Untradable means untradable. Marketplaces cannot list it, and a trade offer containing one cannot be constructed. Every listing you find is either a different item or a scam.
- Buying an account that has one.This is the only technically-possible route, and it is a bad one. Valve does not permit account transfers, so you have no recourse if the seller reclaims it through Steam Support — and account sales are one of the most reliably scam-heavy corners of the CS economy. We would not do it and we would not tell you to.
What you can still earn instead
If the appeal is a profile item that says you've put the hours in, two live systems do that job:
- Service Medals. Earn XP, climb your Counter-Strike Profile Rank to Global General (Rank 40), then reset to claim that calendar year's medal — and upgrade it by doing it again. Full walkthrough in our Service Medal guide. This one needs Prime.
- Premier Season Medals. Awarded at the end of each Premier season to players who meet the win and CS Rating requirements, with the colour reflecting your peak rating for the season. See how to unlock Premier to get started, and rank distribution for where your rating sits.
Both are untradable display items too — but unlike the Loyalty Badge, both are still open. Since XP is Prime-gated, our is Prime worth it?guide is the first thing to read if you're on a free account.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can you still get the Loyalty Badge in CS2?
- No. Valve granted it once, automatically, to every account that had already played CS:GO before the Danger Zone update went live on 6 December 2018. There is no task, no rank and no purchase that produces one now. If you did not play before that date, you cannot get it.
- Who was eligible for the Loyalty Badge?
- Valve’s announcement said: "All players who played CS:GO before today’s update will receive a commemorative Loyalty Badge they can display on their profile." Owning the game was not the test on its own — the wording is about having played it. The same update also upgraded every existing CS:GO account to Prime Status.
- Can you buy or trade a Loyalty Badge?
- No. In CS2’s item definitions the badge inherits the untradable collectible template, which sets "cannot trade" on the item. It never appears on the Steam Community Market and it cannot be traded between accounts. Any site or person offering to sell you one is selling you something else, or nothing.
- What does the Loyalty Badge actually say?
- The in-game description reads: "This badge commemorates loyal membership in the Counter-Strike community prior to the Danger Zone update," with the flavour line "Strength through loyalty." Its internal item name is Fortius Quo Fidelius.
- Is the Loyalty Badge the same as the Prime badge?
- They get confused constantly, partly because the badge reuses the Prime badge icon asset in the game files. They are different things. Prime Status is a purchasable account upgrade you can still buy today; the Loyalty Badge is a closed, one-time commemorative item.
- What can I earn instead?
- The Service Medal is the closest live equivalent — a yearly profile display item you earn by reaching Global General and resetting your Profile Rank. Premier Season Medals are awarded each season to players who meet the win and rating requirements.