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Apex Legends vs Counter-Strike 2
Counter-Strike 2 is the more played game right now: 454,112 players on Steam against 72,298 for Apex Legends™, about 6× more players. Counter-Strike 2 has been ahead for 171 days straight.
Counter-Strike 2 also has the better Steam reviews: 86% positive vs 68%. Across all tracked metrics, Counter-Strike 2 leads 9 of 9.
Players over time
Live Steam player counts, read every 5 minutes. Both are Action / Free To Play games.
Which one have you played more?
Coilr members average 145h in Apex Legends™ and 419h in Counter-Strike 2. Connect your Steam account and this row fills in with your own hours instead — then keeps tracking both, so you can see which one you are actually still playing.
Apex Legends™
145h
average of 173 members
Counter-Strike 2
419h
average of 311 members
See my hours in both
Free · read-only via Steam OpenID · no password · delete anytime
Apex Legends™
89,254Counter-Strike 2
761,892Daily averages · latest day · Counter-Strike 2, 8.5× the players of Apex Legends™
One point per day, averaged · Your time zone · drag or use arrow keys to read the lines
Tracked by Coilr since April 2026 · Read every 5 minutes · methodology
These are Steam players only. A game that also runs on its own launcher, a storefront of its own or on console has players this number cannot see, so read it as a comparison of Steam audiences rather than of total ones.
Head-to-head record
Counter-Strike 2 has had the higher daily player count for the last 171 days, every day since Coilr began tracking both games.
Apex Legends™ led 0 daysCounter-Strike 2 led 171 days
- Days tracked
- 171
- Current streak
- 171 days
- Counter-Strike 2
- Lead changes
- 0
- Closest gap
- 77%
- May 12, 2026
How this works: each game's daily average concurrent players (from Coilr's own Steam readings), compared on the 171 days where both games have data. Whichever averages higher leads that day.
Side by side
Every number Coilr has for both games. The better figure in each row is in green.
| Metric | Apex Legends™ | Counter-Strike 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Players right now | 72,298 | 454,112 |
| 24-hour peak | 208,278 | 1,220,555 |
| 7-day average | 101,982 | 811,016 |
| 30-day average | 111,917 | 816,522 |
| 30-day trend | −12% | −1% |
| Peak (tracked) | 290,024 | 1,552,731 |
| Steam reviews | 68% positive | 86% positive |
| Recent reviews (3 mo) | 67% positive | 78% positive |
| Total reviews | 1,071,791 | 9,899,431 |
| Owners (SteamSpy est.) | ~100,000,000 | ~100,000,000 |
| Release date | Nov 4, 2020 | Aug 21, 2012 |
| Price | Free to play | Free to play |
Players by month
Monthly average and peak concurrent players on Steam, from Coilr's own tracking (readings every few minutes for the biggest games, hourly averages beyond 30 days).
| Month | Apex Legends™ | Counter-Strike 2 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg | Peak | Avg | Peak | |
| Apr 2026 | 83,118 | 107,293 | 733,188 | 1,347,914 |
| May 2026 | 116,864 | 268,642 | 842,402 | 1,484,941 |
| Jun 2026 | 104,788 | 258,879 | 917,771 | 1,552,731 |
| Jul 2026 | 97,757 | 212,161 | 853,539 | 1,412,513 |
| Aug 2026 | 129,465 | 290,024 | 831,579 | 1,317,175 |
| Sep 2026 | 116,951 | 277,408 | 814,636 | 1,452,036 |
| Oct 2026 (so far) | 100,643 | 212,883 | 796,238 | 1,293,425 |
Frequently asked
Which has more players, Apex Legends or Counter-Strike 2?
Counter-Strike 2 currently has more players: 454,112 concurrent players on Steam vs 72,298 for Apex Legends™, about 6× more players.
Is Apex Legends bigger than Counter-Strike 2 on Steam?
Over the last 30 days Apex Legends™ averaged 111,917 concurrent players and Counter-Strike 2 averaged 816,522. By that measure Counter-Strike 2 is currently the bigger game.
Has Apex Legends™ ever had more players than Counter-Strike 2?
Not in Coilr's head-to-head tracking: Counter-Strike 2 has had the higher daily average concurrent player count on Steam on every one of the 171 days both games have been tracked.
Is Apex Legends better than Counter-Strike 2?
By Steam review score, Counter-Strike 2 rates higher: 86% positive across 9,899,431 reviews vs 68% across 1,071,791 for Apex Legends™. Counter-Strike 2 has the larger player base right now (454,112 vs 72,298 concurrent). Player counts, ratings, price and trend are compared side by side above.
Is Apex Legends™ growing or declining on Steam?
Apex Legends™ averaged 111,917 concurrent players over the last 30 days, down 12% vs the previous 30 days. Its highest tracked player count is 290,024.
Is Counter-Strike 2 growing or declining on Steam?
Counter-Strike 2 averaged 816,522 concurrent players over the last 30 days, roughly flat vs the previous 30 days. Its highest tracked player count is 1,552,731.
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