CS2 Map Pool: Current Active Duty Maps and Changes

The CS2 Active Duty map pool has seven maps: Ancient, Anubis, Cache, Dust II, Inferno, Mirage and Nuke. These are the maps used in Premier, and Valve uses the same group for its sanctioned competitions, so they are also the maps you see at Majors.

The pool changes over time. Cache is the newest addition, and Overpass and Train both dropped out during the past year. This guide lists the current maps, every change since early 2025, how Premier picks a map, and where you can still play the maps that rotated out.

Last checked: November 9, 2026, against Valve's update notes and the current game files.

What maps are in the CS2 map pool right now?

When Cache came back in April 2026, Valve described it as a classic three-lane map. It went into Casual, Competitive, Deathmatch and Retakes first, then joined Active Duty with the start of Season Five, taking Overpass's place.

How has the CS2 map pool changed?

Every Active Duty change since early 2025 has arrived with a new Premier season:

Two patterns stand out. Swaps have been one map in and one map out, so the pool has stayed at seven. Maps also come back: Anubis left in July 2025 and returned six months later with layout changes, while Overpass was dropped in April 2024, returned in July 2025 and left again in July 2026.

Valve does not publish a schedule for future changes. If you want early warning, read the notes for each new Premier season, because that is when every recent swap happened.

How are maps picked in Premier?

Premier never lets you queue for a single map. Instead, the two teams go through a selection phase before the match. On September 22, 2026, Valve replaced the old pick-and-ban process with a pick system:

1. Team 1 picks one map.
2. Team 2 picks two maps.
3. Team 1 picks one final map.
4. The game randomly selects one of those four maps, and the match starts.

Valve's stated goal was to give players more chances to play the maps they have been learning. In practice, you no longer need to be comfortable on all seven maps to have a good Premier experience, but you do need a few maps you are happy to pick. If your team picks maps it knows well, there is a strong chance one of them is played.

For more on ratings, seasons and how wins affect your number, see CS2 Premier ranks explained.

Can you still play maps that left the pool?

Yes. Leaving Active Duty only removes a map from Premier and from the competition pool. Most rotated-out maps stay in other modes. These lists come from the game's own mode files as of the November 2026 build:

Competitive is the mode where you choose specific maps and earn a separate Skill Group on each one. It is the best place to keep playing Overpass or Train if you liked them.

Community maps rotate on their own schedule. Season Five removed Warden, Stronghold, Alpine and Sanctum and added Boulder, Fachwerk and Shelter to Competitive, Casual and Deathmatch, plus Debris and El Dorado to Wingman. Expect that list to change again at the next season.

The 3v3 Rush mode added in September 2026 does not use these maps at all. It sends teams through a series of randomly selected battle arenas.

How do you learn the Active Duty maps?

Start with the maps you plan to pick in Premier, then widen out. A practical order:

• Walk the map offline. Start a practice match with no bots and learn the names of each area, since callouts are how your team will talk to you.
• Load the official map guides. In March 2026 Valve added minimal starter guides for the Active Duty maps. You can turn them on in the practice options, and limited guides also work in the first five rounds of each half in Competitive.
• Learn a few smokes per side. Two or three reliable smokes for each site are worth more than twenty you half remember. Our smoke lineups for every map cover six of the seven current maps, including Mirage, Dust 2, Inferno, Nuke, Ancient and Anubis.
• Re-check changed areas. Anubis Mid, Inferno A-site and anything on Cache changed in 2026, so lineups and angles from older videos may no longer work there.
• Play Competitive on one map. Picking a single map in Competitive gives you repeated games on it, and your Skill Group for that map shows how you are doing.

Older Overpass lineups are still useful if you play it in Competitive or Wingman, and our Overpass smoke guide stays up for that reason.

Frequently asked questions

What maps are in the CS2 Active Duty pool?

The current pool is Ancient, Anubis, Cache, Dust II, Inferno, Mirage and Nuke. This has been the lineup since Premier Season Five started on July 8, 2026, when Cache replaced Overpass.

Is Overpass still in the CS2 map pool?

No. Overpass was removed from Active Duty on July 8, 2026, when Cache was added. You can still play it in Competitive, Casual, Retakes and Wingman.

When did Cache come back to CS2?

Cache returned on April 28, 2026, in Casual, Competitive, Deathmatch and Retakes. It joined the Active Duty pool, and therefore Premier, on July 8, 2026.

Is Train in the CS2 map pool?

Not anymore. Train was added in January 2025 and removed on January 21, 2026, when Anubis returned. It is still available in Competitive, Casual and Retakes.

How often does the CS2 map pool change?

Every change since January 2025 has come with a new Premier season, roughly every six months, and each time one map came in and one went out. Valve does not announce future changes in advance, so check the notes when a new season starts.

How is the map chosen in a Premier match?

Team 1 picks one map, Team 2 picks two, and Team 1 picks a final one. The game then randomly selects one of those four maps. This system replaced the old pick-and-ban process on September 22, 2026.