Where CS2 demos are saved and how to open a .dem file

01Where the CS2 demo and replays folders are

On Windows, with Steam in its default location, demos live in the game's csgo folder. Matchmaking demos you download from Watch → Your Matches go into the replays subfolder:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Counter-Strike Global Offensive\game\csgo
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Counter-Strike Global Offensive\game\csgo\replays

Yes, it's still called Counter-Strike Global Offensive. CS2 installs under the old folder name. If you put CS2 on a different Steam library drive, the path starts at that library instead of C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam.

On Linux, the default is:

~/.steam/steam/steamapps/common/Counter-Strike Global Offensive/game/csgo

There's no macOS version of CS2, so there's no Mac folder to look for.

What ends up where

• Matchmaking demos downloaded from the Watch tab: game\csgo\replays. Their file names start with match730_.
• POV demos you record yourself with record: straight into game\csgo.
• GOTV replays from Steam's website: wherever your browser saves downloads. They come as .dem.bz2; extract the .dem and move it into game\csgo so playdemo can find it.

If the folder is empty, that's normal. CS2 doesn't save matchmaking demos to your PC on its own; Valve keeps them on its servers for a limited time and nothing lands locally until you download it. See does CS2 save demos automatically.

02How to open a .dem file

A .dem isn't a video, so double-clicking it won't open a media player. It's a recording of the match that CS2 plays back. The quickest route for a matchmaking demo is Watch → Your Matches: once it's downloaded, you can watch it from there. For any other .dem, use the console:

1. 01Turn on the console: Settings → Game → Enable Developer Console.
2. 02Press ~ to open it.
3. 03Type playdemo and the demo name. You don't need the .dem extension. The path is relative to game/csgo, so demos in the replays folder need the replays/ prefix.
4. 04Press Shift+F2 (or run demoui) to get the timeline, round selector, speed and player controls.

playdemo mydemo
playdemo replays/match730_yourfilename
demoui

Replace mydemo or match730_yourfilename with the actual file name. Every command for skipping, slowing down and switching players is in the CS2 demo commands cheat sheet.

03Can you watch a CS2 demo without the game?

To watch the demo itself, you need CS2 installed on a PC. The game is what plays it back, and CS2 only runs on Windows and Linux. A phone won't open it.

If what you actually want is your plays as video, you don't need the demo on your machine at all. killcam.gg reads your match demo from Valve, finds your plays and clips them on our servers. You get MP4s you can watch, download or share from any browser, including on your phone. No game running, nothing installed.

It works from Valve's copy of your matchmaking demos (Premier, Competitive, Wingman). You can't upload a .dem file you already have, FACEIT isn't supported, and it only works while Valve still has the demo. Setup takes your game authentication code and a share code.