CS2 mouse sensitivity: what DPI and eDPI mean, how to convert between games, and the settings that ruin your aim
Posted: Wed Oct 21, 2026 3:16 am
Quick summary
DPI stands for dots per inch, which is how many pixels the cursor moves for each inch of mouse travel. At 400 DPI one inch of movement is 400 pixels. At 1600 DPI the same inch is 1600 pixels. Higher DPI feels faster.
None of that decides your in-game aim speed by itself. What decides it is DPI multiplied by the in-game sensitivity value. That product is eDPI, and it is the only number worth writing down when you compare two setups.
The ranges people actually use
Reports of professional and high-level play put most players between 600 and 1200 eDPI, with beginners commonly starting around 800 to 1000. Below 600 you need large arm movements to turn around. Above 1600, small hand tremors start showing up as missed micro-adjustments.
That is a starting zone, not a rule. A concrete baseline that works for most people is 800 DPI and 1.0 in-game sensitivity, which is 800 eDPI.
Converting to another game
The sensitivity number is not portable. Every game uses its own scale, so 1.0 in CS2 is not 1.0 in Valorant. The stable comparison is the physical distance your mouse travels for one full turn, usually written as cm/360.
The setup.gg converter handles this. Enter your in-game sensitivity and your DPI, pick the game you are leaving and the game you are entering, and it returns the converted sensitivity plus the inches and centimeters per 360. As a quick check, 1.0 CS2 sensitivity converts to about 0.3143 in Valorant, which is the CS2 value divided by 3.182.
A matched cm/360 does not make two games feel identical. Field of view, recoil and scoped multipliers all change how fast aiming feels, so treat the converted number as a starting point.
The settings that break your aim
Three settings matter more than the sensitivity number itself.
Zoom sensitivity is its own setting
Scoped and zoomed aim does not inherit your hip-fire sensitivity. CS2 keeps a separate zoom sensitivity, and the common starting point is 1.0. Leave it alone until scoped aim feels wrong, then move it in small steps.
How to find your number
Start at 800 eDPI and play ten minutes of deathmatch with rifles only.
FAQ
Q: Should I copy a pro player's sensitivity?
A: Use it as a reference, not a rule. Pro settings are built around years of muscle memory, a specific mousepad size and a specific role.
Q: Does DPI matter more than in-game sensitivity?
A: No. Only the product of the two matters. 800 DPI at 1.0 and 400 DPI at 2.0 are the same eDPI.
Q: What if I play other shooters?
A: Use a converter and compare cm/360. The number you type into CS2 does not carry over.
Q: Is there a correct eDPI?
A: No. The best sensitivity is the one you can aim with consistently after a few weeks of practice.
Sources
setup.gg: CS2 sensitivity converter, eDPI formula and cm/360 calculator
Tradeit: best CS2 sensitivity, starting ranges and a pro settings snapshot
GearRank: CS2 mouse settings, raw input, polling rate and mouse acceleration
- eDPI is your mouse DPI multiplied by your in-game sensitivity. It is the number that actually describes your aim speed.
- DPI on its own tells you nothing. A player at 400 DPI with 2.0 sensitivity turns the same distance as a player at 800 DPI with 1.0.
- Raw Input should be on. Mouse acceleration should be off, in CS2 and in Windows.
- Zoom sensitivity is a separate setting from hip-fire sensitivity.
- Pick a number, keep it for two weeks, and move it in small steps.
DPI stands for dots per inch, which is how many pixels the cursor moves for each inch of mouse travel. At 400 DPI one inch of movement is 400 pixels. At 1600 DPI the same inch is 1600 pixels. Higher DPI feels faster.
None of that decides your in-game aim speed by itself. What decides it is DPI multiplied by the in-game sensitivity value. That product is eDPI, and it is the only number worth writing down when you compare two setups.
- 800 DPI at 1.0 sensitivity is 800 eDPI.
- 400 DPI at 2.0 sensitivity is 800 eDPI.
- 1600 DPI at 0.5 sensitivity is 800 eDPI.
The ranges people actually use
Reports of professional and high-level play put most players between 600 and 1200 eDPI, with beginners commonly starting around 800 to 1000. Below 600 you need large arm movements to turn around. Above 1600, small hand tremors start showing up as missed micro-adjustments.
That is a starting zone, not a rule. A concrete baseline that works for most people is 800 DPI and 1.0 in-game sensitivity, which is 800 eDPI.
Converting to another game
The sensitivity number is not portable. Every game uses its own scale, so 1.0 in CS2 is not 1.0 in Valorant. The stable comparison is the physical distance your mouse travels for one full turn, usually written as cm/360.
The setup.gg converter handles this. Enter your in-game sensitivity and your DPI, pick the game you are leaving and the game you are entering, and it returns the converted sensitivity plus the inches and centimeters per 360. As a quick check, 1.0 CS2 sensitivity converts to about 0.3143 in Valorant, which is the CS2 value divided by 3.182.
A matched cm/360 does not make two games feel identical. Field of view, recoil and scoped multipliers all change how fast aiming feels, so treat the converted number as a starting point.
The settings that break your aim
Three settings matter more than the sensitivity number itself.
- Raw Input. With it off, CS2 reads mouse data after Windows has processed it, including any acceleration or scaling. With it on, CS2 reads straight from the hardware. Keep it on.
- Mouse acceleration. CS2 has m_mouseaccel1 and m_mouseaccel2, and both should be 0. Acceleration changes your effective sensitivity depending on how fast you move, which makes muscle memory impossible.
- Windows pointer speed. Set it to 6 out of 11 and turn off Enhance pointer precision, which is Windows mouse acceleration. Raw Input bypasses it in CS2, but other games and software do not.
Zoom sensitivity is its own setting
Scoped and zoomed aim does not inherit your hip-fire sensitivity. CS2 keeps a separate zoom sensitivity, and the common starting point is 1.0. Leave it alone until scoped aim feels wrong, then move it in small steps.
How to find your number
Start at 800 eDPI and play ten minutes of deathmatch with rifles only.
- If you keep overflicking past heads, lower the sensitivity by about 5 percent.
- If you keep stopping short of targets, raise it by about 5 percent.
- Play at least three to five matches before changing it again.
FAQ
Q: Should I copy a pro player's sensitivity?
A: Use it as a reference, not a rule. Pro settings are built around years of muscle memory, a specific mousepad size and a specific role.
Q: Does DPI matter more than in-game sensitivity?
A: No. Only the product of the two matters. 800 DPI at 1.0 and 400 DPI at 2.0 are the same eDPI.
Q: What if I play other shooters?
A: Use a converter and compare cm/360. The number you type into CS2 does not carry over.
Q: Is there a correct eDPI?
A: No. The best sensitivity is the one you can aim with consistently after a few weeks of practice.
Sources
setup.gg: CS2 sensitivity converter, eDPI formula and cm/360 calculator
Tradeit: best CS2 sensitivity, starting ranges and a pro settings snapshot
GearRank: CS2 mouse settings, raw input, polling rate and mouse acceleration