Valve has made a lot of effort over the past years to make sure the rank distribution is as balanced and as accurate as possible even if there are some deviations due to smurfing and rank boosting. Either way – the better you perform and the more games you win, the higher the chances of ranking up you have, especially if you happen to play against higher-ranked opponents.

It might come as a surprise or it just might come as you expected. The ELO system is unpredictable and that’s why it’s difficult to pinpoint when exactly are you going to rank up or down. Unfortunately, we will probably never know exactly how it works. The CS:GO ELO system takes into account your region, your opponent's rank, your teammates rank, your score/kills/deaths/assists, and most importantly the number of rounds you win. We also know that the ranking system is based on ELO (which is the same system used in chess rankings) but unlike in chess, the ELO is highly dynamic and affects cs:go ranks by many factors. These are facts and here’s where it gets more interesting and a little bit mysterious. We also know that with each win you get closer to ranking up and with each loss you get closer to ranking down. To start off, we know that the ranks are equal compared to skill – the higher your rank, the higher your skill. Because it’s not public information and Valve has been doing a really great job of keeping it a secret. the simple truth is – nobody knows exactly. So how does the CS:GO Ranking System work exactly? Well. Counter-Strike Ranks and the Elo system explained

In addition CSGO offers a seperate Ranking system for the Danger Zone and Wingman Mode.

The more you win, the more likely you’ll rank up. Specifically in CS:GO, your rank determines your level of skill and then matches you up with teammates and opponents with similar skill-level so both teams could have equal chances to win. Your first rank can vary from Silver to Gold Nova, rarely any higher than Gold Nova III. Once you have 10 competitive match wins, you will be assigned your first rank. Before you have even played any competitive matches, you are standing as an unranked player. In CS:GO there exists a total of 18 CS:GO ranks. Every player aims to achieve the highest potential rank, not just because then you’d be considered good in CS:GO, but also because CS:GO is considered as the flagship of all FPS games and if you’re considered a high ranked player in Counter-Strike, you’re more likely to be above average in any other FPS game as well.

Counter strike steam charts