The Karambit drops from 16 CS2 cases, and all of them released in a narrow window between September 2013 and August 2016 — no new case has added the Karambit to its rare pool since. The cheapest entry point is the Revolver Case, which on marketplaces like LIS-SKINS currently runs around $2.50, while the priciest case on its own is the original CS:GO Weapon Case from 2013, which now runs around $107 just as a container, before you even open it, purely on age and collector demand. The odds of a rare item (a knife, Karambit included) are the same across all of them, 0.26%, or roughly once every 385 openings. Below is the full list of cases, why no new ones have added it, and what alternatives exist.
The Full List of Cases with the Karambit
The Karambit sits in the rare pool of sixteen cases, and all of them belong to CS:GO's earliest history: CS:GO Weapon Case, eSports 2013 Case, Operation Bravo Case, CS:GO Weapon Case 2, eSports 2013 Winter Case, Winter Offensive Weapon Case, CS:GO Weapon Case 3, Operation Phoenix Weapon Case, eSports 2014 Summer Case, Operation Vanguard Weapon Case, Chroma Case, Chroma 2 Case, Revolver Case, Chroma 3 Case, Gamma Case, and Gamma 2 Case — the last of which released in August 2016. No collection released after that carries the Karambit.
Why No New Cases Have the Karambit
The set of knife models is the same across all 16 cases — the Bayonet, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Karambit, and M9 Bayonet — but the available finishes depend on the specific case: the Gamma 2 Case, for example, carries Gamma Doppler, Lore, Autotronic, Freehand, Bright Water, and Black Laminate, while the original CS:GO Weapon Case has entirely different, much older finishes on those same five models. After 2016, Valve moved on to other knife lineups and stopped using this classic pool in new cases — later collections got the Falchion, Bowie, Ursus, Butterfly, Navaja, Talon, Classic, Paracord, Survival, Nomad, Skeleton, Stiletto, and other models instead. The Karambit hasn't appeared in a single new case since the Gamma 2 Case in 2016, and it isn't in current containers like Kilowatt or Fever. Valve has never announced whether it will return in the future.
Which Case to Pick If You Want to Try for a Karambit
The set of knife models is the same across all 16 cases, but the specific finishes differ between groups of cases, so picking a specific collection doesn't by itself raise your odds at the Karambit; the case's own price and the rest of the regular pool matter more. A broader breakdown of which cases are worth buying gives more general context. The cheapest way to try is the Gamma 2 Case (around $2.80) or the Revolver Case (around $2.50) — both noticeably cheaper than older collections like the original CS:GO Weapon Case, which costs 30 to 40 times more purely on age and collector status. On top of the case's price you need to add a key, which has a fixed price of $2.50, and the actual process of opening a case is the same regardless of collection. None of these 16 cases has been in the active weekly free-reward pool for years, so getting one now means buying an existing copy on the market.
An Alternative Route: The Trade-Up Contract
Since October 2025, a Karambit can also come from a trade-up contract: five regular Covert-rarity skins can be exchanged for one regular knife or pair of gloves from the pool of one of the collections used. You can mix eligible Covert skins from different collections, but that changes the set of possible outcomes. For the Karambit to be among the potential results at all, at least one of the input Covert skins needs to represent a collection tied to a pool that includes the Karambit. The contract doesn't let you pick a specific knife in advance, so this is also a lottery rather than a guaranteed way to land a Karambit.
What to Know Before Buying
The odds are the same everywhere. All 16 cases carry a 0.26% chance at a rare item, roughly once every 385 openings; the set of knife models is the same, but the specific finishes differ between cases, so picking a pricier case doesn't by itself give you an edge on the Karambit specifically.
Case prices vary wildly. From around $2.50 for the Revolver Case up to around $107 for the original CS:GO Weapon Case — the gap comes from age and collector demand, not from what's inside. Prices reflect LIS-SKINS listings at the time of writing and can change.
The key has a fixed price. Any of these cases needs a key priced at $2.50, regardless of the specific collection.
None of them are in the weekly drop pool. All 16 cases dropped out of the active free pool years ago — getting one now means buying an existing copy on the market.
Crafting isn't a guarantee. The trade-up contract can only yield a Karambit if at least one of the input Covert skins represents a collection tied to a pool that includes the Karambit, and even then the outcome is random.
The finish is its own lottery. Which finish comes attached to the Karambit is decided by what a given case's rare pool contains, not by the fact that a knife dropped at all; if you land a pattern-based finish like Marble Fade, there's a full pattern breakdown in a separate guide.
All 16 Cases with the Karambit
The full list in chronological order, earliest to most recent. Prices reflect LIS-SKINS listings at the time of writing and can change:
| Case | Release Year | Case Price |
|---|---|---|
| CS:GO Weapon Case | 2013 | ≈$107 |
| eSports 2013 Case | 2013 | ≈$44 |
| Operation Bravo Case | 2013 | ≈$54 |
| CS:GO Weapon Case 2 | 2013 | ≈$21 |
| eSports 2013 Winter Case | 2013 | ≈$13 |
| Winter Offensive Weapon Case | 2013 | ≈$10 |
| CS:GO Weapon Case 3 | 2014 | ≈$13 |
| Operation Phoenix Weapon Case | 2014 | ≈$4 |
| eSports 2014 Summer Case | 2014 | ≈$12 |
| Operation Vanguard Weapon Case | 2014 | ≈$5 |
| Chroma Case | 2015 | ≈$5 |
| Chroma 2 Case | 2015 | ≈$4 |
| Revolver Case | 2015 | ≈$2.50 |
| Chroma 3 Case | 2016 | ≈$3 |
| Gamma Case | 2016 | ≈$3 |
| Gamma 2 Case | 2016 | ≈$2.80 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Will the Karambit ever come to new CS2 cases?
It hasn't come to a single new case since 2016: after the Gamma 2 Case, Valve never added the Karambit to another collection, and it isn't in current containers like Kilowatt, Fever, or Dreams & Nightmares. Valve has made no official statement about whether it will return in the future.
Which Karambit case is the cheapest?
The Revolver Case, around $2.50 for the case itself, comes closest to the minimum cost of an attempt among all 16 options on LIS-SKINS. The Gamma 2 Case, around $2.80, follows right behind it. Prices on other marketplaces may differ.
Can you get a Karambit through the trade-up contract?
Yes, but only if at least one of the five Covert skins you use represents a collection tied to a pool that includes the Karambit — the contract yields a random gold item from the pool tied to the skins used and doesn't let you pick the knife in advance.
Is the chance at a Karambit the same across all 16 cases?
Yes. All 16 cases carry the same roughly 0.26% chance at a rare item overall, and the set of available knife models is the same: the Bayonet, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Karambit, and M9 Bayonet. The specific finishes differ between groups of cases, though, so the 0.26% figure shouldn't be read as the odds of landing a Karambit specifically — the actual odds on a specific Karambit are considerably lower.
