Read This First
Team Fortress 2 has no gold, and its trading scene is full of scams. The Official TF2 Wiki lists 16 scam categories, including fake middlemen, phishing links, quickswitching and impersonation of Valve staff. This page covers how the system works. It does not rank sellers, because there is no seller market we can verify.
All figures below are Reported: they come from the community-edited Official TF2 Wiki, not a Valve post, and Valve can change them.
Free vs Premium
The wiki says Team Fortress 2 went free-to-play on June 23, 2011. Account type controls most of what follows (Reported):
| Feature | Free | Premium |
|---|---|---|
| Backpack | 50 slots, expandable to 3,750 | 300 slots, expandable to 4,000 |
| Item drops | Limited, no rare or cosmetic items | Standard, rare and cosmetic items |
| Crafting | Limited blueprints | All blueprints |
| Trading | Can only trade away items received from other players; dropped items stay untradable except tools | Full trading |
The wiki lists three ways to upgrade: activate The Orange Box, buy anything from the Mann Co. Store, or receive an Upgrade to Premium gift. After upgrading, previously imposed restrictions are removed.
The Item Drop Timer
The wiki (Reported) says items arrive every 30 to 70 minutes, averaging 50 minutes, against a weekly playtime cap of about 10 hours. The cap resets on Thursdays near 00:00 GMT, and unused time carries over, up to 20 hours banked. Our arithmetic: 10 hours at a 50 minute average is roughly 12 drops a week, which is an estimate, not a wiki figure.
- Crates and other usable items drop on a separate timer and do not count toward the weekly cap.
- Since July 2013 you must accept a drop before the next one arrives, so idling does not stack drops.
- To count, you must be on a VAC-secured server, run only one game instance and not use external programs to respond to notifications.
Scrap, Reclaimed and Refined
Metal is the small change of the TF2 economy. The wiki (Reported) gives these recipes:
| Make | From |
|---|---|
| 1 Scrap Metal | Any 2 weapons used by the same class (Smelt Class Weapons) |
| 1 Reclaimed Metal | 3 Scrap Metal |
| 1 Refined Metal | 3 Reclaimed Metal |
Each step reverses at the same ratio. That makes 9 scrap equal to 1 refined (our arithmetic). Unwanted duplicate weapons are the usual feedstock.
Keys and Crates
A Mann Co. Supply Crate Key is bought in the Mann Co. Store, listed at $2.49 / £1.85 / 2.19€ on the wiki (Reported). It cannot drop or be crafted. Each key opens one locked crate.
- Trade wait. Keys are untradable for 7 days after purchase if the buyer's first Steam purchase was over 30 days old. Otherwise a 3 day wait applies. Items opened with them inherit the restriction.
- Odds. The Unusual page gives under a 1% chance of an Unusual from crates and cases. The crate page gives cases a 0.66% chance. These two numbers come from different wiki pages and we do not reconcile them.
- Region. Since July 2018, players in Belgium and the Netherlands cannot open crates because of gambling regulations.
Opening crates is a gamble with long odds. This page describes the rules and does not suggest it as a way to make money.
How Trading Works
- Trades or Trade Offers hold up to 256 items per transaction (Reported).
- Valve added an escrow system in 2015. Without the Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator, trades can be held up to 15 days. If both players have had it for at least 7 days, trades are instant.
- Items bought on the Steam Community Market can be relisted at once but cannot be traded for 7 days.
- Some items cannot be traded, including achievement weapons and some contributor items.
- Password resets and similar account changes trigger temporary trade limits.
backpack.tf is described by the wiki as a community price guide where users suggest prices and vote. Treat its numbers as consensus, not as a Valve price.
Scams the Wiki Warns About
The Community trading tips page (Reported) lists these checks:
- Open the other player's Steam profile yourself. Do not use a link they send you.
- Check account age and TF2 playtime, and look for warning comments on the profile.
- Click the other player's name in the trade window to confirm it is the real person and not an impersonator.
- Hover over every item to confirm quality and craftability, and watch for renamed items.
- Never install software or click links a trader sends. The wiki says Steam admins never message you in Steam chat.
The wiki also lists private inventories, brand-new accounts and unsolicited friend requests as red flags. Steam Wallet funds cannot be traded.
A Sensible Routine
- Upgrade to Premium first if you want drops and trading to work at all.
- Play, accept each drop, and smelt duplicates into scrap.
- Turn on Steam Guard Mobile a week before you plan to trade, so trades are not held.
- Price from several places, not just one community site.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there gold in Team Fortress 2?
No. Per the Official TF2 Wiki, the economy runs on items, scrap and refined metal, and Mann Co. Supply Crate Keys, which are traded between players.
How often do items drop?
The wiki says drops arrive at intervals of 30 to 70 minutes, averaging 50 minutes, up to a weekly playtime cap of about 10 hours that resets on Thursdays around 00:00 GMT. Crates drop on a separate timer.
What is the difference between Free and Premium?
The wiki lists a 50-slot backpack for Free accounts and 300 for Premium, limited item drops without rare or cosmetic items for Free, and restricted trading for Free. Any amount spent in the Mann Co. Store upgrades an account to Premium.
How many scrap make one refined metal?
Nine. Three scrap make one reclaimed and three reclaimed make one refined, per the wiki. Our arithmetic: 3 × 3 = 9.
Why can't I trade the item I just bought or opened?
The wiki says Mann Co. Store purchases carry a trade wait and that items opened with an untradable key become tradable on the date the key does.
Do trade holds apply to everyone?
The wiki says trades can be held up to 15 days without the Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator, and happen instantly if both players have had it enabled for at least 7 days.
Is backpack.tf official?
No. The wiki describes it as a community-built price guide whose prices come from user suggestions and votes.
Sources
Everything here comes from the Official TF2 Wiki (wiki.teamfortress.com), which is edited by the community, so every figure is marked Reported and may lag a Valve update. We could not read Valve's own Mann-Conomy FAQ page in full. Last checked September 30, 2026.
- Official TF2 Wiki: Item drop
- Official TF2 Wiki: Free to play (account types)
- Official TF2 Wiki: Scrap Metal
- Official TF2 Wiki: Refined Metal
- Official TF2 Wiki: Mann Co. Supply Crate Key
- Official TF2 Wiki: Mann Co. Supply Crate
- Official TF2 Wiki: Unusual
- Official TF2 Wiki: Trading
- Official TF2 Wiki: Community trading tips
- Official TF2 Wiki: backpack.tf
