The 5 Best Ways to Get Free Keys in Team Fortress 2

Whether it's trading or participating in events, getting free keys in TF2 is always an accomplishment. And in 2024, getting free TF2 keys is still relevant.

Updated on Jan 07, 2024
Fact checked by Rijad Kamberović |
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The 5 Best Ways to Get Free Keys in Team Fortress 2

1 /5

Get TF2 Keys For Free Through Offer Walls

The easiest way, for me, is to just buy the stuff I need in games using real money. Of course, it's not the most cost-effective way for some people, but that's where Freecash comes in, letting you make microtransactions, without taking the money out of your pocket.

It's a site for gamers where, by completing tasks, you can earn yourself some cash to spend on games, by doing what you were going to do anyway. Play video games.

Freecash
4.8 / 5

Freecash is an entirely safe and legal offer wall and get-paid-to site that offers various payout options and a really attractive coin exchange rate compared to its competitors.

PROS!
CONS
Payout Options
5 / 5
Reputation
5 / 5
Coin Exchange Rate
5 / 5
Methods for Earning Money Available
4.5 / 5
User Experience
5 / 5

Freecash

Freecash is a mix of the best that offer wall sites can, well, offer to their users, and little to no downsides.

  • Sizeable payouts
  • Unlimited surveys
  • Straightforward tasks
  • Leaderboard incentive bonuses for the most active users and biggest earners
  • Human support staff
  • Simple and easy-to-use UI

All in all, Freecash is the best option to suit all of your needs, and redeem your earnings in a matter of minutes, which you can then spend on your favorite games and their microtransactions, including Team Fortress 2 keys!


2 /5

Getting Free Keys in TF2 - Participating in Events

The first, and most obvious way, to get free TF2 keys is to participate in official events where Valve hand out free keys. Unfortunately, these are very rare occasions that usually happen on major holidays, such as the Scream Fortress events on Halloween.


TF2 - Halloween Event

Using these, extremely rare, events to earn rewards in the form of keys is certainly worth it, but usually not enough due to their rarity. So, getting free TF2 keys from TF2 remains an alternative and not the main way of earning them.


3 /5

Getting Free Keys in TF2 - Participating in Giveaways

For years now, third-party sites have been the main driving force and platforms for TF2 trading and the gathering of the community, with the official Steam Community Market being relegated to the back.

These sites and platforms offer a variety of giveaways, with some that award TF2 keys directly, and others giving out the, more general, Steam Gift Cards, which can then be redeemed for TF2 keys.

NameLink
Twitter - @GiveawayBaseEnter the giveaway
Reddit - /r/tf2tf2
Discord - TF2 CommunityJoin the server
Team Fortress 2 trading website
Scrap.tf

Winning these giveaways is far too luck-reliant, but with the number of Team Fortress 2 Giveaways available all over the internet, there is quite a good possibility of getting a nice stream of income by participating in as many as possible.


4 /5

Getting Free Keys in TF2 - Playing on Special Servers for Credits

Ensuring that you are going to have fun while playing Team Fortress 2 these days usually means hosting your own servers, or playing on the ones you can trust will enforce the rules.

This, in turn, led to the ones hosting servers using ads to make money off of them, and one of the ways to entice players to play on their servers is to give out Credits that can be redeemed for valuable items, such as refined metal, and even free keys, and thus reward players making them money.


TF2 Credit to Keys Conversion Rate

The conversion rate of the credits is usually sky-high to get credits directly. But seeing as you're going to be playing the game anyway, you might as well hit two birds with one stone!


5 /5

Getting Free Keys in TF2 - Trading

The final entry on our list is the one that requires the most effort and needs some starting capital. This is because, to access the full trading system, you need to purchase any item from the official store, which upgrades your account to premium.

Though, this can also be accomplished with gifted items from friends. There are quite a few ways to trade in TF2, each with its own terminology.

Scrap BankingAn act where a player charges metal for weapons
Weapon BankingAn act where a player gives another player a weapon for another weapon
Cosmetic BankingAn act where a player purchases a cosmetic for 1.33 refined or lower, then sells it for 1.33 refined or more, gaining the player a profit
Key BankingAn act where a player exchanges their Mann Co. Supply Crate Keys for metal, mainly refined metal
1:1 Trading An act where a player exchanges a single item with another player for another item
Item OverpayOverpaying for an item by .11 of 1 scrap to 1 key in items compared to the required amount for the other player's item
Pure TradingWhen a person pays the pure value for a specified item, generally in Refined or Keys

Seeing as the economy of TF2 is developed in such a fashion, all players have ample opportunities to up-trade their initial capital into getting free keys. Whether the end goal is done via reverse Key Banking, or Pure Trading, there will always be other traders to find a compromise with. Just make sure to avoid scams!

This is especially true when trading on third-party sites, such as those that employ bot trading, so it's a must to check out which sites are the best to buy TF2 times, and which sites are the best ones to sell TF2 items, from the prices offered, to trading security.

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