[TF2] A Beginner’s Guide to Trading and the Economy!

Have you been looking to get into the TF2 economy? Then look no further than this video!
This part 1 of 2 in my introductory trading series. Part 2 is here! • [TF2] A Beginner's Gui...
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Introduction
1:05 Getting your account ready
3:07 Engaging in a trade
4:19 Currencies
7:36 Item types
12:13 Pricing your items
17:08 Selling your items and avoiding scams
22:33 Conclusion
Join my discord server for all things trading! / discord
―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――
● Hud: Bud Hud
● Twitter: Twitter.com/VirtualTF
● Outro Music: Vexento - Staring At The Lights
● Outro SFM made by Apple / theapple. .
● SFM Thumbnail made by GrinningReptile
steamcommunity.com/id/reptilej/
―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――
Thanks for watching!

[@lynkcrafter8923]

my first thought "oh, i guess i could watch this to get a good understanding of how to trade, but it may be outdate- oh wait it was published today, nice"

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

this is awesome

[@softavocado508]

@@TheVirtualEconomist no u

[@Succer]

@@TheVirtualEconomist epic*

[@littleslimedude123]

Yeah I legit saw this and was thinking about how it was probably made in 2018 but then like oh... second episode when??

[@crittercrittercritter]

@@softavocado508 no u

[@JadeEye3314]

Man single handedly attempts to save the entire TF2 economy.

[@Ludwig_Perpenhente]

The Economy is weird

[@EnzoTeal]

and he's gonna make it

[@jacobchampagne8443]

Not just a man. A Mann.

[@sankdom4598]

The economy is fine The value of hats are going up Miscs Halloween’s australiums and just normal hats are all going up in price

[@f1shyspace]

@@sankdom4598 this vid was posted 10 months before you commented so that means it worked

[@marte9346]

Soo glad you mentioned that backpack was just a guide. Seen countless new trades get sharked just coz they consider backpack as a bible

[@staringgasmask]

I once bought a non-tradable prussian pickelhaube for 7 ref and went on a trade server to sell it for 9 or 10, if people wanted to keep it, but I got insulted because "backpack says it's worth 2 ref", nobody selling at 2 ref and everyone selling over 15 ref. I said that and got insulted. What a wonderful community decided to help

[@stratacat]

@@staringgasmask you're trying to trade a non-tradeable

[@genericasianperson6405]

@@staringgasmask how TF did you even get a non tradable only way you could have got one is off the steam market for money

[@TheWeedIsland]

@@genericasianperson6405 probably meant noncraftable

[@abicto]

@@genericasianperson6405 gifts

[@slavsquatter__2159]

Last time I was this early, keys were 19 ref.

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

oof

[@awdenthegreat3074]

WHAT!

[@TheBiohazad1]

Last time I checked keys were 2.33 ref lel

[@Savantastic]

@@TheBiohazad1 Oof

[@doc6188]

@@TheBiohazad1 last time I checked keys were 0.11 ref

[@dio8451]

This is so incredible dude. This is what the trading community needs right now. The market has evolved drastically over time and all of the most popular trading guides and series aren't even close to relevant anymore. Its great to see a solid source of information about trading in 2020.

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

That's the goal! Thanks for the kind words :)

[@r1val145]

Bad Weeb

[@ares843]

Rikka

[@Thereisnogreatersword]

The day after I get back Into trading. Perfect

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

good timing!

[@raylen5232]

me 2, wow

[@drippeeboye607]

Oh boy Im gonna trade this key for stuff! (15 day trade hold) Me: BrUHH

[@HikariVSM]

use marketplace.tf

[@grinmace4834]

Lmao get a mobile authenticator.

[@bluespy9yearsago386]

im almoşt done with mobile authenticator!

[@OutlawedPoet]

get the steam desktop authenticator if you can use a phone one time and if you use a password manager

[@fatmonkey9757]

@@grinmace4834 do you have to have a phone number?

[@rajtac-tts7015]

Yaknow, this is very good, nothing else to say, not Much of a critique I remember watching your old trading guides as a newbie, glad to see you're uploading these

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

thanks dude!

[@Kryogenix2]

Im starting to trade after years of not playing tf2, and im doing good so far, ive made only profit, and have gotten all the cosmetics i've wanted already

[@user-qc1mc2ly8j]

Nice! How's it going now with your trading? I just started going on servers and advertising this item i dont really want rn

[@vukyLoL]

@@user-qc1mc2ly8j can you help me I'm new

[@user-qc1mc2ly8j]

@@vukyLoL haven't played TF2 since October and never really got into trading lol

[@megatronman2783]

I've been trading for 5 years and I still felt like I should watch this

[@theletterl8948]

im using me being early just to tell you that what you are doing is amazing and I bet a ton of people have been helped by you before, you have helped me before. you are doing amazing work and deserve a bigger following

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

thanks dude!

[@eightball6219]

Correction: Spells _were_ items that when they were applied show a particular effect during Halloween Don't give the new traders hope of finding a spell that hasn't been applied

[@sleep1904]

14:58 talking about backpacks it took my back pack 15 days to update

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

yeah it hasn't been good recently

[@totallynotabot8580]

For me it only took 7 days

[@rocketpg_9532]

It's been two months for me LMAO

[@totallynotabot8580]

RocketPG_ damn, sorry man.

[@gaybleech2620]

mine refuses to update, its been 2 years

[@IInferno]

I originally edited this video, but i have to say the way you revamped it is so clean and nice, great work ben!

[@goldfishthedestroyer3233]

littelcat456 ?

[@skepster.]

@littelcat456 ?

[@Seasmus99]

@littelcat456 what the hell happened here?

[@ejotas]

@@goldfishthedestroyer3233 what he said lmao

[@rigby.]

@Littlecat456 what

[@goldenale6587]

19:28 dude I was on that server as mossagon and didn’t even notice you wish I could have said hello!

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

that's awesome dude! Yeah I was just there to get footage for the video so I didn't stick around for too long.

[@thatboysus6288]

And I was bigcheesenips at the server lol.

[@sevendeadlysquids404]

"Getting started"... thumbnail: Shows burning team captain, the most insanely expensive thing ever.

[@Supertimegamingify]

Just got back into TF2 after getting scammed last year and I'm so glad that I've found your videos again by accident, and just in time for some good information! If only "tradable in a few days" didn't mean tradable in a week in valve-speak.

[@shafterune9058]

just curious. do you ever consider investing into the stock market like SQU1RRELLY?

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

I've considered it, but I'd need to spend some time learning before I'd feel comfortable buying anything. But I'm currently spending that time working on videos, sooo lol

[@krakennvlyat]

@butterfly fade ah yes, I am missing out when I could be ruining the environment, the stock market, and single handedly breaking my pc!

[@krakennvlyat]

@BTC bandit I really don’t care if people are making more than me by investing in shutdown, but I have a steady source of income, and actually work 2 jobs.

[@tabondyemek2168]

I stopped trading and tf2 but seeing this makes me smile so much. I’ve put thousands of hours in this game and this gave flashbacks of your old guides and video’s. Love to see this and keep up the good work, tf2 needs this

[@okaysuredude_]

Perfect timing, my friend is just starting to trade :)

[@captainrex9252]

Me: Almost about to fall asleep Virtual economist: Lol no

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

:)

[@lgr704]

Me too Im watching this at midnight

[@jeanettacoyne6390]

😏

[@newzoran3624]

How dis you know?

[@colonelpopcorn1947]

So I'm not the only one . . .

[@SubZeroDestruction]

Great video, and it does an amazing job at looking at nearly every aspect of trading for a new person to understand.

[@multi792]

A really amazing video....explains litterly everything that you need to know and gives you so much detail that you don't need to watch any more tutorials regarding beginning to trade! Very nicely done! :) Big thumps up in 2023 still.

[@flakey-finn]

FINALLY a good guide for a year I was trying to start but idk how and this helped me. THANK YOU

[@noel4398]

This video helped me learn some new features about backpack.tf I never knew about so ty for that. I can’t wait for part 2 to come out great video as always!

[@Suwawako]

This is a pretty excellent guide! I cannot wait for part 2. :)

[@orkhoshakra6888]

I can't wait until the next video because I got a unusual and I'm trying to sell it but it's so hard and confusing. Keep up the good work, a lot of people desperately need it!

[@kingpinkbeard7062]

Virtual Economist: "trade servers are made specifically for Trading." Me: "Hmmm you don't say!" Lmao

[@charmyzard]

Yeah? All I see is people trying to be friendly to get owned by toxic tryhards.

[@vorpalweapon4814]

In reality trade servers are dm servers

[@1nterzept661]

Trade servers are just basically 10% Trading and 90% Sniper battles

[@bloodin6840]

Ironic or not trade servers aren't to trade *nowadays*

[@angeloiturriaga1327]

Lol most trade servers are use on friendlies or rryhard snipers

[@Bruh-jo4lb]

I’ve been refreshing your channel today to see if the video came out, and then I get the notification. Great content as always!

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

thanks dude!

[@chargedclouds3315]

You know what, I’m gonna get into trading! You’ve really inspired me! Can’t wait to see the next video on this. I lucky enough to have people in the community helping me.

[@narbogbugsploda7660]

Hows it hanging?

[@drmedick]

@@narbogbugsploda7660 the unusual quicksell bots probably got to him

[@annsh.6487]

Oh wow, posted one day ago? Thank KZbin, I got lucky to find this vid just when I needed it. Thank you so much, this is incredibly helpful for basic understanding of the scene.

[@collinmulvaney9130]

Thank you so much for this!! I’ve been wanting to get into trading, I never knew how to get started

[@iskamag]

how to trade 1: check the price for your items 2: pray that the other person doesn’t know the real price or is willing to overpay

[@Vision444]

Pretty much. And nowadays the only active traders are out for a profit. You won’t find anyone in trade servers looking to buy something nice for themselves because, y’know, bots

[@awdenthegreat3074]

@@Vision444 your right

[@marte9346]

@@Vision444 or maybe you are just not trading properly

[@awdenthegreat3074]

Wait how about the over price keys

[@dynamine203]

@@awdenthegreat3074 yes bro 50 ref keys makes unusual trading very hard...

[@DocsGamingLair]

As a once avid trader who has been out of it for awhile this was a great refresher of information. Great job!

[@thewumpusswoo]

Thank you soo incredibly much. i just started to get into the trading scene yesterday and i did make alot of profit but i hope these videos help me along with my journey as i start trading for more expensive items.

[@p24p14]

Awesome video! I was actually a victim of phishing and lost quite a chunk of money because I was new and didn't know better :/ I've always wanted to get back into trading and your videos are definitely giving me the confidence to know I can still trade in 2020 and make something of it! Love ya dude!

[@bishdish2445]

Thank god for this vid. I was so confused on what to do in trading lmao

[@andykillsu]

This was a great video! Looking forward to part 2!

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

:)

[@chandranair9448]

@@TheVirtualEconomist hey man thanks I'm doing really good with trading

[@spiffy3430]

Ok I absolutely loved this video.Im already sorta experienced at trading but watching this brang back my gibus days.

[@jadenmartinez323]

For those who want to know the essential amounts of weapons it takes to make the amount of a key, here's the answer: It takes 2 weapons (they have to be in the same class btw) to make a scrap metal, Which with 3 scrap metals (6 weapons) makes a refined metal, Which with 3 refined metals (18 weapons) makes a reclaimed metal, 18 devided by 50 comes out to 900 WEAPONS. In comparison, that's 18 FULL BACKPACK SLOTS. that's how valuable a key is.

[@chargedclouds3315]

Day 1 of starting trading: put in a small investment of just two keys, worked my way up to 5, and 1 more key in ref. Placed a few trade offers, and am waiting overnight for any counter-offers.

[@braha710]

keep this updated im intrigued by your progress also what did you buy with your first two keys to make the profit?

[@chargedclouds3315]

Bra Ha yea I haven’t really kept this updated here but I’ll try to! I think this is day five and I bought my first Miami Nights Hetman’s Headpiece. With three keys in ma backpack.

[@braha710]

@@chargedclouds3315 aw nice im going to probably start up here soon and try and see where i can get in trading

[@mmm-xd2om]

@@chargedclouds3315 hows it goin?

[@vorpalweapon4814]

Good video, I will show my friends this.

[@namesvanilla5479]

This was awesome mate! Cheers for the help!

[@dembois8175]

this helped me out a lot thank you good work as always cant wait for the next video ive been stuck in between low and high tier trading and i cant get out so hopefully the next amazing video will help me out just like all your others

[@CalamitysCurse]

this man is so nice, he decides to give people his knowledge of making profit in tf2 for free, which if someone rises above him, it could be more competition. i may not be fluent in tf2 trading, as i have not fully seen this video, but i want to thank this man for giving everyone a hand in tf2 trading for nothing whatsoever than to help people.

[@2hot34]

Ironically that’s not how trading in a large market works, by simply trading your driving up transactions which causes the marketplace to flux in higher/lower prices as things get traded for varying prices. The more people trading means there’s more potential buyers and thus potential profit.

[@tilenjarc1718]

Man that was more than i expected. There is a whole economy for one game. I am only 15 and if i learn this maybe i would be able to know how to play my taxes when i' m 16.

[@shamdoo5152]

yea bro its pretty helpful, i started when i was only 11 and if you have a year or two of tf2 trading on your hand, your pretty set

[@apprenticeboglim1780]

Even though I have made 6.5k in total and feel like I have a good understanding of the how trading works I still ended up watching the video lmao, I used to watch your videos when I started trading good to see your still uploading. Keep it up!

[@doineedanamealtieri3880]

Thank you so much I have not made my first trade yet but I will soon. You helped me tremendously. Keep doing what you're doing.

[@Mr_Metro]

God I wish I knew some of this stuff when I tried to get into trading for the first time, lemme tell ya it didn’t go well. This inspires me to try again thanks:)

[@7ridzse]

For the first tip, you shouldn't buy a regular key if you already wanna make some profit from your first investment, go for a special one, you can sell them for far more than the regular ones. go for like a Unlocked Winter 2016 Cosmetic Case or even a Winter 2017 Cosmetic Key .

[@carlschumann2928]

Virtual Thank you so much, I just started trading and I've been getting offers and getting good deals like crazy, thank you so much man!

[@ABHY16]

Im glad you made these guides, im just starting out in unusual trading. I'm still a bit clueless on what to do but hopefully I can manage to get an unusual or two.

[@sushirabit5624]

I am a relatively newer player to tf2, and I must say this had been very helpful and motivating

[@stepankosenko5745]

I started 3.5 months ago with 7 keys and am now at over 800. Trading is very easy to make profit if you know what your doing and have experience.

[@ray-ov1sd]

damn nice, can I see your bp?

[@stepankosenko5745]

ray backpack.tf/profiles/76561198244962432

[@j4kk0]

Hey, psst, You can send me a key 👀 Just kidding xd

[@TheWeedIsland]

@@j4kk0 can you send me a bill's hat and earbuds haha. Just kidding. But what if?? nah jk... unless?

[@ray-ov1sd]

Codaxx nice dude happy for you!

[@AvroLynx]

Happy your back and with a indept guide

[@angelviveros8237]

Honestly great Video i'm just starting to get myself into tf2 this is great info to know how to avoid scams and how to make trading was easier and simple(:

[@leetheracoon6775]

thank you for not being posted 5 years ago

[@yungangelsuzi]

This is an amazing tutorial for beginners even though I’m not a beginner and a more experienced mid/low tier trader this is great to watch just to warm up your memory for trading. I actually was able to get enough ref to get about 2 keys! And I got my first unusual and Aussie a few days ago! What I can say to the beginners is never give up if things look shallow and your not making trades. Just keep trying and trying again until you can find that trade and make more profit from there. Thanks again virtual economist you where always a helping hand when I was trading

[@kibster9325]

How long have u been trading?

[@halfastudio]

Both vids were super helpful. Thanks!

[@yuukioyamada1690]

I like how you vividly explains to us how and what do we need to learn! Hittin the sub button now

[@Aquadood23]

Finally a tf2 trading video for present times! All other guides still rely on scrap banking

[@cyruscheng499]

SELL WEAPONS FOR SCRAP BUY 2 WEAPONS FOR SCRAP REPEAT 1000 TIMES FOR KEY REPEAT 10 TIMES FOR UNUSUAL

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

that was the goal of the video(s)!

[@_2know1]

@@cyruscheng499 Trade bots: 0.11,take it or leave it

[@l0cse508]

Me:*creats a listing to sell an item for 100% price* 1 day later getting undercut by 11 different bots who trade instatly 24/7

[@rikdenbreejen5230]

Im so fricking ready for part 2 of this video!

[@Sirpantz]

A video on what unusual hats/effects is best to look out for when trading up would be nice, like in terms of price stability/how popular the item is/how fast you can sell it

[@GuyFromCanada]

This is gonna cause a huge influx of new traders

[@realsamu]

Muchas gracias por la información, me encantaría ser tan bueno en trading como tu. Un saludo.

[@MajorCrits404]

This is one of the best tf2 trading and economy guides ... thanks for making videos like these man the community is eternally grateful.... keep doing you man i support you

[@shoruda]

Thank you so much!

[@HorseDetective73]

Haven’t started watching and I know this will be amazing. Edit: I have watched the video and it was amazing like I expected

[@Excaliburmerlin]

tf2 still has an economy? i didnt know trading was still a thing

[@tracertryhard1547]

Yeah, it's not doing well.

[@quidlad7098]

Thanks I recently started wanting to trade and learn the value and prices of specific items.

[@watermelonking5038]

Thank you so much for this video, I finally have a idea on what to do now as a new trader. The day I watched this I made two trades with profit, thank you so much

[@SUPERLEAF002]

I'm a new player and I'd really like to make myself a cool outfit to look like these scouts or soldiers. How much do gold items cost? One of the soldiers who killed me recently had a golden flare gun and frying pans. The frying pan must be cheap because it's a meme weapon, but I don't know about the rocket launcher

[@jankkhvej434]

are we just gonna ignore his demo account in the video is named stonks?

[@gromitmug5232]

Thank you! This is a great guide for trading.

[@pulledpork9778]

This is AWESOME! It clears up a lot of problems for new traders, it’ll help them get into trading much more easier. I wish I had this guide when I started trading :O

[@Swaglordfawful]

Can’t wait for a few weeks when this will become completely outdated

[@gitchincanama580]

You fool.

[@timothylaranjo5109]

@@gitchincanama580 Did it get irrelevant though?

[@laurencedownie9730]

This dude sounds like the son of TheLockpickingLawyer lmao

[@angeloiturriaga1327]

Lol true

[@Jann_YT]

This SERIOUSLY helped me so much, thanks so much for this tutorial man.

[@TheVirtualEconomist]

no problem! :)

[@jordanbozeman3898]

Glad your back man

[@veryconcernedjesus2584]

Ok good as a new player I can finally dress my pyro up just the way I wan- “First you need to have a premium account” GOD FUCKING DAMM IT!

[@Nate14567]

I think after u set up steam guard, u wait for a week and your items are then tradable

[@maxweber1069]

I just have a question is it possible to earn long term profit in tf2, like waiting for the key price to rise and then quick selling a ton of keys

[@charadremur7354]

In theory everything can be invested in in that way, but remember inflation.

[@eggsforme]

yessss a video just newly uploaded

[@LightsJusticeZ]

Thinking back to the days where I had buds and traded it for 5 keys, then used those 5 keys to open crates hoping for an unusual to sell for a lot. Sigh, tiss the luck with gambling lol. But great video, I do a bit of trading and learned some new stuff in this video. Looking forward to part 2!

[@grooverchan1600]

When is part 2 coming out because i really want to know how to make a profit

[@QualityJo_]

When he release it

[@totallynotabot8580]

Corona virus can you pls go, I wanna see my friends again.

[@Grantulous]

I know the basic concept of profiting. Hop into a trade server and see if anyone is selling a "quicksell" which is an item they are trying to get rid of, and is usually being sold for less value. For example, if someone is quickselling a hat for 9 keys while it's worth 12, you could buy that hat, and sell it for 10 or 11 keys, making profit. Hope this helps

[@jasonblundelldobebussing]

Boys trade in TF2 Men work IRL ☝😔

[@pol9423]

Waiting the second part!!

[@Rx.98]

Nice ! Txh for sharing this information

[@Spheremg4c]

My god why the fuck will you need a premium account just to trade…

[@StrifeHale]

18:10 It's wrong. Trading servers = playing servers.

[@cjriketf2]

Thanks for the video! I have been trading for 5 years and many of my friends are just getting into it so the same guides I used back in 2015 aren’t relevant today.

[@alsodabchickenman5206]

this helped so much very epic vid

[@j-man3477]

3:40 Virtual economist idk if you're good friends wth the inferno guy but a while back he scammed me for one of my unusual weapons

[@maddizzle1744]

I'm pretty confident that guy that scammed you was a impersonator

[@totallynotabot8580]

Damn, sorry that happened to you.

[@bloodin6840]

Be careful with impersonators

[@PumpkinMan3]

When does the 2 video comes not Complain just ask

[@big_cosme7403]

using the steamRep Checker helps a lot, also that sends you directly to backpack and other important pages

[@InfernoTune727]

I just did my first trade! Thx for the help!

[@user-hh4nh2zj1t]

f2p players begging for australiums in mvm

[@heromaster3884]

Lol, I also happen to do that.

[@MrKolny]

Quicker guide on TF2 trading: Buy something at 110% of its price, then sell it at 40% of it's price cause Nobody in the Entire World will Ever sell or buy them at any other price

[@gaming27110]

Yes

[@TheBrutalGingerBrit]

hey dude thanks for making this helped me sooo much when i started tradeing

[@quaze_tf9921]

Wish I had all this info compressed into one video when I started. Good luck to all starting traders! 🔥 🧢