What is the UMP-45?
The Universale Maschinenpistole, which translates to “Universal Machine Pistol,” and more commonly referred to as the UMP, is a submachine gun manufactured by German weapon’s manufacturer Heckler & Koch GmbH. It was first introduced in 2000, and the primary users were designated to be the American police and law enforcement.
Although it had a number of improvements and a lower sticker price than the widely popular (and also made by H&K) MP5, the UMP did not end up replacing the MP5 and only reached modest popularity in the United States. It has been adopted by a handful of military and police groups throughout the world, but still its overall lack of usage has caused H&K to only produce the UMP-9 chambered in 9mm and discontinuing variants in other calibers.
In CS2, the variant in game is the UMP-45, which is chambered in .45 ACP. This is a mid-tier submachine gun available to both Terrorists and Counter-Terrorists.
How good is this weapon?
The UMP-45 is not that popular of a weapon in CS2, and oftentimes players will omit it from their buy menu for other mid-tier options. However, this was not always the case, and there was a period of time in CS:GO known as the “UMP-45 meta,” where usage of this gun was very high compared to other budget weapons, such as the Galil and Famas.
The UMP-45 has the single highest damage per shot out of all SMGs at 35, which is higher than every automatic rifle besides the AK-47 and M4A1-S. Combine that with the second highest armor-penetration value for an SMG and you have a weapon that can kill armored opponents in 5 to 6 body shots—all for $1200. The main drawback is the slow fire rate and the highest damage falloff for an SMG, which renders the gun useless at medium to longer ranges.
However, prior to 2017 the damage falloff was more inline with other SMGs, and the UMP-45 was a very viable option for medium range fights. Due to the high damage per shot and low fire rate, the UMP-45 plays more like a rifle rather than the run & gun playstyle of most SMGs. And around this time, it had slightly worse performance than guns like the Galil and FAMAS, while only being $1200. This made it to be the de-facto eco-round and force-buy option, as it provided a lot more value for its cost. Its relatively high usage persisted until its damage falloff was heavily nerfed, and over the years the cost of other SMGs and budget rifles have been brought down, so now there are more appealing options.
That’s not to say the gun is useless, as you can use it and still perform extremely well with it. It is especially good as an anti-eco weapon as you can absolutely shred unarmored opponents with it. And it still performs excellently against armored opponents for its low $1200 price point… just make sure you are engaging at very close range though. And if you decide to use this weapon over other SMGs, here’s a list of the 15 best looking UMP-45 skins in CS2. The best part? Choosing to use a less popular weapon means there are plenty of inexpensive yet amazing looking skins!
What are the best UMP-45 Skins? (Prices shown for Factory-New)
15. Carbon Fiber ($.17)
Carbon Fiber in action:
The Carbon Fiber is an extremely simple skin; it covers the body of the UMP-45 in a carbon fiber pattern. However in CS2, the updated material system gives the skin a lot more texture and detail than in CS:GO. It looks pretty good now, especially for being Industrial-Grade. The best part is it’s very cheap, and due to the wear values every single skin will have little to no scratches on it.
14. Briefing ($.39)
Briefing in action:
The Briefing paints the entire gun with a some sort of map that’s mostly in a medium shade of gray. It has more of a muted color palette, but the bright red and blue accents help contrast that. Looking closer there’s a red B surrounded by a rectangle, and the map is supposed to be depicting an imaginary Counter-Strike map. I think that detail is pretty neat, and overall the skin has an aesthetic that you don’t see often.
13. Riot ($.42)
Riot in action:
The Riot applies a dark green and light yellow hydrographic camouflage to parts of the gun, while applying what appears to be carbon fiber to other parts of the gun. There’s even been a custom grip added and decals that depict something a manufacturer would stamp on. This cumulates into a skin with a very tactical feel to it, and almost feels like this is an upgraded UMP-45 and not just a reskin.
Make sure to get this skin in Factory New or Minimal Wear though, as at other wear values the skin loses a lot of detailing—unless you prefer a more rugged look.
12. Plastique ($2.00)
Plastique in action:
The Plastique paints the job with a circuit board design, complete with wiring, microcontrollers, and a ribbon cable attached to a screen. There’s even bits of electrical tape throughout the skin. This finish was part of the CS20 collection, and this skin in particular is a reference to the C-4 explosive present in CS-Source.
The skin is even better in CS2, as it has been updated and now it looks 3-D. All the wiring and components actually look like they are attached to the skin, instead of just being a flat texture.
11. Corporal ($1.24)
Corporal in action:
The Corporal covers the gun in a very militaristic design. The washed out tan and green are typical colors for an army unit, and the symbol for the corporal rank is painted on twice. I like the minimalistic design it has going for it, and I feel like it does a very good job at utilizing the geometry of the gun. The design blends nicely with all the curves and edges instead of just feeling like a piece of artwork that was just thrown onto the gun.
This was also the first UMP-45 skin added that recolored everything about the gun, including the forward grip and magazine.
10. Motorized ($.48)
Motorized in action:
The Motorized was the first UMP-45 skin to be added to CS2, which meant it was built from the ground up with all the new skin making features the new engine had to offer. It has a design reminiscent of a car’s combustion engine, so if you are a car person I think you’ll appreciate this concept. To others, the skin might look a bit too chaotic since there’s a lot going on (just like a car engine), but the 3-D effect this gun has is absolutely astonishing.
The way the light reflects off the skin makes it feel like a completely different object, and that alone deserves a spot on this list.
9. Gold Bismuth ($7.05)
Gold Bismuth in action:
The Gold Bismuth is a bit of a simpler skin. It covers the top of the UMP-45 in white, the bottom in black, and the center of the gun in a darkish gold. There’s also concentric rectangles present throughout the skin, which resembles the appearance of a bismuth crystal. I’m a sucker for black, white, and gold color schemes, which this skin pulls off quite nicely.
Though, I do wish the gold was more lustrous, as the one on the skin is a bit dull. It looks more like brass rather than gold, but it does look shinier in CS2 than in CS:GO.
8. Scaffold ($3.79)
Scaffold in action:
The Scaffold covers up the UMP-45 in various shades of teal, with some white accents thrown around to help break it up. The main body and magazine of the skin have a design to give it the illusion of depth, with the pattern being reminiscent of construction materials.
Personally, I have a preference for skins that cover up every part of the gun, whereas a lot of them paint only the main body and leave out the magazine and other parts (more of an issue with the finish style rather than the creator). On that note, I think the Scaffold looks great, as I really like teal as a color, and it’s not an often utilized color in CS skins.
7. Exposure ($1.51)
Exposure in action:
The Exposure paints the UMP-45 with a design akin to that of an X-Ray. It’s a very interesting concept that was executed well, and some of the bones being shattered is a nice touch. This shade of blue contrasts extremely well with the surrounding black, and this skin gives off Tron-like vibes.
This skin could have been placed higher, but this is the only skin on this list that I think got a downgrade going from CS:GO to CS2. I think the new skin is too reflective and ruins some of the “backlit” aesthetic the gun was going for.
6. Moonrise ($1.46)
Moonrise in action:
The Moonrise paints the skin with a nighttime view of a city’s skyline. This follows in the footsteps of the Glock variant, but trades the lilac glow for a reddish pink. I personally think the original glow looks better, but in return there’s a lot more surface area on this skin, so they cancel each other out.
This time around there’s enough area to include a body of water where you can see the reflection of the buildings and the moon. And just like the Glock variant, the pattern of each skin is randomized which moves the skyline view left and right. There’s also two rare patterns where a star can be seen, one has it on the front sight and the other on the rear sight.
5. Blaze ($19.15)
Blaze in action:
The Blaze was one of the first skin patterns added to CS:GO, with the iconic Desert Eagle being added in the Arms Deal update. The UMP-45 variant followed only a couple months afterwards, and to this day the Blaze looks amazing for how simple it is. Just the bright chrome yellow and red flames have something about it that looks so cool.
I do think the Desert Eagle variant looks a lot better, as the design on the UMP-45 has the side rails covering up part of the flame. But with that in mind, a Desert Eagle does cost almost 20 times as much… However, this skin is still pretty expensive for a blue-tier, as the original Mirage collection no longer drops in game.
4. Fade ($90.58)
Fade in action:
Speaking of long standing skins, the Fade line of finishes was introduced in the Arms Deal update and has remained as one of the most iconic skins in CS2. The simple and vibrant gradient looks beautiful, and the UMP-45 takes full advantage of it.
This skin has the second most surface area out of the guns that come in a Fade finish. It also has relatively flat geometry which doesn’t hinder the look, like how some of the other Fade skins do. Be prepared to pay a decent amount for it though, as this is the most expensive skin on this list by a sizable margin.
3. Momentum ($10.70)
Momentum in action:
The Momentum paints the gun in a red-blue gradient, with arrows added to the main part of the body. The bright colors chosen really make this skin pop, and to me the Momentum feels like a subdued M4A1-S Decimator, and that is one of my favorite skins in the game.
I think the colors here blend very nicely together, and once again, the skin changes every single part of the gun. Unfortunately you should get a Factory New version of this skin if you can, as a lot of the paint wears away very quickly, especially on detailing like the front grip and side rails.
2. Arctic Wolf ($1.62)
Arctic Wolf in action:
The top two are tied for first place, as I think both of them look absolutely amazing and it’s more of a difference in design rather than quality. Funnily enough, they are both animal themed.
The Arctic Wolf has a design that mimics the white fur coat present on arctic wolves, and there’s even a paw print present on the bolt of the gun which is a very nice touch. The surrounding color is a dark blue that’s been detailed to look like stone, and I think this pairs excellently with the bright white of the fur design. Add some red accents here and there and the aforementioned paw print, and this is one of the most comprehensive UMP-45 skins in the game.
To me, the quality of this skin feels more like a Pink rather than Purple tier. This is also a lot cheaper than what it’s tied with…
1. Primal Saber ($10.16)
Primal Saber in action:
The Primal Saber looks awesome. It depicts the skull of a saber tooth tiger and there is a scratch marking painted in a teal gradient that immediately catches the eye. The Arctic Wolf has a design that encapsulates the whole gun, whereas the Primal Saber has a main piece of artwork that stands out. This skin has more of a cool factor to it, and the teal slashes especially look radical.
However, do get this skin in Factory New, as it faces the same issue of losing a lot of details on the side rails and other bits of the gun pretty quickly.
