Well cards can drop in price very suddenly sometimes, and gems used to be a very common "currency" for trades until their price crashed one time because of a sale event and since then they became less trusted.
So in short TF2 keys are the least susceptible to having their value depreciate too much.
Just keep in mind that I stopped trading like two years ago so this info might be very outdated, I haven't really kept up with trading trends.
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Interesting, thanks!
I kinda figured with cards, but had no idea there was a gem crash, thanks for the info! :)
So strange to me that keys for a 14 year old game is still the standard, so to speak, lol
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I imagine that TF2 being an old game that still maintains an active market around it is one of the reasons why its keys are trusted, if they managed to keep their value mostly stable for this long then they're a safe investment for traders.
As long as generating new keys is only possible through making a purchase they're gonna be the preferred currency because no one in their right mind is gonna sell large amounts for a price that's too low to make profit, it'd be the equivalent of someone selling gold coins for cents in real life.
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Sorry to kinda necro a somewhat old-ish topic, but... there was also a crash in TF2 keys' value this year. Until a few years ago, CSGO keys were the preferred currency but that changed when Valve decided to tied the purchase of CSGO keys to accounts, making them untradable. Since the past three years or so, TF2 keys have replaced them as the currency of choice and while their value remained quite stable overall, it's not the case anymore. Dunno why, but over the course of 2021, TF2 keys have lost about 40-50 cents in value (at least, in my currency) and if you look at the graph on the community market, you'll notice that their value fluctuates quite a bit nowadays. Right now, they sell for about 20 cents less than what they used to at the start of the month. (maybe it's different in other currencies, but that's what I see)
That being said, a lot of people still trade with gems... and even cards, although it seems to me that fewer people are willing to trade for cards. Personally, I've stopped accepting cards a long time ago because I thought that it was simply too much of a pain in the ass to sell on the market.
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Some people accept cards but they're generally too cheap (need to add a lot for more valuable trades) and are harder/more annoying to liquidate. The people that do accept cards usually want them for levelling up. For gems, what Axel said, and some people do accept gems for smaller trades, it's just easier to use keys for larger trades.
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I dont know much about steam trading itself, but one factor im sure of (as it pertains to trade as a whole): praticality, in this case how easy or flexible each currency is
its the same reason you wouldnt by a car with 1 cent coins, the whole reason why gold, diamonds and pearls are historically so valuable. People couldnt carry large amounts or hide their riches in coins but they could stealthly carry a small fortune in (actual)gems. Most real hidden pirate treasures (they did exist) were temporary caches, generally guarded/overwatched, that only existed until the goods could all be exchanged for better more portable and valuable currencies
I never traded in cards, only keys 1 time, but i do sell all my trading cards (dont care about levels or badges). They fluctuate A LOT. A new historical low/deep discount or a game finally being bundled and values drop ridiculously quick. By comparison keys flutuate a lot less- and no matter how many keys you have they will all value the same at any given point. Gems work the same but theyre the cents in comparison
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I was just wondering about this... I know TF2 keys seem to be the "cash" for lack of a better term for trades, but why exactly is that? Why do people offer me keys instead of gems or high value cards? I honestly don't know and am sincerely asking... wouldn't at least gems be a more "safe" currency considering the up and downs of keys?
Sorry if this is a silly question, I just legit want to know what's up... if someone can explain it or link a vid or whatevs... I'm just super curious
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