Gamers nowadays prefer to use Steam to keep all of their titles in one place. You can also be generous and give a friend a game from your Steam library. This way, your friend can play the game as long as you allow them to.
Originally, Steam users could send games to anyone who had an email address. The recipient was also not required to have a Steam account. However, this has changed, and now both parties must have a Steam account in order to access the gifted game or games.

Even so, creating a Steam account is very simple, and you can still receive games on the go by using the Android or iOS versions.
There are three main ways to gift games, and we’ll look at the first and most common – purchasing a new game as a gift for someone else.
Gift from Steam
This first method allows you to purchase a brand-new game as a gift for friends or family members. The recipient must also be your Steam friend. If not, send them a friend request on Steam first.
The following are the steps for gifting games to a Steam friend:
- Confirm that your friend has an active Steam account and that you are friends on the platform.
- Log in to Steam, either through the client or through a browser, and search for the game you want to gift.
- After you’ve chosen the game, scroll down to the “Add to Cart” or “Buy This Game as a Gift for a Friend” option.
- If the option “Purchase as a Gift” appears, select it.
- Enter the Steam username of the person you want to gift.
- If desired, include a personal message.
- When finished, click “Continue” to complete the purchase.
- You will be notified if your friend accepts the gift.
You can also choose to have the game delivered on a regular basis. This feature is useful for surprise gifts, such as birthday or Christmas presents. Surprise your friends with a game they’ve been dying to play.
How to Gift a Duplicate Steam Game
Some games, such as Half-Life 2’s “The Orange Box, Dawn of War Gold Edition,” and game packs contain duplicate copies. These are additional copies that come with the purchase and are meant to be shared with friends. Both parties must have an active Steam account in order to share them.
This is how you send duplicate Steam games:
- Open the Steam client on your computer.
- Navigate to the “Games” tab.
- Scroll down to “Manage Gifts and Guest Passes.”
- Locate the duplicate games that you want to give to a friend.
- Choose your preferred delivery method from the two available options.
When finished, click “Next.” - At the end, you can also send a personalized message.
- You will be notified when your friend accepts the gift.
Gifting duplicate games is only possible through the Steam launcher. You must first have it installed. The option to manage gifts and guest passes is not available on the web version.
Distribute a Steam Wallet Code
If you don’t know which games your friend wants, a Steam Wallet Code is always an option. It’s also known as a Steam Digital Gift Card, and the webpage refers to it as such. This is essentially sending a voucher for them to choose a game of their choice.
Steam Digital Gift Cards are available in a variety of “denominations,” including:
- $5
- $10
- $25
- $50
- $100
You can always buy more than one Gift Card at a time to give a friend more than $100. These Gift Cards, as always, require a Steam account to function.
Please follow these steps to send someone a Steam Wallet Code:
- Navigate to the Steam Store using your Steam client or web version.
- Navigate to the Steam Digital Gift Cards page.
- Look for the “Send Using Steam” option.
- Determine how much you want to send your friend.
- When prompted, sign in.
- Choose the friend to whom you want to send the Gift Card.
- Include a personal message for your friend if desired.
When you’re finished, click “Continue.” - The Digital Gift Card should be instantly sent to your friend.
Steam Gift Cards must be purchased with real money, making Wallet funds ineligible for payment. To purchase these Gift Cards, you must use PayPal, Bitcoin, or a credit card. If your friend does not accept the Gift Card, Steam will fully refund you.
Steam Gift Cards are also currency dependent and are converted to the recipient’s currency when accepted. You can look up the exchange rate to get an idea of how much your friend will receive from you.
Additional Frequently Asked Questions
You cannot do so. A game purchased for yourself cannot be gifted in any way to another Steam user. The closest thing to gifting is giving your friends access to your Steam library.
When you buy a game to give to a friend, you have the option to schedule the game’s delivery. All you have to do is enter the date you want your friend to receive the game. Steam will handle the process after you check out.
All gift purchases already include the option to include a personal message. During the checkout process, you will be asked if you want to include one. You can include salutations and other greetings in addition to the main body.
The special message can be as short or as long as the system will allow.
Steam will notify you when a gift you sent to a friend is accepted. If you enabled desktop notifications, the notification will appear on the dashboard.
You can also check the status of gifts in the “Manage Gifts and Guest Passes” section. When your friend accepts or declines the gift, you’ll know.
You will also be notified by email of your friend’s decision.
You must click on the notification to activate a Steam gift you received from a friend. If you do not accept it, it will be returned to the sender.
Start Steam.
Examine your notifications.
Select the relevant notification.
Click on “Accept Gift.”
The game will be immediately added to your Steam library.
Go to your library and find the game.
Put it in place.
Once the installation is complete, you can begin playing the game.
Yes, gifts have an expiration date. You have 30 days to accept and add the gift to your library. If you do not accept the gift within 30 days, it will be rejected automatically.
Don’t worry if you’re not sure if your friend already has a certain game. Valve, the creators of Steam, anticipated this scenario. If you want to gift a game to a friend, their username will be greyed out if they already own the game.
A Digital Gift for You
Sending gifts to friends on Steam is simple, and now that you know how, you’ll be able to surprise them on special occasions. Fortunately, even if they don’t want the game, they will refund your money. Furthermore, if Steam already has the game, you will be unable to send it.
How many video games do you have in your collection? Have you ever sent a Steam gift to a friend? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.