How to Redeem a Steam Gift Card on PC, Mobile and the Web

Summary: To redeem a Steam gift card, sign in and open Redeem a Steam Gift Card or Wallet Code, in the Steam client, the Steam app or a browser, then enter the code. The funds go to your Steam Wallet straight away. Game keys are different and go through Activate a Product instead.

The fastest way to redeem a Steam gift card is the redeem page in any browser, signed in to the right account.
Wallet funds cannot be withdrawn, transferred or refunded to cash.
Some cards only work in the region they were sold for, so check before buying.
Steam never asks you to read out a code over chat or phone. Anyone who does is running a scam.

A Steam gift card, also called a Steam wallet gift card or Steam Wallet code, adds money to your Steam account that you can spend on games, DLC, software and in-game items. Redeeming a Steam gift card takes under a minute, whether it is a physical card or a digital Steam gift card sent by email, but the menu is buried and the rules on regions trip people up.

How to Redeem a Steam Gift Card in a Browser

Go to store.steampowered.com and sign in to the account you want the money on.
Click your profile name, then Account details.
Under Store and purchase history, select Add funds to your Steam Wallet, then Redeem a Steam Gift Card or Wallet Code.
Enter the code and select Continue. The amount appears next to your profile name.

Redeeming in the Steam Client

On Windows, Mac or Linux, open Steam, click your account name in the top right and choose View my wallet. Select Redeem a Steam Gift Card or Wallet Code, enter the code and continue. The client uses the same page as the website, so if one fails the other will fail with the same message.

Redeeming on Your Phone

The Steam mobile app opens the store in a built-in browser. Tap the menu, open your account details, and follow the same Add funds and Redeem steps as on desktop. If the app keeps bouncing you back to the store front, the phone's browser signed in to Steam does the same job.

Steam Gift Card or Game Key?

A wallet code adds money; a game key adds one specific game. They look similar but go in different places. Game keys are entered in the client under Games > Activate a Product on Steam, and entering one on the wallet page just returns an error. Our explainer on how Steam keys work covers that side.

If you plan to spend the card on one particular game, compare its price in the Steam store with what key resellers such as Gamivo charge for the same title, since a key sometimes costs less than the store price outside of sales.

Region and Currency Rules

Your Steam Wallet uses the currency of the country your account is registered in. Many codes are converted to that currency when redeemed, but some cards are sold only for a specific region and are refused elsewhere. Buy the card for the country your account belongs to, not the country you happen to be in. Our guide on whether gift cards are region locked explains the wider pattern.

When Steam Gift Card Codes Will Not Redeem

Invalid code: retype it without spaces, and check for easily confused characters such as 0 and O.
Already redeemed: the code has been used on an account, which may not be yours. Contact the seller with your order details.
Region error: the card was made for a different country than your account.
Too many attempts: Steam pauses redemption briefly after repeated failures. Wait and try once more.

For damaged physical cards or codes that fail for no clear reason, Steam Support's wallet code page is the official place to open a ticket.

Where to Buy a Steam Gift Card Online

There are two kinds of digital Steam gift card, and they arrive differently:

Steam's own digital gift cards: bought in the Steam store and sent straight to a friend's account. There is no code to redeem, but you can only send them to someone on your friends list.
Steam wallet codes: sold by retailers and gift card sites and delivered by email, so you can buy a Steam gift card online for yourself or forward the code to anyone. These are the codes you redeem with the steps above.

Wherever you buy, stick to sellers that list the card's region clearly and deliver a code rather than an account login, and be wary of codes sold far below face value.

Steam Gift Card Scams to Know About

Steam cards are one of the most common currencies in gift card fraud. Anyone who asks you to buy a Steam card to pay a bill, a fine, a tax or a stranger online is a scammer, and a code shared with someone else is gone the moment they redeem it. The red flags of a gift card scam are worth reading before sending anyone a code.

What to Spend Steam Wallet Funds On

Games and DLC are the obvious answer, but wallet funds also cover Community Market items and in-game purchases in free-to-play games such as World of Warships. If you are not in a hurry, hold the credit until the next Steam sale, when the same money stretches considerably further.

Match the Card to Your Account Region First

Sign in to the right account, use the wallet page rather than Activate a Product, and make sure the card was issued for your account's country. Those three checks prevent almost every failed redemption.

When you need a code for your region, browse digital Steam gift cards by country and amount.