Steam is the world’s largest and most well-liked digital video game distribution platform. Owned and operated by The Valve Corporation, this platform’s daily active user count reaches far out into the millions, a truly astonishing number.
Steam has a lot to offer its users, making it stand above the competitors in its field.
According to members of the Steam community, the platform’s regular sales and events are among the main reasons for choosing Steam as their preferred place to buy games and DLCs (Downloadable Content).
This guide will explain everything you should know regarding Steam sales and ensure you don’t miss the next one.
Let’s get into it.
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What Are Steam Sales, And Why Should I Care?
Sales are a common sight at online retailers. However, when it comes to Steam sales, there’s usually a lot more to be excited about than just buying games at reduced prices.
A large part of Steam’s community culture is oriented around developing and leveling your profile, collecting badges, and displaying your achievements.
If you’ve read our guide exploring Steam’s level-up system, you already know that Steam sales are an opportunity to increase your account’s XP. Some members of Steam’s community are pretty serious about this, especially those who value perfecting their Steam profiles.
Even if this is of no interest to you, Steam sales are ultimately great opportunities to purchase games at low prices. Whatever your motivation, every video game enthusiast should care about these events.
How can you ensure you don’t overlook any? Read on to find out.
Predicting The Exact Dates For Steam Events
Before we discuss accurate dates for upcoming Steam sales, there’s something important to mention.
Steam doesn’t announce any sales or events long before they happen. Dates remain a company secret. Sales also don’t fall on the same days each year, making it impossible to predict them with absolute certainty long before they happen.
Sometimes, there are leaks on popular websites, such as SteamDB, suggesting approximate predictions, and that’s where most people get their information.
We also understand that Steam holds major sales every year for sure. The specific dates might vary slightly from the previous year, but Steam has never missed hosting an important sale so far.
As for knowing exactly when they happen, once the exact dates are sent to partners and revealed to the public, we can inform you about the upcoming events more accurately.
That being stated, here’s what we know with assurance about the ongoing Steam events in the following section below.
The Next Steam Sale – List Of Upcoming And Past Events
Besides what’s currently happening on Steam regarding the popular, scheduled, regular sales, there are rumors for other “smaller,” theme-specific Steam events that should occur on the following dates:
Winter Sale – 22 December – 05 January (2022/23) – Finished!
Base Builder Fest – 23 January – 30 January (2023) – Finished
Next Fest (February Edition) – 6 February – 13 February (2023) – Finished
Mystery Fest – 20 February – 27 February (2023) – Finished
Spring Sale – 16 March – 23 March (2023) – Finished
Puzzle Fest – 24 April – 1 May (2023) – Currently Ongoing!
Sports Fest – 15 May – 22 May (2023) – Upcoming
Steam Next Fest (June Edition) – 19 June – 26 June (2023) – Upcoming
Summer Sale 2023 – 29 June – 13 July (2023) – Upcoming
Stealth Fest 2023 – 24 July – 13 July (2023) – Upcoming
Visual Novel Fest – 7 August – 14 August (2023) – Upcoming
Strategy Fest 2023 – 28 August – 4 September (2023) – Upcoming
SHMUP Fest 2023 – 25 September – 2 October (2023) – Upcoming
Steam Next Fest (October Edition) – 9 October – 16 October (2023) – Upcoming
Scream Fest – 26 October – 2 November (2023) – Upcoming
Autumn Sale – 21 November – 28 November (2023) – Upcoming
Winter Sale – 21 December – 4 January (2023/24) – Upcoming
When Is The Steam Summer Sale?
Every year, Steam organizes two large sales, one of which is the Summer Sale. During this event, games can have their price reduced by as much as ninety percent.
The 2022 Edition of Steam’s Summer Sale began on the 23rd of June and ended on the 7th of July.
Usually, the Steam Summer Sale is accompanied by other mini-events during which you can earn rare collectibles, badges, emotes, profile XP, and much more.
Given the significant discounts and the fact that many gamers have far more free time during the summer, this is easily one of the most anticipated events on the entire Steam platform.
Like the other events on Steam, we cannot know the exact Summer Sale date. Until Steam publically reveals the dates, nobody can provide accurate information, and we can only have an approximate guess.
The Steam Summer Sale dates are typically confirmed a few weeks before it begins.
Judging by previous events, the Summer Sale usually occurs between late June and early July.
When Is The Steam Winter Sale?
The Steam Winter Sale is the other major sale of the year, alongside its summer counterpart. This event usually brings a lot of New Year-themed content, exciting game releases, and, most importantly, to many collectors, jaw-dropping discounts.
The 2022 Steam Winter Sale started on the 22nd of December (2022) and lasted until the 5th of January (2023).
As one of the two significant sales on the platform, the exact starting and ending dates are kept secret and only released to the public not long before the event takes place.
Usually, the Winter Sale begins a few days before New Year’s Eve and lasts for about a week after it.
As with the Summer Sale, the event often comes with smaller mini-happenings during which you can earn collectible rewards, points, and everything else that helps you show off your profile and collector ambitions in front of the large Steam audience.
If you have some spare time during the winter holidays, keep a close eye on the Winter Sale, as some of the discounted offers in Steam’s store will make you freeze from excitement.
How Long Do Steam Sales Last?
Steam sales and events happen often, but not all are the same.
Some events will only last a few days, while the two most significant sales, such as the summer and winter ones, last for approximately two weeks.
Other Steam sales based on popular real-world events, such as Black Friday and Lunar New Year, can last for an entire week.
That said, no event beats the annual summer and winter sales regarding length, discounts, rewards, and anything else a Steam sale could bring.
Steam Sale Tips
Expanding your Steam library collection is undoubtedly one of the most enjoyable hobbies for video game enthusiasts. However, it costs money, and if you want to be successful in it long-term and build a rich collection, you must use your funds strategically.
Steam sales are often present to brighten our day with glorious discounts, and here’s how you can get the most out of them.
Use Your Wishlist
During a Steam sale, many users tend to make hasty purchases, making it simple to overlook the game you’ve eagerly anticipated going on sale. That’s why it’s important to include games in your wishlist. This way, when they are discounted, you will be notified through email and within the Steam app.
Get Familiar With Seasonal Steam Events
As we already mentioned, there isn’t a way to predict the exact dates of Steam sales up until a few days before they happen.
But, most are related to real-world seasons or events (Halloween, Black Friday, Lunar New Year, the beginning of Summer, etc.), so you can get a sense of when approximately they’ll happen.
So, if there’s a game you wish to purchase so much, but you know there might be a sale next week, it’s usually better to wait until the discounts arrive and buy two or three games for the price of one.
In the long term, this will help you build a rich game collection.
Look Out For Publisher Bundle Sales
Publisher Bundle Sales happen even when there aren’t any ongoing Steam events, and they are one of the best deals for getting the best bang for your buck while buying games.
They can include dozens of games for a low price, so if you know the publishing company is nearing a birthday, celebration, or a special event hosted by them, expect something like this to show up in your Steam store.
Conclusion
Knowing precisely when the next Steam sale will happen is helpful, as you can save money and prepare your wishlist. Unfortunately, making perfect predictions is impossible as Steam doesn’t confirm the events far in advance.
On the other hand, you can make an educated guess as Steam is generally consistent with the periods during which they organize their sales, and, of course, keep an eye out on this guide to get instant insight as soon as a leak containing the date for an upcoming sale is confirmed.
