Steam
Steam Subscriber Agreement
Steam is a digital distribution platform from Valve that lets users purchase, download, and play video games, along with community features like forums, workshops, and a marketplace for in-game items.
Analyzed June 19, 2026
Key findings
Summary
Steam's terms are largely standard for a gaming platform, with a notably generous refund policy and clear disclosure of court venue rather than arbitration. The main risk area is a broad license Valve takes over user-generated content, which persists for the duration of IP rights and grants Valve ownership of derivative works it creates from that content.
Category Breakdown
Valve collects account, payment, device/browser, gameplay, cookie/tracking, and content-related data, with some personalization and marketing use, but offers a Privacy Dashboard and cookie controls.
From: PRIVACY POLICYWe use "Cookies", which are text files placed on your computer, and similar technologies (e.g. web beacons, pixels, ad tags and device identifiers) to help us analyze how users use our services, as well as to improve the services we are offering, to improve marketing, analytics or website functionality.View source document
Valve states it does not sell personal data but shares it with subsidiaries, service providers, CDN/game server partners, and via the public Steamworks API, and may transfer data in a merger or sale.
From: PRIVACY POLICYValve does not sell Personal Data. However, we may share or provide access to each of the categories of Personal Data we collect as necessary for the following business purposes.View source document
Users grant Valve a broad, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, modify, distribute, and create derivative works from User Generated Content for the entire duration of intellectual property rights, with Valve owning derivative works it creates.
From: TERMS OF SERVICEThis license is granted to Valve as the content is uploaded on Steam for the entire duration of the intellectual property rights. ... Valve is the sole owner of the derivative works created by Valve from your User Generated Content, and is therefore entitled to grant licenses on these derivative works.View source document
Valve may restrict or cancel accounts or subscriptions for breach or discontinued service, with no refund guaranteed upon termination for violations, and no advance notice requirement in such cases.
From: TERMS OF SERVICEYou acknowledge that Valve is not required to provide you notice before terminating your Subscription(s) and/or Account.View source document
The agreement uses a mandatory court venue clause (Washington state/federal courts) rather than arbitration; no arbitration, class-action waiver, or jury waiver language is present.
From: TERMS OF SERVICEYou and Valve agree that all disputes and claims between you and Valve (including any dispute or claim that arose before the existence of this or any prior agreement) shall be commenced and maintained exclusively in any state or federal court located in King County, Washington, having subject matter jurisdiction.View source document
Steam clearly discloses auto-renewal for recurring subscriptions, allows cancellation at any time via account settings, retains access through the current billing cycle, and offers a notably generous refund policy including refunds within 48 hours of renewal.
From: REFUNDSPlease note that you can cancel an active subscription at any time by going to your account details. Once cancelled, your subscription will no longer automatically renew but you will retain access to the content and benefits of the subscription through the end of your current billing cycle.View source document