Valve has rolled out a major Steam gifting update, introducing several new features designed to make it easier to buy and send games to friends and family. The changes expand guest checkout, add email gifting for games and digital gift cards, and improve wishlist sharing.
One of the biggest additions is expanded guest checkout support. After initially introducing the feature for digital gift cards and hardware purchases in 2024, Valve now allows anyone to purchase any game on Steam without creating an account. This means players can share a wishlist link with friends or family, who can complete a purchase as guests and send games directly from that list.
Steam also now supports gifting games and digital gift cards via email. Instead of needing to know a recipient’s Steam account, buyers can simply enter their email address. If the recipient uses that email for Steam, they can sign in and accept the gift through a link included in the message.
Valve noted that emailed gifts must be accepted within 30 days or they will be automatically refunded. The company also confirmed that gifts cannot be scheduled for future delivery, and both the sender and recipient must live in the same country.
Another notable addition is improved cross-region gifting. Previously, users often relied on digital gift cards when purchasing games for friends in regions with different pricing. Steam can now automatically calculate the game’s local price during checkout, allowing users to gift games directly. This feature requires the recipient to already be on the sender’s Steam friends list.
Wishlist sharing has also received several upgrades. Users can now send digital gift cards or purchase games directly from another person’s wishlist without first becoming Steam friends. Wishlist links can also be filtered to specific games, making it easier to highlight particular titles.
Valve has also streamlined the purchasing process by automatically filling in the recipient’s details when someone buys a game through a shared wishlist link. Combined with guest checkout, the company says the new system makes buying Steam gifts more straightforward, even for people who do not have a Steam account.
The gifting improvements are part of a broader update that also includes new wishlist categories and additional wishlist management features, which Valve has detailed in a separate announcement.
