To refund a game on Steam, go to help.steampowered.com, sign in, click the game under Purchases, then “I would like a refund” and “I’d like to request a refund”.
Pick a reason, choose where the money goes, and submit. Steam approves most requests automatically if you bought the game within the last 14 days and have played it for under two hours. You do not have to explain yourself, and Steam does not require the reason to be a fault with the game.
Those two numbers, 14 days and two hours, do almost all the work. Inside both, a refund is close to automatic. Outside either, it becomes a manual review that can still go your way but is no longer guaranteed.
What trips people up is everything around the edges: the playtime counter runs while the game sits in a menu, pre-orders use a different start date, and a refund request filed on the wrong purchase line does nothing. This guide covers the request itself, where to track it, and what actually works when the automatic answer is no.
Valve’s policy is short. You can request a refund on a game or piece of software for any reason, and Steam will grant it if the request arrives within 14 days of purchase and you have played it for less than two hours. Both conditions have to hold. Thirteen days and three hours of playtime fails. One hour of playtime and 20 days since purchase fails.
Two details about the playtime counter cost people refunds regularly. It counts every minute the game is running, not every minute you are playing, so a title left sitting on its main menu or paused in a cutscene is still burning your window. And it counts across all sessions since purchase, not the longest one.
Check your figure before you file. In the Steam client, open Library, right-click the game, choose Properties, and the total is listed there. Anything comfortably under two hours means the request should clear automatically.
One important exception to the 14 days. On a pre-order or an Early Access title bought before launch, the 14-day clock starts at the game’s official release date rather than the day you paid. A game you pre-ordered three months ago is still refundable in the fortnight after it launches.
How To Request A Refund On Steam
Go to Steam Support. Open help.steampowered.com and sign in with the account that owns the game. This is the only route that files a real refund request. Emailing Valve or posting in the forums does nothing.
Open Purchases. Click “Purchases” under Recent Products, or “A purchase” if you are looking at the main support menu. Steam lists your recent orders with dates.
Select the correct purchase. Click the game you want to refund. If you bought a bundle, select the bundle line rather than the individual game, because Steam refunds bundles as a unit.
Choose “I would like a refund”. Steam offers several problem categories. Any other option routes you into troubleshooting rather than a refund.
Choose “I’d like to request a refund”. The alternative on this screen is a support question, which is not the same thing.
Pick a reason and a destination. The reason is a dropdown and does not affect the decision inside the standard window, so pick the honest one. The destination matters: Steam Wallet is usually instant, your original payment method takes longer but gives you real money back.
Add a note if you are outside the window, then submit. Inside the window the note is ignored. Outside it, this is the only place you get to make your case, so use it.
You will get a confirmation email immediately. That email confirms the request was filed, not that it was approved. The approval is a second email.
Refunding From The Steam Client, Steam Deck Or Mobile
All three routes end up on the same support pages, so the steps above apply everywhere. The differences are only in how you get there.
Where you are
How to reach the refund form
Steam desktop client
Help menu, then Steam Support, then Purchases. Or right-click the game in your Library, choose Manage, then Support
Any web browser
help.steampowered.com directly. The most reliable route, and the one to use if the client is misbehaving
Steam Deck
Switch to Desktop Mode and use a browser, or open the Steam client’s Help menu. Game Mode does not expose the support pages cleanly
Steam mobile app
The app links out to the support site in a browser. There is no in-app refund form
Refunding Steam hardware, including a Steam Deck itself, is a separate process under Valve’s hardware refund terms and is not handled by the game refund form.
What You Can And Cannot Refund
Games and software are the straightforward case. Everything else has its own variation, and the differences are where most declined requests come from.
What you bought
Refundable?
The condition
Games and software
Yes
14 days and under two hours played
DLC
Yes
14 days, under two hours in the base game since buying the DLC, and the DLC not consumed or used to modify the game
In-game purchases in Valve games
Yes
48 hours, item not consumed, modified or transferred
In-game purchases in third-party games
Sometimes
Only if that developer opted in. Many did not
Pre-orders and Early Access
Yes
Under two hours played, and the 14 days runs from release date, not purchase date
Bundles
Yes
Refunded as a whole, no items transferred out, combined playtime under two hours
Gifts
Yes
Unredeemed gifts follow the standard rules.
A redeemed gift can only be refunded by the recipient, and the money goes back to the buyer
Steam Wallet funds
Yes
Within 14 days, and only if you have not spent any of it
Subscriptions billed through Steam
Yes
48 hours of the purchase or renewal, and unused in that billing period
Movies and video
No
Excluded from the policy
Bought from a third-party seller or key site
No
Valve did not take your money.
Apply to whoever did
A game with a VAC ban on your account
No
Permanently excluded for that title
For the full rulebook including the edge cases, see our guide to the Steam refund policy.
Tracking The Request And Getting Your Money
Requests inside the standard window are usually approved within a few hours, and often within minutes, because the check is automated. You can watch the status in Steam Support under your support tickets.
Where the money lands depends on the destination you picked. Steam Wallet credit appears almost immediately once approved. A refund to a card, PayPal or another original payment method is issued by Valve within about a week and then has to clear your bank, which adds its own few days. If the original method cannot accept a refund, Valve issues Steam Wallet credit instead and does not ask first.
The game disappears from your library as soon as the refund is approved, before the money arrives. That is normal and not a sign that something failed. Our guide to how long a Steam refund takes covers the timings in detail.
What To Do If Your Steam Refund Is Declined
A decline inside the standard window almost always means one of the two conditions was not actually met, so check the real numbers first: the purchase date on the receipt and the playtime in the game’s Properties. People routinely misremember both.
If the numbers do support you, resubmit. The first pass is automated and it does occasionally get it wrong, and a second request on the same purchase is allowed. This time write a note stating the purchase date and the playtime figure explicitly.
If you are genuinely outside the window, a resubmission with no new information will fail the same way. What sometimes works is a specific, verifiable reason: the game does not run on your hardware, a promised feature was removed, the store page was inaccurate, or you were charged twice. Valve reviews these by hand and does grant them, but it is a favour rather than a right, and repeating the request will not improve the odds.
Do not file a chargeback with your bank as an opening move. Valve treats chargebacks as a serious matter and locks the account while it deals with them, which means losing access to your whole library over one game. Exhaust the support route first.
Refunds Outside The Two-Hour Rule
The policy says Valve will refund inside the window. It does not say it never refunds outside it, and in practice manual approvals happen for cases like these:
The game is broken on your system in a way that support cannot resolve
You were charged twice for the same purchase, or charged for something you did not buy
A child or another household member bought it on your account without permission
The game shipped in a materially different state to what the store page described
You bought the wrong edition or a duplicate of something you already owned
Be brief and factual in the note. Long complaints do not help. Also worth knowing that your local consumer law may give you rights beyond Valve’s policy, particularly in the EU, UK and Australia, where statutory rights on faulty digital goods sit above a store’s own terms.
One limit to keep in mind: Valve states plainly that if it appears you are abusing refunds, it may stop offering them to you. There is no published number, and the ban is on the behaviour rather than a specific count, but a pattern of buying, finishing a short game just under two hours, and refunding is the pattern it is looking for.
Five Mistakes That Cost People The Refund
Leaving the game running while you decide. The counter does not care that you walked away. If you are unsure about a game, quit it.
Waiting for a patch. The 14 days runs whether or not the developer is fixing the thing that bothered you. Refund now and rebuy later if it improves.
Refunding the base game and forgetting the DLC. They are separate purchases with separate requests, and the DLC conditions are stricter.
Buying keys from a third-party site and asking Valve. Valve can only refund what it sold you. A key bought elsewhere is that seller’s problem.
Taking Steam Wallet credit without thinking. It is faster, but it can only ever be spent on Steam. If you want your money back properly, choose the original payment method.
Bought on a different account, bought as part of a bundle, or bought from a third-party seller
Check which account the receipt went to, look for the bundle line, and for third-party keys apply to that seller
No “I would like a refund” option
The item is outside the policy, such as a movie, or the purchase is too old to display
Use the general support contact form and explain the situation
Refund approved but no money
Normal processing time, or the refund went to Steam Wallet
Allow about a week plus bank time, then check your Wallet balance before contacting support
Declined despite being inside the window
Playtime or purchase date is not what you think
Check Properties for real playtime and the receipt for the real date, then resubmit with both stated
Cannot submit any refund request at all
Refund privileges may have been restricted on the account
Contact Steam Support directly and ask them to confirm the account status
Game still in library after approval
Client cache
Restart the Steam client.
The entry clears on its own
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Refund A Game On Steam?
Go to help.steampowered.com, sign in, open Purchases, click the game, choose “I would like a refund”, then “I’d like to request a refund”. Pick a reason and a destination for the money and submit. Inside 14 days and under two hours of playtime, approval is close to automatic.
Can You Refund Games On Steam After Playing Them?
Yes, up to two hours of playtime. Past two hours the automatic approval stops and the request goes to a manual review, which can still succeed if you have a specific reason such as the game not running on your hardware.
What Is The Steam Refund Policy?
Steam refunds any game or piece of software, for any reason, if you request it within 14 days of purchase and have played it for less than two hours. Different limits apply to DLC, in-game purchases, subscriptions, bundles, gifts and wallet funds.
How Long Does A Steam Refund Take?
The decision usually arrives within a few hours. Once approved, Steam Wallet credit is almost immediate, while a refund to your original payment method is issued within about a week and then needs a few more days to clear your bank.
Does Steam Limit How Many Refunds You Can Request?
There is no published limit. Valve’s policy says only that if it appears you are abusing refunds, it may stop offering them to you. Occasional refunds are fine. A pattern of completing short games just under two hours and refunding them is what triggers it.
Can I Refund A Pre-Order On Steam?
Yes. Before release you can refund at any time. After release the 14-day clock starts at the release date rather than the purchase date, and the two-hour playtime limit applies as normal.
Can I Refund A Steam Game Bought With Wallet Funds?
Yes, and the money goes back to your Steam Wallet. Unspent wallet funds themselves are separately refundable to your original payment method within 14 days, but only if none of the balance has been used.
Can I Refund A Gift On Steam?
An unredeemed gift can be refunded by the buyer under the normal rules. Once the recipient has redeemed it, only the recipient can request the refund, and the money still returns to whoever paid.
What Happens To The Game When A Refund Is Approved?
It is removed from your library immediately, along with access to any cloud saves for it. Achievements you earned are not restored if you buy it again later, though your saves may still be on disk locally.
Can I Refund A Game I Bought From A Key Reseller?
No. Valve can only refund purchases made on Steam itself. A key bought from a third-party marketplace is refunded, if at all, by that marketplace under its own policy.
The Short Version
Check your playtime in the game’s Properties before anything else. If it is under two hours and you bought the game within the last 14 days, go to help.steampowered.com, open Purchases, click the game, choose “I would like a refund” and then “I’d like to request a refund”. Pick your original payment method rather than Steam Wallet unless you want the money to stay on Steam.
Quit the game while you are deciding, because the counter keeps running. If you are past the window, file anyway with a short factual note explaining the specific problem, and do not open a chargeback, which gets the whole account locked.
