If you're wondering if Steam accepts Bitcoin in 2021, you've come to the right place!
Bitcoin and cryptocurrency have continued to gain traction in 2021, bolstered by backing from Elon Musk and a sizeable crypto mining community. As the price rises and falls (which it has done - a lot), Bitcoin owners and prospective buyers may be wondering whether the currency actually has any use as a payment method.
While cryptocurrency has previously been associated with some pretty shady business dealings, large companies are beginning to accept Bitcoin as a legitimate payment choice.
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Here's all you need to know about Bitcoin and Steam in 2021.
Can you pay with Bitcoin on Steam 2021?
The short answer: no.
Steam does not currently support Bitcoin transactions in 2021.
The storefront, however, used to accept Bitcoin as a payment method. Valve pulled this payment choice from Steam in December 2017 - just 18 months after first agreeing to accept Bitcoin as payment.
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Why does Steam not support Bitcoin?
Steam's decision to end support for Bitcoin stems from multiple reasons. The first is the cryptocurrency's volatility.
When Steam first pulled Bitcoin from its payment options, the cryptocurrency's price was fluctuating drastically, hitting over $16,000 in December 2017, before sharply falling to just over $8000 in February.
Second, processing Bitcoin transactions is quite expensive. Every transaction can cost, on average, $20. Given that the price of games ranges from as low as a few dollars to around $70, it doesn't seem smart to use a currency with such high transaction costs. Indeed, Steam's reasoning on this was to protect the consumer, as they would need to burden this cost.
You can read Steam's statement on Bitcoin support here.
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When will Steam support Bitcoin again?
Steam has not ruled out bringing Bitcoin back to its storefront at a later date, but the problems it faced in 2017 still remain.
Transaction costs remain an issue, as does volatility. Since the start of 2020, Bitcoin has skyrocketed in price from around $10,000 in 2020 to a high of nearly $62,000 in April 2021, before falling to $36,207.49 as of June 2021. Until the cryptocurrency stabilises (if it ever does), many places may be unwilling to support Bitcoin as a payment method.
However, one of the largest supporters of Bitcoin payments - Tesla - has just removed Bitcoin as a payment method, citing the environmental damage the cryptocurrency and crypto mining can cause. Steam may also be wary of re-introducing the cryptocurrency as a payment method given the negative attention mining has started to attract.
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