Steam, the hub of PC gaming, hosts thousands of new games every year. However, a new study by Gamalytic has revealed a striking truth about Steam game revenue. More than 5,000 games released on the platform in 2025 failed to generate enough revenue to even cover Valve’s $100 listing fee.

Steam game revenue research surprises

According to the research, approximately 13,000 new games have been released on Steam since January 1, 2025. However, the vast majority of these games have not been financial successes for their developers. The data shows that 40 percent of games (more than 5,000) failed to even recoup the $100 Steam Direct referral fee.

The report’s details are even more alarming. Of the games released in 2025 (65.9% of the total), 8,388 generated less than $1,000 in revenue. This figure is significant because Valve only refunds the $100 fee to the developer once the game reaches $1,000 in gross revenue. Furthermore, it’s estimated that 47.4% of games sell fewer than 100 copies.

Hobby projects influence the statistics.
Of course, this data also includes games that are completely free or have no monetization goals. Experts see this as a natural side effect of PC gaming’s “open developer culture.” Many hobby developers publish their games on Steam simply for fun, without any commercial aspirations. Despite this, only 8% of games on the platform have ever generated over $100,000 in revenue.

So, what are your thoughts on Steam game revenue? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!