Steam Daily Deals: how they work, and the 2027 change
27 Oct 2026 · 5 min read
A Daily Deal was one of the biggest promotions a Steam game could get: a day on the Steam front page with a discount. Valve has stopped sending invites for it. Its Daily Deals page opens with this, checked 27 Oct 2026: "Daily Deal invites are no longer being sent. The path to requesting one through the Support site is now also retired." Here is what that means, what a Daily Deal was, and what to plan around instead.
What Valve changed
Valve gives the reason in the same sentence: it is in anticipation of upcoming changes to the Discounts and Events section of the store coming in 2027, described in a Steamworks announcement. Two things follow from Valve's wording. No new invites are going out, and you can no longer ask for one through the Support site. Valve's page does not say what replaces the Daily Deal.
Checked 27 Oct 2026. Valve's wording is quoted above exactly. If you are reading this later, check the Daily Deals page itself before you plan around it.
What a Daily Deal was
Valve describes Daily Deals as a curated promotion for games that fit its criteria. Two or more were shown on the Steam front page at a time and could also appear on matching tag pages such as RPG, Simulation or VR. Steam chose which ones each player saw first based on their play history and language. The deal used the header capsule from the game's store page.
| What Valve's page says | |
|---|---|
| Eligibility | Customer interest or trending revenue over the past few months |
| Typical revenue | Tens of thousands of dollars per month, sustained |
| Too early | Released in the last 2 to 3 months, or a first discount |
| How often | Curated promotions roughly once a year |
| Front page time | 24 hours from 10am Pacific |
| Discount length | 7 to 14 days |
| Discount depth | At least the best discount run before |
Sources: Daily Deals, Livestreaming. Checked 27 Oct 2026. Valve updates these pages; the Steamworks docs always win.
Who got one
Because a Daily Deal reached a very wide audience, Valve wanted confidence the offer would interest many customers. It judged that on demonstrated customer interest or trending revenue over the past few months. The revenue bar moved over time, but Valve says the games that qualified typically reached tens of thousands of dollars in revenue per month, sustained. A game released in the last 2 to 3 months was too new to judge, and a first discount was usually not eligible for lack of data. All curated promotions were limited to roughly once a year so other games got a turn.
How it ran
Eligible games got an invite, sent to contacts with the Receive Steamworks Communication and Manage Pricing & Discounts permissions. It expired 30 days after it was sent, read or not. The partner then picked a day within the next 6 months on the Daily Deal calendar, a discount percentage and the packages to include. The front page visibility ran for 24 hours from 10am Pacific on that day, while the discount ran for 7 to 14 days. Valve asked for a discount at least as good as the best the game had run before, and said it was fine to step back down in the next sale.
Valve's advice still applies to any big moment
The FAQ on the Daily Deals page lists ways to get the most out of a spike in traffic. None of them need a Daily Deal:
What to plan around instead
Until Valve says what comes next, the promotions you can plan on are the ones open to every eligible game: the four seasonal sales, starting with the Winter Sale on 17 December, the themed fests, and your own discounts. A discount of 20% or more can also email your wishlisters. Each of those sends people to your store page, and that is where a broadcast plays.
Loopcast keeps a store page broadcast running from an uploaded video, with no PC left on at home, billed per minute on air. You can try it free for 7 days, no card needed.
FAQ
Can I still get a Steam Daily Deal?
Valve's Daily Deals page says, in anticipation of changes to the Discounts and Events section of the store coming in 2027, that Daily Deal invites are no longer being sent and that the path to requesting one through the Support site is now also retired. Checked 27 Oct 2026.
Which games got a Daily Deal?
Valve judged eligibility on customer interest or trending revenue over the past few months. Games that qualified typically reached tens of thousands of dollars in revenue per month. Games released in the last 2 to 3 months and first discounts were usually not eligible.
How long did a Daily Deal last?
The visibility on the Steam homepage and tag pages ran for 24 hours from 10am Pacific, while the discount ran for 7 to 14 days.
What discount did Valve ask for?
At least as good as the best discount the game had run before, if not better. Valve said it was fine to step back down to a lower discount in the next sale.
What did Valve suggest doing during a Daily Deal?
Time it with a content update or event, swap the header capsule with an Artwork Override, use an update visibility round, make an announcement, and stream to your store page to make the most of the extra traffic.