Steam UTM analytics: track links to your store page
27 Oct 2026 · 6 min read
You post a link to your Steam store page in a devlog, a newsletter or an ad. Did anyone wishlist because of it? Steamworks can tell you, if the link carries UTM parameters. Valve's UTM Analytics page explains what it records, and its traffic reporting page covers the report for traffic from inside Steam. This guide puts both together, from Valve's docs checked 27 Oct 2026.
What UTM Analytics records
UTM (Urchin Tracking Module) is the industry standard for tagging links: named parameters after the address say which link was clicked. When a player arrives on your store page through a tagged link and then wishlists or buys, Steamworks records it against those parameters. Valve keeps it to totals: no Steam IDs or other personal data, and combinations with too few visits are left out of the table.
UTM Analytics is already enabled for your game. Open Marketing & Visibility for your app and choose the UTM Analytics tab. If you do not see it, your Steamworks account needs the View Marketing Traffic Data permission for that game. The report has an overview, a graph over time and a breakdown table for each combination of parameters, with filters and a .csv download.
How to build a link Steam will record
Valve's own example:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/480?utm_source=homepage&utm_campaign=summer_sale&utm_medium=web
You can put any term in each parameter. Valve's rules for a link to count:
| What Valve says | |
|---|---|
| Destination | Your app page or a sale page: store.steampowered.com/app/ID or store.steampowered.com/sale/NAME |
| Required | utm_source or utm_campaign |
| Also read | utm_medium, utm_content, utm_term |
| Sale pages | Since 22 April 2025, UTM on a sale page link passes through to the games on that page |
| Store widgets | Add the parameters to the widget's iframe URL |
| Not supported | Other Steam pages, such as developer homepages or bundles |
Use the Test a UTM Link button on the report to check a link before you share it, and try it in a browser too.
Sources: UTM Analytics, Store and Platform Traffic Reporting. Checked 27 Oct 2026. Valve updates these pages; the Steamworks docs always win.
Three kinds of visits
The report counts visits three ways:
| Column | What it counts |
|---|---|
| Total Visits | Every visit to your page with a UTM code on the URL |
| Trusted Visits | Total Visits minus bot traffic and search crawlers |
| Tracked Visits | Visits by players signed in to Steam, minus abnormal traffic. Only these can convert |
In Valve's example, a link clicked 20 times shows 20 Total Visits. Six of those were by players signed in to Steam, so 6 Tracked Visits, and Steamworks attributed 2 wishlists and 1 purchase to them. Visit counts update hourly.
What counts as a conversion
Steam reports three conversions: a wishlist, a purchase, and an activation (a free-to-play license, or a redeemed key). It counts one if the player takes that action within 72 hours of clicking, even after visiting other pages. Conversions are final 4 days after the visit. Valve's limits:
Why tracked visits look low
Steam can only follow a player who is signed in where they clicked. Valve singles out social media apps: a player who taps your ad opens it in the app's built-in browser, where few are signed in to Steam. If they then open the Steam app or client and search for your game, Steam cannot connect that to your link. The same goes for switching browsers.
Steam tries to close the gap. On desktop, a visitor who is not signed in sees a banner offering to open the page in the Steam client. On mobile, a banner offers the Steam mobile app. If the player takes it, Steam keeps following them through to a conversion.
Traffic Breakdown: traffic from inside Steam
UTM covers your own links. For everything Steam does itself, open Marketing & Visibility and choose Store & Steam Platform Traffic Breakdown. It shows where Steam displayed your game and which places sent players to your page. Valve defines three numbers:
A summary across all your games sits under your partner account name, or at navstatsoverview. Since 23 March 2021 these reports leave out players who opted out of the relevant cookies. For what the visibility rows mean, see Steam visibility rounds, and the Steam glossary for the other Steamworks terms.
Why the two reports do not match
Both reports show Total Visits, and the numbers rarely agree. Valve gives two reasons: they count different traffic, and each player sets Third Party Links (UTM) and Valve's Analytics Cookies in Steam's Cookies & Browsing settings, with defaults that vary with local privacy law. Traffic Breakdown usually shows more visits. UTM Analytics can show more when many visitors opted out of the analytics cookies.
A third party tool can also show a different count, because Steam adds a visit every time a tagged link is opened, including when players share it or reopen it from their history.
Not for affiliate schemes. Valve cautions against paying people per sale through UTM links. The report only shows totals per parameter set, not which purchases came from which link, and does not adjust for refunds made 4 days or more after the visit.
Where a broadcast fits
Your UTM links and Steam's own traffic all land on the same store page. A live broadcast there gives every one of those visitors something moving to watch. For how long other games keep theirs on air, see our store page broadcast data. 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
Does Steam support UTM parameters?
Yes. Steamworks records UTM parameters on links to your app page or a sale page and shows the results in a UTM Analytics report under Marketing & Visibility. It is already enabled for every game. A link must include utm_source or utm_campaign.
Which UTM parameters does Steam read?
Five: utm_source, utm_campaign, utm_medium, utm_content and utm_term. You can put any term in each one, using characters that URLs support.
How long after a click does Steam count a wishlist or purchase?
Steam counts a wishlist, purchase or activation as a conversion if the player takes that action within 72 hours of clicking your UTM link, even if they visit other pages in between. Only Tracked Visits, from players signed in to Steam, can convert.
Why are my UTM conversions so low?
Steam can only follow players who are signed in where they clicked. Many players click an ad inside a social media app's browser, where they are not signed in, then open Steam separately; Steam cannot connect those actions to the link.
Why do UTM Analytics and Traffic Breakdown show different visits?
They count different traffic, and players choose in their Cookies & Browsing settings whether to allow Third Party Links (UTM) and Valve's analytics cookies. Traffic Breakdown usually shows more visits, but UTM Analytics can show more when many visitors opted out of the analytics cookies.