Steam Machine's Originally Planned Price Was Way More Affordable

Published Jun 22, 2026, 5:50 PM EDT

Kyle Gratton is an editor and writer based out of Kansas City. He received a bachelor's degree, dual majoring in English and History with a minor in Film and Media Studies, and has been a senior staff writer and reviewer for Screen Rant's Gaming section since 2021, with roles in editorial, and various freelance projects.

A terminal Midwesterner who graduated from the University of Kansas, Kyle also has knowledge and interest in literature, film, film adaptions of literature, and history.

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Because of the ongoing component crisis, the Steam Machine's price rose prior to the announcement roughly as much as the Steam Deck's did in May, according to Valve Engineers Pierre-Loup Griffais and Yazan Aldehayyat in an interview with IGN. Steam Deck models rose in price by either $240 or $300, depending on the amount of internal storage, so the Steam Machine may have originally been targeting a price point around $750 or $800.

Valve

That said, "Valve hadn't landed on a final price before it had to start tweaking the price" of the Steam Machine. The mini PC runs Valve's proprietary SteamOS, which is built on Linux, and has long been viewed as a stop gap between console and PC gaming. It boasts the plug-and-play convenience of a console, complete with Steam's Big Picture Mode for gaming from the couch (it can also be used traditionally at a desk with a monitor), while still functioning as a full Linux PC, for those that wish to use it for other purposes.

Valve's hardware line, the Steam Deck included, is generally considered an assortment of relatively niche products, and the Steam Machine was thought to be no different. A Steam Machine does not have the same broad appeal, for instance, as a Nintendo Switch or PlayStation 5. The Steam Machine's price point is likely going to reinforce that notion. Here are all four Steam Machine pricing options, for reference:

• 512 GB Steam Machine: $1,049
• 512 GB Steam Machine w/ Steam Controller: $1,128
• 2 TB Steam Machine: $1,349
• 2TB Steam Machine w/ Steam Controller $1,428

A sign-up list is now live on Steam for a chance to pre-order the Steam Machine on June 25.

The list is in place because, despite the high price, the Steam Machine is likely going to sell out immediately, and then remain difficult to acquire. The Steam Deck price increase did not stop the handheld from selling out once again. Valve's branding is incredibly strong because of Steam's place as the preeminent digital marketplace for PC games, and the company seems to manufacture hardware in numbers well under demand.

Said demand would likely be much higher if it were closer to its original $750–800 price range, but even then, the Steam Machine likely would have remained under scrutiny. Performance estimates and early review results for the Steam Machine suggest it is not as powerful as the base model PS5, which now goes for as low as $599 sans disc drive after also suffering a price increase earlier this year.

The Steam Machine was announced and is now releasing at an incredibly unfortunate time. There were already questions about its target audience, but now a significant portion of that audience may be priced out. Paying more than $1,000 for a PC outclassed by six-year-old consoles is simply not a good deal for many enthusiasts. $750 would still have been quite a lot to ask for the Steam Machine, and now Valve is looking at an even tougher sale.

Brand Valve

Original Release Date September 12, 2003