Steam reached a historic milestone on Sunday (March 2), registering 40,263,595 online users—the first time the platform has surpassed 40 million concurrent players since its launch. Nearly 13 million users were playing a game at the time, marking another impressive statistic.
One of the most remarkable aspects of Steam’s growth is its rapid expansion. On March 15, 2020, the platform hit 20 million concurrent users for the first time. In just five years, that number has doubled, reflecting the increasing popularity of the platform’s digital gaming, game promotions, and social features.
A major contributor to this surge was the release of Monster Hunter Wilds. The game attracted 1.3 million simultaneous players in just three days, significantly boosting Steam’s record-breaking numbers.
Steam growth in 5 years
In 2020, the world was amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with many businesses and services shifting to remote operations. While it’s unclear exactly how much this influenced Steam’s user growth, it was during this period that the platform hit 20 million concurrent users for the first time.
This era also saw the rise of several breakout hits, including Among Us and Fall Guys—the latter of which is now exclusive to the Epic Games Store following the studio’s acquisition. While the gaming industry experienced significant growth during this time, doubling Steam’s user base in just five years is an impressive achievement. This milestone further cements Steam’s dominance as the leading digital gaming platform.
Steam Activities
A lot has changed since 2020, shaping Steam into an even bigger gaming powerhouse. One of the biggest shifts was Valve’s launch of the Steam Deck, a portable gaming console that became a market trend and expanded Steam’s reach beyond traditional PCs. Additionally, the platform has continued to expand its game library, with nearly 19,000 new titles released in 2024 alone.
Beyond new releases, major discussions and policy changes have also drawn more users to the platform. One hot topic has been in-game advertisements, which Steam has recently begun banning. Another ongoing debate revolves around the demand for a filter to identify games using generative AI, a movement that has stirred up the community in recent weeks.
With major events like Monster Hunter Wild’s release and Steam Next Fest, which brings promotions and demos, Steam’s user base continues to grow rapidly. It currently stands at 40 million—but could it reach 60 or even 80 million by 2030? Only time will tell.
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