Steam Alternatives for Windows

There are many alternatives to Steam for Windows if you are looking for a replacement. The best Windows alternative is GOG.com, which is free. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50 alternatives to Steam and many of them are available for Windows so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting Windows alternatives to Steam are itch.io, Humble Bundle, Playnite and Ubisoft Connect.

Steam alternatives are mainly Game Stores but may also be Game Library Managers or App Stores. Filter by these if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of Steam.

Steam

2240

Free • Proprietary
Game Store

Steam is a digital distribution, digital rights management, multiplayer and communications platform developed by Valve...

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GOG.com
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Proprietary
Game Store
Mac
Windows
Linux
Online
Software as a Service (SaaS)
53 GOG.com alternatives
GOG.com (Good Old Games) sells classic PC games through their download service at a low price, without DRM, and updated to run on the latest versions of Windows and other systems.
- - GOG.com is the most popular Web-based, Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to Steam.
- - GOG.com is the most popular free alternative to Steam.
Suggest and vote on features
GOG.com Features
1. DRM FreeNo Digital rights management (DRM), i.e. no copy protection.
2. Ad-freeGOG.com doesn't contain any form of external advertising.
3. Achievements SupportedGOG.com offers the possibility of unlocking achievements through completing challenges.
4. LightweightGOG.com consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
Optional launcher/overlay
Import from Steam
European data privacy
Giveaways
Community-based
Integrated Chat
Comments about GOG.com as a Alternative to Steam
Almost everyone thinks GOG.com is a great Steam alternative.
all • positive • negative relevance • date
Atoshi
Lack of DRMs, no requirements to stay online during playing, offline installers that you can keep forever, and they let you specify any target location for game files. You are legally allowed to redownload and install all games on unlimited number of computers in your household. Optional Steam-like client is available.
Top positive comment •
10

Guest
cd projekt red. Good consumer practices, no drm, ethical threatment of developers
Top positive comment •
2

DL300
Better than Steam in every way except player counts. If you aren't going to be playing multiplayer, GoG is objectively superior in every way.
Positive comment •
0

student twenty
The curated content means that there's significantly less absolute crap than you'll find on Steam. DRM free means no DRM treating you like a pirate when you're just trying to play the game you bought. I love GoG Galaxy 2.0 as a launcher, since it can also add in games from other services, although I am sad that there's no native Linux client yet. Overall, just great stuff.
Positive comment •
0

Guest
GOG is a store where you actually buy game, while Steam is a store where you rent game, most people sadly don't know that and think they own their Steam game.

GOG cares about game, Steam cares about copyright and money.
Positive comment •
3

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5 of 13 comments
itch.io
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Game Store
Mac
Windows
Linux
Online
Android
Android Tablet
Epic Games Store
41 itch.io alternatives
itch.io gives you the ability to design a page where people can download games you have uploaded. You can optionally put a minimum price on your game (which can be 0), giving people the opportunity to pay you what they think you deserve. All files and images are hosted on itch.
- - itch.io is the most popular Android & Android Tablet alternative to Steam.
- - itch.io is the most popular Open Source alternative to Steam.
Suggest and vote on features
itch.io Features
1. DRM FreeNo Digital rights management (DRM), i.e. no copy protection.
2. Two-factor Authenticationitch.io supports two-factor authentication (2FA).
Games library
Content Discovery
Browser-based
Distribution
Open Revenue Sharing
Electron based
Comments about itch.io as a Alternative to Steam
Almost everyone thinks itch.io is a great Steam alternative.
Guest
Lots of free and paid games and most don't require installers so you don't need admin.
Top positive comment •
4

bonepyramid
Live life, breathe air. I know somehow we're gonna get there, and it'll be so wonderful.
Top positive comment •
0

thebenmix11
In my experience, it's one of the few that are both user-friendly and developer-friendly at the same time.
Positive comment •
0

somegirlfromit
A bunch of unvetted shovelware titles, many of which have only minutes of gameplay if that
Negative comment •
-8

Guest
Quite possibly the best place available to lose an afternoon digging through both free and paid indie games ever since Desura kicked the bucket.
Positive comment •
14
Humble Bundle
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Paid • Proprietary
Game Store
Mac
Windows
Linux
Online
Android
Android Tablet
25 Humble Bundle alternatives
Buy a bundle of games, you decide the price, and support charity in the process.
- - Humble Bundle is the most popular commercial alternative to Steam.
Suggest and vote on features
Humble Bundle Features
1. DRM FreeNo Digital rights management (DRM), i.e. no copy protection.
2. Two-factor AuthenticationHumble Bundle supports two-factor authentication (2FA).
Charity
Games library
Loot subscription
Comments about Humble Bundle as a Alternative to Steam
Most users think Humble Bundle is a great Steam alternative.
all • positive • negative relevance • date
somegirlfromit
Be careful when purchasing - vendors can choose to either sell DRM-free copies (most common), Steam keys (also common), or keys for other less common platforms (uPlay, Origin, Battle.net, and proprietary vendor launchers among them).
Top positive comment •
2

Hiki Hollow
Not only is there sales for games, but also books and software. And if you keep an eye out, you can get a lot of games for dirt-cheap. Usually upon buying games, you get key for them. There are exceptions, where you have to download, or can download additional content.

You can also freely choose how much of the money goes to the charity, devs etc.
Top positive comment •
0

tvgoing1
humble bundle requires steam and other stores websites, i do not think its an alternative to steam or other platforms that sell games/software.
Top negative comment •
2

Guest
Just a games distributor, mainly sells steam keys
Negative comment •
1

Andrew Petz
Humble Bundle is not a platform to play games like Steam, it is only a platform to buy them.
Negative comment •
15

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5 of 6 comments
Playnite
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Game Library Manager
Windows
27 Playnite alternatives
Video game library manager and launcher with support for 3rd party libraries like Steam, GOG, Origin and Uplay, providing one unified interface for your games.
Suggest and vote on features
Playnite Features
1. Multiple Account supportPlaynite support multiple accounts without the need to logout and login
2. Extensible by Plugins/ExtensionsPlaynite can be extended with add-ons, plugins and extensions.
3. Controller SupportPlaynite supports the use of a controller (XBOX, PlayStation, etc.).
4. Support for scriptingPlaynite supports scripts and macros to automate or customize tasks.
5. Dark ModePlaynite supports dark mode for comfortable usage in low light conditions.
6. PortablePlaynite can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
7. DRM FreeNo Digital rights management (DRM), i.e. no copy protection.
Games library
Game Launcher
Front End Emulation
Import from Epic Games
Customizable
Metadata Search
FOSS
Import from Steam
API Integration
Launcher
Comments about Playnite as a Alternative to Steam
Most users think Playnite is a great Steam alternative.
DL300
Way, way better than Steam in every single way. Even has exotic console features like quick-resume. Steam is an absolute first-year-coder joke compared to this. Playnite's devs work hard and are talented.
Positive comment •
0
Ubisoft Connect
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Proprietary
Game Store
Game Library Manager
Windows
24 Ubisoft Connect alternatives
Ubisoft Connect (before Uplay) is Ubisoft's PC games portal, where you can find all your games on PC
Suggest and vote on features
Ubisoft Connect Features
1. Two-factor AuthenticationUbisoft Connect supports two-factor authentication (2FA).
2. Cloud SyncSync your data (notes, documents, bookmarks, etc.) across your different devices and to the cloud.
Game Launcher
Comments about Ubisoft Connect as a Alternative to Steam
Most users think Ubisoft Connect is a great Steam alternative.
somegirlfromit
Almost purely used for the Ubisoft catalog (Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, etc.) but a much tighter offering than it was when it launched in 2009.
Positive comment •
2

DL300
Garbage. Constant nagging, terrible UI, awful prices, very buggy and slow. Literally not one single positive. Also rammed down your throat on Steam so double DRM, also for no reason.
Positive comment •
0
Game Jolt
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Game Store
Mac
Windows
Linux
Online
18 Game Jolt alternatives
Game Jolt, where all the best free Indie Games are at! Browse through thousands of free Indie Games ready for you to play. This is Indie.
Suggest and vote on features
Game Jolt Features
API Integration
Comments about Game Jolt as a Alternative to Steam
Almost everyone thinks Game Jolt is a great Steam alternative.
Sparky dev
Most of indie titles are born here before going to steam
Positive comment •
-2
Battle.net
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Proprietary
Game Store
Game Library Manager
Mac
Windows
Online
Android
iPhone
15 Battle.net alternatives
Battle.net is an Internet-based online game, social networking service, digital distribution, and digital rights management platform developed by Blizzard Entertainment.
- - Battle.net is the most popular iPhone alternative to Steam.
Suggest and vote on features
Battle.net Features
1. Two-factor AuthenticationBattle.net supports two-factor authentication (2FA).
Integrated Chat
Games library
Opinions about Battle.net as a Alternative to Steam
Most users think Battle.net is a great Steam alternative.