Valve Provides New Insight Into Steam Machine Pricing Strategy

Valve continues to withhold specific pricing information for the Steam Machine, leaving fans and analysts to speculate about what the six-inch cube-like system might cost. The company has now provided additional commentary on pricing that may offer the best clue yet, while also explaining that it cannot or will not disclose pricing at this time due to what it describes as "a lot of external things."

Speaking to Skill Up, which is co-hosted by GameSpot's Lucy James, Valve software engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais indicated that people can expect the Steam Machine's price to be close to what it would cost to build a PC with essentially the same level of performance. He explained that if you build a PC from parts and achieve basically the same level of performance, that represents the general price window Valve aims to match. Ideally, the company would be competitive with that price and offer a good deal, but Griffais noted they're still working on refining that aspect. He added that right now is a difficult time to have a really good idea of what the price will be because there are many different factors and external considerations at play.

Those external factors could include elements like tariffs, which have contributed to rising prices for various goods throughout 2025 since US President Donald Trump controversially implemented them. These economic conditions are creating challenges for pricing decisions across the technology industry.

During the interview, Griffais also confirmed that Valve will not follow the approach that Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo have historically taken, which involves selling hardware at a loss and recouping costs through game and accessory sales. Instead, he stated that the pricing will be more in-line with what you might expect from the current PC market, though the company's goal is for it to be a good deal at that level of performance.

The Steam Machine's price will also reflect the system's unique small form factor and the noise level that Valve says it has achieved. Griffais expressed excitement that people will discover how quiet the device is. The Steam Machine integrates HDMI and CEC, allowing users to turn their TV on and off directly from the device. Additionally, it utilizes new Bluetooth and wireless connectivity systems that Valve designed specifically for the platform. Griffais acknowledged that achieving all of this is difficult.

He explained that being able to sit down on your couch, press one button on your controller, and have the whole system light up as you'd expect for a living room device is really valuable. There's not really a price point for that because it's not something that currently exists in the PC market. Another consideration is that time has value, and some people would rather pay a bit more for a company like Valve to handle the assembly and optimization work. Designer Lawrence Yang noted that for him, one of the benefits of the Steam Machine is that as someone who used to build PCs in college, he's now too old and tired to do that work himself.

Predictions about the Steam Machine's potential cost vary widely. One expert believes $400 represents the sweet spot for the entry model, while others believe it could exceed $1,000. Some analysts believe it may be priced similarly to the PlayStation 5.

Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad noted that tariffs, surging memory and storage costs, supply chain volatility, and an inability to subsidize to the same extent as traditional console manufacturers are all working against Valve at the moment. However, he added that the specifications suggest Valve wanted this to be in line with PS5 pricing.

Officially, Valve has only stated that its goal is for the Steam Machine to be affordable and priced according to the value it offers. This type of statement is essentially what every company says about their products, so these comments don't provide much concrete information about actual pricing.

The Steam Machine is scheduled to launch in 2026, but preorders are not yet open and the exact launch timing has not been confirmed. For now, interested buyers will need to wait for further announcements from Valve regarding pricing and availability details.