Valve is now shutting down Steam's physical gift card program for good almost a decade since the company started making it available to users, and it is all because of scammers.
Many complaints and reports are claiming that there have been many fake Steam physical gift cards available in the market, with many gamers getting scammed by bad actors into thinking they got the real deal.
Valve Shuts Down Steam Physical Gift Cards
Valve has confirmed that physical Steam gift cards are on their way out. The company officially announced on its Steam Support FAQ page (via SteamDB) that physical cards will remain available at retailers only until existing stock runs out.
Once that happens, Valve will not be sending more to stores, and it is expected these retail stores will run out of stock by the end of 2026.
The decision has been described by Valve as a difficult one, and the company cited scam activity as the sole reason behind the move. Vave pointed out that, despite years of countermeasures, the problem has never fully gone away.
Physical Steam gift cards have been sold in stores since 2012, making this the end of a 14-year run at retail.
Steam will no longer be restocking physical gift cards at retailers due to scammers. pic.twitter.com/ILy9m4mKJq
— SteamDB (@SteamDB) June 10, 2026
Scammers Plague Physical Gift Card Sales
Gift card scams are not new, but Valve says Steam gift cards have become a particularly frequent tool for bad actors. Scammers typically coerce victims into buying the cards and sharing the redemption codes, using social engineering tactics like fake tax payments, bail money requests, debt collection, or delivery fee demands for phony sweepstakes prizes.
Once a code is in a scammer's hands, it can be quickly resold through third-party platforms with almost no paper trail.
According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), gift card fraud across all major brands accounts for over $100 million in theft every year.
Valve has tried for years to get ahead of the problem as they worked with retailers and law enforcement, added visible scam warnings directly on the cards, restricted redemptions to match a user's Steam wallet currency, pulled cards from regions with abnormal activity, and limited overall availability at various points. However, none of it was enough, as per Valve.
The company said, "As we have continued to put more and more restrictions in place, scammers have adapted. They continue to have an impact on Steam customers and other unsuspecting individuals."
"So we've made the difficult decision to end the Steam Gift Card program at retail stores," it added.
Kotaku reported in 2023 that Steam gift cards have long been a tool in romance scams, specifically, largely because the codes are easy to convert into cash through reseller platforms and nearly impossible to trace once redeemed.
How Can You Gift These Cards Now?
Anyone still holding a physical Steam gift card does not need to rush as Valve confirmed that existing cards will remain redeemable at any time and with no expiration date, subject to applicable local laws.
Steam digital gift cards, which have been available since 2017, are not going anywhere as Valve stated that it plans to keep expanding the digital program and is actively working to make the experience better.
The company also pointed to guest checkout, a feature introduced last year, as another way for friends and family to send a digital gift card without needing a Steam account of their own.
For those who still want a physical card before they disappear entirely, some retailers like Best Buy are reported to still have stock available. Once they sell through, though, that option is gone for good.
