Before you open up Steam and drop some cash on some new games, you should know that there are a few tips that you can take advantage of to maximize the value of your dollar. Steam is known for being super convenient for managing one's video game library, but did you know that with a bit of effort, you can obtain new games for huge discounts? Sometimes even for free!So, if you want to add new titles to your game collection, keep reading, as we'll list eight tips on how you can save money on Steam.

1. Steam Summer Sale

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Steam is perhaps known best for its mind-blowing annual Summer Sale event. It usually hits sometime around July and provides massive discounts on games of all types. The best thing about the Summer Sale is that it isn't limited to old games. You can find recent releases and best-selling titles included in the sale, and prices can drop up to 90% off in some cases.

You can take advantage of three different types of summer sales: the store-wide discount, which is the weakest discount but applies to all titles not released in the past six months; the daily deals, which set sizeable discounts on specific titles for 24 to 48 hours; and flash sales, which provide huge discounts on particular titles for 12 hours.

If you want to save the most money on your Steam purchases and your intended purchases aren't time-sensitive, then you should wait for the next annual summer sale.

2. Plan Your Purchase

While Steam Summer and Winter sales are the best occasions to fill up your library, you can get discounted games all year round. Even if you've missed the biggest sales, you can still get your favorite games at the next Steam sale with a bit of patience.

Steam sale

You can go to SteamDB and check when is the next Steam sale and for how long you have to wait. Also, there are a few other sites that help you keep an eye on game prices.

3. Search for Free-to-Play Games

If you need to save money on video games, there's nothing better than free-to-play games. Of course, publishers still need to make money, so you won't get the most recent titles for free, but there are plenty of titles to choose from—and some of them are quite good.

And the best part is that some of the games are multiplayer or co-op so that you can have fun with your friends for free. You can easily find these free-to-play games directly on the Steam website, so finding them is a breeze.

4. Add Games to Your Wishlist

If you want to buy a game on Steam but think it's a bit too pricey, you should add it to your wishlist. If you can wait a bit until playing the game, you may get a better price for it.

Steam actively monitors your wishlist and sends an email if one of the added games is on sale. Once you build up your wishlist, Steam will notify you if a game is on sale, even if it's unrelated to the Holiday sale or other Steam events.

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5. Check for a Publisher Sale

From time to time, publishers offer a discounted price for an entire franchise or even for their full catalog. For example, if you notice that Battlefield 4 is on sale, there's a good chance you could get more games from the Battlefield franchise at a lower price.

Save money with Steam bundles

Also, you can get a bundle discount even if you own one or more games from that bundle. Let's say you get a bundle made of 3 games, but you already own one game included in that bundle. You can get the bundle without paying again for game titles you already own.

6. Buy Games From Partner Stores

There are plenty of reasons to stick with Steam as your preferred storefront for games, but there's a chance you can get a better price from a different place. The good news is these stores sell Steam keys, so you can get a game at a better price and add it to your library. All you have to do is redeem the game key on Steam.

Some game key sellers, such as Green Man Gaming or Humble Store, may have the same games for a better price.

7. Refund Games That You Don't Play

Even if you've got a game at a major discount, there's no point in keeping it in your library if you're not going to play it. If 14 days have not passed since the purchase, and you haven't played the games for more than two hours, you can get a refund.

Only purchase a game if you know you're going to play it; after all, the "buy now, play later" strategy might turn out to be expensive if you forget to refund them in time.

If you bought a game right before it went on sale, you can also ask for a refund and get the same game for a discounted price. According to Steam, it might take up to seven days for the approved refund to appear in your account.

8. Follow Steam on Twitter

Every time you launch the app, Steam shows you the latest games on sale. But if you're not a hardcore gamer, there's a chance you've stopped the app from launching at startup to speed up boot times. Also, you may not visit the Steam website daily, so you might miss the opportunity to get the best prices.

But if you have a Twitter account, you can follow Steam on Twitter and check the latest sales.

Save Money on Steam

As you can see, there are plenty of ways to expand your Steam library without breaking the wallet or the bank. It may require patience and diligence since you'll need to keep an eye out for relevant deals, but once you find them, you'll be much happier than you waited, and your wallet will thank you for it.

Now, if you'd rather save your cash and pay for your games in Bitcoin, a few platforms make it possible.