Steam sales are always an exciting time for PC owners since they bring enticing discounts on hundreds upon hundreds of games, allowing players to finally check out big titles they may have skipped at launch or discover hidden gems. Despite their consistency, it can be difficult keeping track of how many there are and when they’ll take place throughout the year. Fortunately, for 2023, Valve has provided a full schedule for the next 12 months, meaning you can now properly prepare for whichever sales you think will catch your interest.
Related: How long does Steam maintenance take? Steam maintenance schedule
Which Steam sales will be available in 2023?
First things first, there are effectively three kinds of sales: the seasonal ones that occur in the spring, summer, fall, and winter and are open to all released games, themed sales that spotlight a particular category, and Steam Next Fest which is held three times a year and is more of an opportunity to try demos and provide feedback to developers. The first Steam Next Fest is already underway and will wrap up on Monday, February 27.
Spring Sale
The next major sale is the Spring Sale, which is also the first of 2023’s seasonal sales. This will run for just a single week from March 16 to March 23.
Puzzle Fest
Puzzle Fest takes place the following month in April and will be comprised of puzzle games, be they casual tile-matching games or ones that require deductive logic reasoning. This sale runs from April 24 to May 1.
Sports Fest
As the name suggests, this sale will be centered around any and all sports games, so don’t be surprised if EA’s annual entries for its FIFA, Madden, and NHL franchises are included. This will run from May 15 to May 22.
Next Fest (2)
The second Steam Next Fest of the year will kick off on June 19 and run for a week until June 26.
Summer Sale
The Summer Sale will begin just a few days after Next Fest wraps up and, unlike most of the other sales, is scheduled to run for two weeks instead of one. Specifically, it will last from June 29 until July 13.
Stealth Fest
Fans of stealth games like Hitman and Dishonored won’t want to let this sale sneak past them. Picking up just over 10 days after the Summer Sale, it’ll run during the final week of the month from July 24 to July 31.
Visual Novel Fest
For anyone who prefers their games to have a heavy focus on story and characters, the Visual Novel Fest should introduce you to some new narrative-driven adventures. This one runs from August 7 to August 14.
Strategy Fest
Towards the end of August, strategy games such as the Civilization and Total War titles will be reduced. This sale runs from August 28 to September 4.
SHMUP Fest
Those who love retro or retro-inspired shoot ’em ups, be they horizontal or vertical, will want to pay attention to this sale, which runs from September 25 to October 2.
Next Fest (3)
The third and final Steam Next Fest of the year will take place just a week after SHMUP Fest and run from October 9 to October 16.
Return of Steam Scream Fest
Of course, Valve will have something Halloween themed for the end of October. The company will have more details to share about this one closer to the time you can at least pen a reminder in your calendar for October 26 to November 2.
Fall Sale
The penultimate seasonal sale will take place at the end of November and run from November 21 to November 28.
Winter Sale
The schedule wraps up with a Winter Sale that runs throughout Christmas and into the New Year. Just like the Summer Sale, this will run for two weeks instead of one, starting December 21 and finishing January 4, 2024.
