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- Over 5000 Steam titles failed to make even $100 on the platform this year.
- 65.9% titles were not able to gross over $1000, and only 8% made it to $100k.
- Games in the lowest 30% by revenue grossed $37 in total.
Steam just recently hit a new concurrent peak of 41 million players in a busy October filled with successful new releases like Battlefield 6, which almost attained a million players on launch.
2025 has seen many success stories on the platform, with titles like Hollow Knight: Silksong and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 getting viral following positive reviews. However, not every game on Steam is making millions, and as it turns out, most are failing to turn up even $100 in profit.
Why it matters: Indie titles continue to struggle on Steam, with thousands going unnoticed each year and earning only pennies.
According to research by Gamalytic, 40% of the total releases on Steam this year generated less than $100, which is the amount developers pay Valve to list a game on the platform. Hence, most passion projects by indie devs are failing to get off the mark.
According to estimates, over 13K titles have been released on Steam in 2025, meaning over 5000 games have failed to bring in even $100. In addition, 65.9% of Steam games this year made less than $1,000, while almost half of the platform’s 2025 library has sold less than 100 copies.
To further highlight the difference between the bottom and top half of developers, the games in the lowest 30% based on revenue made only $37 combined. Only 8% of the projects launched on the platform this year were able to make over $100K, which accounts for barely more than 1,000 titles.
Of course, it is not too surprising that games released by bigger studios tend to garner more revenue while indie developers are honing their craft through passion projects. But it’s still startling to see the number of indies that are basically invisible, especially when you consider the terrible wishlist conversion.
Gamalytic says that the results of this research aren’t 100% accurate, but even with a margin of error, the synthesis is still bleak.
Do you think indie titles need more attention on Steam? Tell us in the comments below, or head to the Tech4Gamers forum for discussion.
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Shameer Sarfaraz has previously worked for eXputer as a Senior News Writer for several years. Now with Tech4Gamers, he loves to devoutly keep up with the latest gaming and entertainment industries. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and years of experience reporting on games. Besides his passion for breaking news stories, Shahmeer loves spending his leisure time farming away in Stardew Valley. VGC, IGN, GameSpot, Game Rant, TheGamer, GamingBolt, The Verge, NME, Metro, Dot Esports, GameByte, Kotaku Australia, PC Gamer, and more have cited his articles.
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