Side by side

Google Play Billing vs Steam Input

Both stand on game drm software. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.

Google Play Billing

Free plan AndroidAPI

Google Play Billing covers Android checkout for digital items, with tools for subscriptions and purchase management. Developers should plan for secure backend verification and timely purchase acknowledgement, and note that service fees vary.

Visit Google Play Billing

Steam Input

Free plan APILinuxMac+1

Steam Input offers both game-integrated action mapping and a legacy option for games without API support. Players should account for possible input glitches and mismatched glyphs when using legacy configurations.

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The facts

	Google Play Billing	Steam Input
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Open source	Not published	Not published
Runs on	Android, API	API, Linux, Mac, Windows
Lowest paid plan	Free or on request	Not published
Plans published	1	None
Maker	Not published	Not published
Website	developer.android.com	partner.steamgames.com
On game drm software	#1 of 19	#3 of 19

Google Play Billing: what it does well

Supports consumable and non-consumable one-time products.
Subscriptions support offers, prepaid plans, and add-ons.
Developer API supports purchase management and status checks.
Cloud Pub/Sub delivers subscription change notifications.
Listed plan is free.

What to know first

It is for digital items, not physical goods or services.
Unacknowledged purchases are refunded after three days.
Service fees vary by developer and transaction.

Steam Input: what it does well

Built into the Steam client.
Supports major controller families.
Players can share game-specific configurations.
Legacy mappings work without API integration.
Steam Input is free.

What to know first

Legacy mappings can cause input glitches in some games.
Legacy-mode glyphs may not match configured inputs.

Alternatives to Google Play Billing Alternatives to Steam Input The whole list