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To get Steam alerts when a game releases or goes on sale, add it to your Wishlist, verify your Steam email address, and enable the matching Wishlist notification channels. Steam can send alerts for launches, Early Access-to-full-release transitions, qualifying discounts, and some demo releases. Its sale alerts are not a complete price-change feed: Steam does not offer a per-game target price, and it will not notify you about every markdown or a price increase.
At a glance
| Action | What it does | Where updates may appear |
|---|---|---|
| Wishlist a game | Keeps the game on your personal list and enables eligible release and sale alerts | Wishlist page and enabled account notification channels |
| Follow a game | Shows that game’s announcements | Friends Activity Feed and Steam News Hub |
| Follow a developer or publisher | Tracks a creator’s announcements and new releases | Steam discovery surfaces; email may be available subject to preferences |
You can Wishlist and Follow the same game. Following is not a substitute for wishlisting when you want release or discount notifications.
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Sign in to the Steam account that should receive alerts, open the game’s full store page, and select Add to your Wishlist. You do not need to install, buy, or follow the game.
- Sign in to Steam.
- Open the game’s storefront page—not just a search-result preview.
- Click Add to your Wishlist, on the left side of the store page. The control changes when the game is listed.
- To confirm, open Store → Wishlist. In the client, hover over Store and choose Wishlist; the same path is available in a signed-in browser.
On the Wishlist page, you can reorder games by dragging them or entering a number beside a title. To remove a game, use the Remove link under its name, or use the store page’s On Wishlist menu and choose Remove from your Wishlist. Steam Support’s Wishlist FAQ describes adding games from their storefront pages.
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How do I turn on Steam release and sale alerts?
Enable the Wishlist sale and release notification rows for the channels you want, and verify the email address on your account if you want email alerts. Steam’s settings have moved and labels can differ, so look for the Wishlist Activity rows rather than relying on an old screenshot.
- In Steam, open your profile menu in the upper-right corner and choose Account Details → Manage Email Preferences. While signed in, you can also try Steam’s email-preferences page. On current settings pages, the old link may open Notification Settings directly.
- Find the Wishlist Activity section. Enable the sale row, currently described as An item on my wishlist is on sale, and the release row, described as An item on my wishlist has released (including full release or Early Access), or has transitioned from Early Access to full release. Older pages may use wording such as A discount is applied to an item on my wishlist.
- Choose a channel where the row offers one: Email, Steam client toast, mobile app, or feed. Availability can vary by event. The release and demo rows have been reported as email-only, so check the channels shown in your account.
- Check Only notify me about these wishlist categories. Leave it set to All unless you intentionally want alerts limited to selected categories.
- Save the changes, reopen the preferences, and confirm they persisted.
For email, verify your address in Account Details; Steam should show it as Verified. To change it, go to Steam → Settings → Account → Change contact email… and follow the confirmation link sent by Steam.
On desktop, wishlist sale controls are also available under Steam → Settings → Notifications. Open the client bell and select View all to review notification history. A notice in the client with no email suggests checking email preferences; a notice in the app without a phone banner points to mobile notification permissions.
To receive phone alerts
Install Steam Mobile, sign in to the same Steam account, and enable Mobile App for the sale row if that channel is offered. Then allow operating-system notifications for Steam: on iPhone, open Settings → Notifications → Steam → Allow Notifications; on Android, open Settings → Notifications → App notifications → Steam (wording varies by device). Focus modes, notification summaries, and battery restrictions can prevent banners from appearing even when Steam has sent a notice.
What events trigger a Steam Wishlist notification?
Valve’s current Steamworks rules describe four triggers: launch, Early Access becoming a full release, a qualifying discount, and a developer-controlled demo notification. Valve says these triggers may change.
- Launch: When a game becomes available in Early Access or as a full release, people who have it wishlisted at that time may receive email and/or a mobile push notification. No separate launch-date alert button is required.
- Early Access to full release: Valve may send another email to people who have the game on their Wishlist when it transitions.
- Discount: The discount must be at least 20%, last more than 8 hours, and affect the game’s lowest-priced package. A curated deal, weeklong deal, or custom discount can qualify; the named deal type is not the deciding test.
- Demo release: Steam’s July 2026 Wishlist update introduced demo notifications. The developer controls this one-time notice from the demo app landing page and can send it up to two weeks after the demo becomes public.
For a discount, Valve says emails typically go out within a few hours, but high-volume periods can take longer. An email may include several wishlisted titles. Valve says it stops trying to send an email that has been delayed for more than a week. These are not a guarantee of delivery time.
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Why didn’t Steam notify me about a sale?
A visible lower price does not necessarily meet Steam’s alert rules. Check the threshold, duration, package, regional store, account preferences, and cooldown before assuming the notification failed.
- Not enough discount: Steam’s documented minimum is 20% off.
- Too short: The offer must last more than 8 hours; an 8-hour offer does not qualify.
- Wrong package: The lowest-priced package must be discounted. Discounting only a Deluxe or other higher-priced package is not enough.
- Category filter: If you created Wishlist categories, a filter other than All can suppress alerts for games outside the selected categories.
- Unverified email or disabled channel: Email requires a verified address and the matching Wishlist preference enabled. Mobile alerts also depend on the app and phone permissions.
- Cooldown: Another notice for the same game’s App ID may have been sent recently.
- Regional offer: Check the price and package on the signed-in store page for your region; the package available to you is the relevant one.
Steam says a customer notified about an App ID within the past two weeks is on email cooldown; its FAQ describes the window as 1–2 weeks. Seasonal sales may extend it. The cooldown is per App ID, not per publisher. A recent launch, discount, or demo email can therefore prevent a second email about the same game, even if a deeper sale begins soon afterward.
Steam has not published a delivery rate, open rate, or the share of wishlisters who receive these emails. There is no official percentage to use as a guarantee.
What should I check if I never get a Steam email?
Work through these checks in order; they distinguish a missing email from a sale that never met the trigger rules.
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- Confirm the game appears under Store → Wishlist on the account you intend to use.
- Confirm Email is enabled on the relevant Wishlist Activity sale or release row, and that the category filter is set to All unless you deliberately narrowed it.
- In Account Details, confirm the address says Verified. Receiving a receipt or Steam Guard code does not prove that Wishlist emails are enabled.
- Search spam, promotions, and any workplace or mail-provider quarantine. A Steam-wide sale announcement is different from an alert about one wishlisted game.
- For a sale, verify the 20% minimum, more-than-8-hour duration, lowest-priced-package rule, and the offer on your regional store page.
- Check whether a launch, sale, or demo notice for the same App ID arrived within the last 1–2 weeks; seasonal traffic can extend the wait.
- If you expected a phone push instead, confirm Steam Mobile uses the same account, OS permission is allowed, and Focus or battery settings are not blocking it.
- Check the Steam client bell history. If the alert appears there but not in your inbox, revisit email preferences; if it appears in the app but not as a phone banner, revisit phone permissions.
If none of those checks explains the issue, contact Steam Support with the game’s store link, sale dates, screenshots of the relevant preferences, and a note about which notification surfaces did or did not show an alert.
What will Steam not notify me about?
Steam Wishlist alerts are for specific events, not every change to a game’s store page or price. Do not expect an alert for:
- A custom price target such as “tell me when it reaches $15,” or a custom discount target such as 60% off.
- A price increase, news post, trailer swap, or release-date change.
- A discount below 20%, one lasting 8 hours or less, or a sale limited to a higher-priced package.
- A Free to Keep giveaway. Valve says wishlisted customers are not notified about these promotions.
A Steam-wide message announcing a major sale is a separate notification type, not a per-game Wishlist alert. Steam’s sale alert is therefore a discount notification, not a complete price-change feed.
Can Steam alert me when a game reaches a certain price?
No. Steam’s Wishlist settings do not include a per-game dollar or percentage target. If you need one, use a manual check or a separate service, understanding that it is not a Steam notification and that coverage and privacy depend on that service.
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- Manual tracking: Write your target next to each game and check the Wishlist during sales. Sorting or filtering the list by discount can help surface current offers, but does not guarantee a specific historical low.
- Cross-store waitlist: IsThereAnyDeal lets users import a Steam Wishlist into a Waitlist and set notification rules. Check its current store and regional coverage before relying on it.
- Price history: SteamDB offers Steam price-history information and a watchlist; its FAQ describes creating an account and importing a Steam Wishlist manually. Price history can help put a current discount in context, but does not change Steam’s own alert thresholds.
- Browser extensions: Some extensions advertise imported wishlists, custom targets, and browser notifications. Review the listing, permissions, and update behavior before connecting an account; these are third-party features, not Steam guarantees.
How do Wishlist categories and privacy affect alerts?
Steam’s July 2026 Wishlist update added custom categories and category-based notification filtering, as well as a way to share a filtered list. If alerts stop after you organize games into categories, reset the notification category filter to All or include the category containing the game.
A shared category link can show those selected games even if the full Wishlist is private; anyone with the link can view the shared list, and you can revoke the link. Separately, Wishlist visibility follows your Community Profile settings, which can allow everyone, friends, or only you to see the list. Profile visibility and notification preferences are separate controls: changing who can view the Wishlist does not itself enable or disable release and sale alerts.
Which setup fits how I want to use alerts?
Choose channels based on whether you value immediacy, fewer interruptions, or a narrower set of games.
- Don’t miss launches: Enable email and mobile push for the full Wishlist, where those channels are available. This can mean more notices when several games change at once.
- Keep your phone quiet: Use email only, then review the Wishlist on a schedule.
- Track a few projects: Put them in a custom category and use category-based notifications if that option is shown in your account.
- Keep demos distinct: Enable the demo-release option if available and use a demo category if that helps you manage those alerts.
Steam’s official Wishlist notification page describes email and mobile alerts for some sale types, but use the current in-account preferences and Valve’s current rules for eligibility. In Valve’s current documentation, the numeric discount, duration, and package requirements—not the old named-deal examples—determine whether a sale qualifies.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Does Steam notify me when a game gets a release date?
No Wishlist notification trigger is documented for a release-date announcement or change. The launch alert is for when the game becomes available, so wishlisting it is useful even if its date is not final.
Can friends see my Steam Wishlist when I add a game?
They can only see the full Wishlist according to your Community Profile privacy setting. A filtered category share link is a separate way to expose selected games, and anyone with that link can view them until you revoke it.
Can I get a Steam alert without installing the game?
Yes. A game only needs to be on the Wishlist of the account with notifications enabled; installation and ownership are not prerequisites for these alerts.
Will opting out of Steam marketing emails stop receipts or Steam Guard codes?
No. Those account and security messages are distinct from optional Wishlist or marketing communications, so disabling promotional preferences should not disable purchase receipts or Steam Guard codes.
