Steam vs Epic Games Refund Process

Steam

• Both conditions must be met: purchased within last 14 days AND less than 2 hours of playtime
• Valve may approve refunds outside this window on a case-by-case basis but is not obligated to
• You can request a refund for any reason if within the window

Epic Games

• For self-refundable games, refund requested within 14 days of purchase.
• For self-refundable games, playtime must be less than 2 hours (or not at all).
• Pre-ordered games are eligible for refund if not yet released.
• Purchase must be marked as 'refundable' or 'self-refundable'.

Steam

• Go to help.steampowered.com
• Select 'Purchases'
• Find the game or item and select it
• Choose 'I'd like to request a refund'
• Select your reason and preferred refund method (Steam Wallet or original payment)
• Submit the request
• If denied, you can resubmit with additional information

Epic Games

• Go to Transactions in your account settings.
• Find the game you want to refund.
• Select Request refund.
• Choose a reason and select Request refund again.

Steam

• Steam Wallet: 24-48 hours after approval
• Original payment method (credit/debit/PayPal): up to 7 days after approval (up to 14 days for international payments)
• If original payment method is unavailable (expired card), defaults to Steam Wallet credit
• You choose the method at time of refund request

Epic Games

• Original payment method
• Epic Games account balance (in some regions)

Steam

• Pre-purchase/pre-order refunds: can request at any time before release; after release, standard 14-day/2-hour window begins from release date
• Early Access and Advanced Access: playtime counts from the moment you play, even before official release
• DLC refunds: within 14 days if base game played less than 2 hours since DLC purchase; DLC must not be consumed/modified/transferred
• Third-party DLC that irreversibly modifies game state may be marked non-refundable (indicated on Store page)
• Bundle refunds: full refund if no items transferred AND combined playtime under 2 hours across all bundle items
• In-game purchases (Valve games like CS2, Dota 2): refundable within 48 hours if not consumed/modified/transferred
• In-game purchases (third-party): developers opt in; if not opted in, generally non-refundable
• Gift refunds: unredeemed gifts follow standard window; redeemed gifts can be refunded by recipient, funds go to original purchaser
• Subscription refunds: within 48 hours of purchase/renewal if not used during current billing period
• Steam Wallet fund refunds: within 14 days if funds not spent
• 2025 policy update: if a developer cancels or fails to deliver promised DLC in a season pass, refund offered for unreleased DLC value

Epic Games

Not available

Steam

• If denied, resubmit the request with additional details through help.steampowered.com
• All support is ticket-based — no phone support
• Contact Steam Support through help.steampowered.com for further assistance

Epic Games

Not available

Steam

• Non-refundable: video content (movies, tutorials), third-party CD keys, physical gift cards, games with active VAC ban during play, consumed/modified/transferred content
• Refund abuse: Valve allows buying before a sale and refunding to rebuy at sale price without penalty
• But excessive refund patterns (many refunds, few kept purchases) will trigger a warning
• Continued abuse after warning may result in revoked refund privileges
• No published numeric limit — it's pattern-based detection
• Warning may disappear after weeks/months of normal purchasing behavior
• Refunds within 24 hours of purchase: the original transaction may be cancelled entirely; bank may take up to 30 days to release hold

Epic Games

• Refunds for purchases made on console or mobile stores (other than Epic Games Store) are subject to that store's policy.
• Refer to the Epic Games Store Refund Policy for full details.