The 5-dollar limit in Steam: what it is and how to lift it
A new Steam account works with limits until at least 5 dollars have been spent on it. This is how Steam protects itself from spam and scam accounts.
What a limited account cannot do
- send friend invites;
- use the Community Market;
- gain profile levels and get trading cards;
- publish in the Workshop and vote on reviews;
- open group chats and post freely in discussions.
Playing, buying games and accepting friend invites all work on a limited account.
How to lift the 5-dollar limit
You need to spend at least 5 US dollars in the Steam Store. Any of these will do:
- add 5 dollars or more to the Steam Wallet;
- buy games or DLC worth 5 dollars or more;
- redeem a Steam Wallet code worth 5 dollars or more;
- buy a gift for another user in the Steam Store worth 5 dollars or more.
The sums add up: the 5 dollars need not be spent in one purchase.
What does not count
- activating keys bought in other stores;
- free games and demos;
- gifts you received;
- purchases that were refunded.
What 5 dollars is in your currency
If the wallet is not in dollars, Steam converts what you spent to dollars at its daily rate. The exact sum for today is on the Steam exchange rates page: keep USD as the base currency, type 5 into “Amount” and look at the row of your currency.
The rate changes every day, so add a margin: if you fall short by a few cents, the limit stays.
How to spend 5 dollars in Steam
You do not have to spend them on anything in particular: topping up the wallet is enough, and the money stays on the balance until you buy something. The limit is not always lifted at once. If it is still there after a top-up, buy any game or DLC with that money — a purchase counts for certain.
How to top up a new account
Play Wallet tops up Steam by login — the account password is not needed. New accounts have a peculiarity: on the first top-up Steam may pick the region and the currency itself. Read about the risks of topping up a new account and start with a small sum — top-ups add up.
