Steam is the largest PC gaming platform in the world, serving millions of players with a massive trove of games, useful community features, and much more. Recently, however, many Steam users have been having issues making purchases via PayPal.
Valve, the company that owns Steam, didn’t immediately say why this was happening, and many users assumed it had to do with recent vendor-driven game censorship that saw many games delisted.
That’s now changed. If you attempt to buy a game with PayPal using a currency other than EUR, CAD, GBP, JPY, AUD, or USD, you’ll be met with a disclaimer stating that PayPal is no longer available and an explanation as to why.
Here’s what you need to know about the situation, as well as how to work around the new PayPal limitations in certain currencies on Steam.
Why is PayPal no longer available on Steam for certain currencies?
The updated Steam checkout page was flagged by a Reddit user early Tuesday morning, with the OP including a screenshot of the explanation as to why currencies other than the six I listed above are now blocked by PayPal.
The standard “PayPal is currently unavailable in your country” pop-up is still in place, but Valve now adds a lot more exposition. Here’s the full explanation:
“In early July 2025, PayPal notified Valve that their acquiring bank for payment transactions in certain currencies was immediately terminating the processing of any transactions related to Steam. This affects Steam purchases using PayPal in currencies other than EUR, CAD, GBP, JPY, AUD, and USD.
“We hope to offer PayPal as an option for these currencies in the future but the timeline is uncertain. We are also evaluating additional payment methods on Steam for the customers affected by this.
“In the meantime, please use one of our other current payment methods during checkout. If you can’t use any of the available options, you can consider using a Steam Wallet code to add funds to your account.”
Valve, to my knowledge, hasn’t offered any other words regarding the PayPal situation. That leaves most people to assume that PayPal said it was done dealing with most currencies on Steam’s platform; it doesn’t seem like the same limitations have affected other PC gaming storefronts that accept PayPal.
As mentioned, Steam is currently looking into an alternative for those dealing with currencies outside of the six cleared by PayPal, but in the meantime, it’s leaving a lot of gamers stranded without a way to buy games.
In a response to the Reddit thread, another user highlights a similar issue they had in Malaysia, and suggests that “some sort of local payment” process is on the way. As the user explains, PayPal hasn’t been available in Malaysia for 10 years, and eClub eCash gift cards are the go-to method instead.
This is, of course, speculation, with neither Steam nor PayPal offering any clear explanation as to why there was such a sudden decoupling in July 2025.
Does the new PayPal issue relate to Steam’s recent NSFW financial censorship?
I can’t say for certain one way or the other, but it doesn’t at this time appear that the PayPal limitations have anything to do with the recent NSFW game censorship controversy that saw Steam remove countless games after receiving pressure from certain payment processors.
This all came about following the addition of a new clause in the Steamworks Documentation onboarding documents, which added a provision for what you shouldn’t publish on Steam: “Content that may violate the rules and standards set forth by Steam’s payment processors and related card networks and banks, or internet network providers. In particular, certain kinds of adult only content.”
An explanation from SteamDB’s social media account basically confirmed the change as the cause of the recent censorship.
Steam has added a new rule disallowing games that violate the rules and standards set forth by payment processors and card networks, or internet network providers.
SteamDB
Whether you buy these types of games or not, seeing payment processors — pressured by protestive campaigns — decide what you can buy certainly seems like the start of a slippery slope.
The fact that Australia and the UK haven’t been removed from PayPal’s services seems to suggest that this is also unlikely to be due to new age verification laws arriving in certain countries.
How do you buy games on Steam when PayPal doesn’t work?
PayPal removing itself from activity with certain currencies on Steam doesn’t necessarily mean that those gamers can’t buy games. As Steam’s new disclaimer explains, “other current payment methods” are still available at checkout.
Those different payment methods vary depending on where you live. Most users will still be able to spend money using a credit or debit card, and the Steam Wallet can still be topped up with cards and codes.
Depending on where you live, Steam might also accept bank transfers and specific local payment methods.
Steam Wallet codes and Steam gift cards are sold around the world, and they could end up being the savior for many PC gamers. Here’s how to redeem them:
- Launch Steam and ensure you’re logged in.
- Click your account name in the top-right corner of the window.
- Click View my wallet in the dropdown menu.
- Click Redeem a Steam Gift Card or Wallet Code in the small menu on the right side of the window.
Just type in the code from your gift card or wallet code and see the money appear in your Steam account.
