Can You Add Steam Games to the Xbox App?

The short answer is no, games purchased on the Steam platform cannot be directly added or transferred to Xbox consoles or the Xbox gaming app.

But there are a few ways you can access and play Steam games on an Xbox through streaming and other techniques. Let‘s dive into the details!

Steam vs Xbox – Different Platforms

As a passionate gamer, I‘m sure many of you, like me, have built up huge libraries of games across different services like Steam, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo, and others over the years. But unfortunately, those digital games libraries are largely locked to the specific gaming platform or store we purchased them from.

For example, the hundreds of games I‘ve bought on Steam over the years are tied to my Steam account. Xbox games purchased from the Microsoft Store are locked to my Xbox profile. And it‘s not possible to directly combine libraries across platforms due to differences in:

• Digital Rights Management (DRM) – Used to prevent piracy and limit game access to specific platforms
• Storefronts and accounts – Games tied to the store (Steam, Xbox Store) and account purchased on
• Achievements and trophies – Progress tracking is platform-specific

So in the case of Steam and Xbox – they use entirely different DRM technology, run on different gaming infrastructures, and have separate game libraries and account systems.

That means games bought on Steam stay on Steam, and vice versa for Xbox console games or digital games for Xbox via the Microsoft Store on Windows.

But while you can‘t permanently transfer or import Steam games over to Xbox apps and consoles, there are some good workarounds…

Stream Steam Games to Your Xbox

The best way to play your Steam games on an Xbox is through game streaming.

Game streaming is awesome because it allows you to access your Steam library on devices like Xbox consoles or mobile phones that couldn‘t otherwise run those PC games natively.

Popular streaming options like Steam Link and Nvidia GeForce Now are supported on Xbox through the Microsoft Edge browser and allow streaming from a Windows gaming PC or cloud servers.

Steam Link

Steam Link is a free app from Valve that streams Steam games from a gaming PC to other devices over home Wi-Fi or over the internet.

I use Steam Link all the time to stream games from my powerful RTX 3080 desktop to my lower-powered laptop when away from home!

The Xbox console version of Edge browser supports Steam Link functionality.

To stream Steam games to Xbox using Steam Link:

1. Download and install Steam Link app on your Xbox One or Series X/S (get it here)
2. Ensure your gaming PC and Xbox console are on the same local network or connected to each other over the internet
3. Launch the Steam Link app on Xbox and select your gaming PC
4. Stream and play games from your Steam library on the big-screen!

One downside is Steam Link streaming is capped at 1080p resolution. So visual quality will be lower than native 4K Xbox gameplay. But streaming lets you conveniently access your entire Steam collection easily on Xbox!

According to Valve, over 1 billion minutes have been streamed using Steam Link! So it‘s a proven way to enjoy cross-platform compatibility.

Nvidia GeForce Now

Another option is Nvidia GeForce Now, a cloud gaming service that hosts and streams some Steam games from Nvidia‘s servers.

Cloud gaming is awesome because games are hosted remotely – so you can play high-end games on lower-powered devices.

For example, while Xbox One or Series X consoles don‘t natively support a lot of Steam games designed for Windows PC hardware – using a service like GeForce Now allows those beefy Steam games to be streamed to Xbox browsers in high resolution and fidelity. Sweet!

To play GeForce Now Steam games on your Xbox:

1. Enable Xbox browser support in GeForce Now settings
2. Install latest Edge browser on your Xbox
3. Navigate to play.geforcenow.com and sign into your GeForce Now account
4. Stream and play supported Steam games on your television!

Now one catch with GeForce Now is that the game publishers have to opt-in and support the streaming of their Steam games on the service. So only a subset of Steam games work on GeForce Now.

But the list is growing, with over 1,400 games supported now including huge titles like Cyberpunk 2077. So be sure to check their supported games list if your favorite is available.

This cloud streaming method gives Xbox owners access to more Steam games than ever before!

Play Steam Games on PC, Stream to Xbox

Here‘s another creative way to enjoy Steam games on your Xbox – by streaming them from a Windows 10 gaming PC.

Since Windows 10 PCs support the Steam client natively, you can install and play Steam games as normal there.

Then stream that Windows 10 gameplay video feed to your Xbox using the built-in wireless streaming:

1. Install Steam game on Windows 10 PC
2. On Xbox, launch the Wireless Display app (instructions here)
3. Connect and stream your Windows 10 screen to your Xbox console over Wi-Fi
4. Launch and play Steam game on PC, with video streamed to Xbox screen
5. Use your Xbox controller connected to Windows PC to control the Steam game

Pretty slick! Now of course your mileage may vary depending on your home network setup. And visual quality is compressed a bit during wireless streaming.

But being able to conveniently access my entire Steam library on the big living room TV via my Xbox is awesome! Much better than being stuck gaming on my PC only.

And according to Microsoft, over 100 million players have streamed games across devices. So game streaming is only growing in popularity.

Xbox Game Pass vs Steam Comparison

Now one of the best parts of Xbox consoles and Microsoft‘s gaming ecosystem is Xbox Game Pass – the Netflix-style gaming subscription with access to hundreds of games.

In some ways, Xbox Game Pass competes with Steam for player‘s time and money. So let‘s compare some key stats between the Xbox and Steam platforms:

Based on the adoption numbers, both Xbox and Steam have absolutely massive audiences of gaming enthusiasts.

Xbox is killing it lately with continued growth, an incredible Game Pass library adding major titles day one like Starfield, and new initiatives like game streaming.

Meanwhile Steam remains the dominant force in PC gaming with an unrivaled catalog of games, very active user base, and community features.

So both platforms are appealing depending on your needs! As a gamer I use both Steam and Xbox actively for different purposes.

The Best of Both Worlds

While Steam and Xbox libraries remain separate, us gamers are fortunate to have more options than ever to enjoy our game collections across platforms and devices.

Game streaming technology like Steam Link brings unified, cross-platform play closer to reality than ever before. I can‘t wait to see how services like Nvidia GeForce Now and Xbox Cloud Gaming continue to bridge the gap in future.

For now – combining options like streaming my Steam library to living room Xbox consoles gives me the best of both gaming worlds! No compromises.

Let me know if you have any other questions about getting Steam games working with your Xbox setup! Happy gaming!