Steam to Drop Support for 32-bit Windows 10 in 2026

Valve has officially announced that it will soon end support for 32-bit versions of Windows in the Steam client. Starting January 1, 2026, the digital storefront will no longer release updates for the 32-bit architecture of Windows 10. This move will affect a tiny fraction of the community — according to Steam's monthly hardware survey, only 0.01% of players are still using such a system.

The installed Steam client won't stop working, but it will no longer receive any updates, including critical security patches. Over time, this will likely leave the software vulnerable. Valve's support team will also be unable to provide assistance for issues encountered on these legacy systems.

The developers' reasoning for this move is straightforward: modern Steam features increasingly rely on drivers and libraries that are no longer being developed for 32-bit environments. Supporting these systems has become technically challenging and economically unviable. However, this isn't the end for old games. Valve specifically emphasizes that all 32-bit games in users' libraries will continue to launch and run without issues on current 64-bit systems.

Users still running 32-bit Windows 10 are strongly encouraged to upgrade to the 64-bit version of the operating system. This will ensure uninterrupted access to Steam and all its new features and games going forward. This step continues Valve's trend of abandoning legacy software, having already ended support for Windows 7 and Windows 8 in 2024.

Dropping outdated 32-bit systems is a logical step in Valve's broader effort to continuously improve its client. The company isn't just ending support for dying platforms; it's also actively developing Steam for modern users. This is evident in a recent major update that introduced new library customization features and enhanced performance diagnostic tools.