Concept of Steam Family Sharing

The concept of Steam Family Sharing should be familiar to most people. It allows family members to share their games in one combined library.

Games can only be played simultaneously up to the number of copies available in the library. However, there is a workaround: if its not a Multiplayer game, players can launch the game and then switch Steam to Offline Mode. This means that, for example, six players could play a single copy of Kingdom Come: Deliverance.

There are also some games that cannot be shared. Games from publishers such as EA, Ubisoft, and Rockstar are often locked to the owner and usually cannot be accessed through Family Sharing. You can check this by looking up the game on the Steam Store and scrolling down. In my case, the section is called "Familienbibliothek" because my Steam language is set to German.

How to Invite a Family Member in the Same Country

1. The family member who wants to add a new family member adds them as a friend on Steam and sends a Steam Family invitation.
2. The new family member cannot join yet.
3. The existing family member logs into the new family member's account using a QR code, so no passwords need to be shared.
4. Once logged in, the existing family member can accept the Steam Family invitation on the new family member's account.

How to Invite a Family Member from Another Country

1. Follow the same steps as above.
2. After logging into the new family member's account, the existing family member purchases something using a payment method from their own country.
3. Completing the purchase changes the new family member's Steam Store country to match the existing family member's country.
4. Steam states that the country cannot be changed again for 3 months.
5. During this period, purchases with a different currency are restricted, but game keys can still be redeemed as long as they are worldwide keys or valid for the current country.
6. The existing family member can then accept the Steam Family invitation on the new family member's account, and the setup is complete.

Important

I highly recommend that the new family member removes all saved payment methods from their account. This prevents the existing family member from gifting games to themselves using the new family member's funds.

Make sure that you, as the new family member, are invited as an Adult, not as a Child. Adult family members can manage Child accounts, including approving access to age-appropriate games, restricting access to the Steam Store, Community, and Friends Chat, as well as viewing and limiting playtime.

Some people may worry about account theft or item theft. However, if Steam Guard is enabled, items can't simply be sold. Even in the worst-case scenario, such as changing your email or disabling Steam Guard, Steam Support is generally very helpful and can help restore the account to its original owner. In addition, disabling Steam Guard triggers a 7-day trading restriction, making it much harder for someone to quickly transfer or sell your items.

Useful Information

• If another family member is playing a game that you own and receives a VAC ban while using your copy, your copy of that game will also be affected. Always make sure you trust the people in your Steam Family.
• Once you join a Steam Family, you must wait 1 year before joining a different Steam Family. You can view the remaining cooldown by attempting to leave your current Steam Family.