New Steam controller – UK pricing and release date

Valve has confirmed its long-awaited Steam Controller will go on sale on 4 May 2026, priced at £85 in the UK, making it one of the more premium gamepad options on the market.

The controller was first revealed in November 2025 alongside the Steam Machine and Steam Frame VR headset, but it arrives ahead of those two products, which remain without a confirmed release date.

Notably, the Steam Machine and Steam Frame are sadly absent from this launch, with reports indicating that Valve is in a difficult position due to rising component costs driven by demand from AI companies.

Sales open via Steam on 4 May at 10h00 Pacific Time, which is 18h00 in the UK. The controller will be available in the US, Canada, the UK, the EU, and Australia, with Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan served through Komodo Station.

Notably, it will not be available in brick-and-mortar stores, with Valve keeping sales exclusively through its Steam platform.

What does the Steam Controller offer?

The most noticeable change from the original is that the new design includes two analogue thumbsticks positioned below the face buttons, making it far more familiar to anyone coming from a PlayStation or Xbox controller.

Two square touchpads remain, though they are smaller than before and positioned beneath the thumbsticks, angled inward slightly for more comfortable thumb reach.

Valve has built these around TMR technology, a magnetic thumbstick system designed for improved feel, responsiveness, and long-term reliability.

The thumbsticks also support capacitive touch, enabling motion-based input alongside standard controls.

Haptic feedback is central to the design, with high-definition rumble motors capable of handling complex waveforms for more nuanced in-game sensation.

Grip-enabled gyro controls allow players to activate motion aiming simply by holding the controller, with the feature mappable like any other input.

Four additional buttons on the rear grips can be fully configured through Steam’s software.

What the puck?

The Steam Controller ships with a ‘Puck’, a wireless transmitter that provides a fast, stable connection and also serves as a magnetic charging station.

Placing the controller on top of the Puck connects them magnetically and simultaneously charges the unit and pairs it with your PC. Valve claims the battery supports more than 35 hours of gameplay.

Bluetooth and USB connectivity are also supported for users who prefer a wired or standard wireless setup.

The controller works with any device running Steam or the Steam Link app, including Windows, Mac, and Linux PCs, as well as tablets and smartphones.

It supports the Steam Deck both docked and in handheld mode, and pairs directly with Steam Machine hardware with the ability to remotely wake the system.

Non-Steam games are also compatible, though Valve recommends adding them to the Steam library for the best experience, as the controller otherwise behaves as a generic gamepad.

How does it compare on price?

At £85, the Steam Controller sits well above mainstream alternatives.

It costs nearly twice the price of the 8BitDo Ultimate 2, which is currently regarded as the best PC controller for most players, and also undercuts the Sony DualSense by a notable margin in the other direction.

Whether the TMR thumbsticks, dual trackpads, and deep Steam integration justify the premium will depend on how heavily a buyer leans on PC-native gaming.

You can wishlist the Steam Controller at store.steampowered.com/sale/steamcontroller to be notified when it goes live on 4 May.

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