How to buy a game on Steam in Russia in 2026

Almost everyone is aware of the current world situation. The sanctions imposed against Russia have hit many industries, including the gaming industry. First of all, honest gamers from Russia who bought games on the Steam digital platform suffered.

Currently, most methods of replenishing the account are blocked for users from Russia, which is why it is necessary to look for workarounds. In this guide, we have collected all the working methods to replenish the wallet in order to buy a game on Steam in Russia in 2026.

UPD: Some users had a misunderstanding how to buy the game. Some methods are aimed exclusively at wallet replenishment. We replenish the wallet and from this amount we purchase the desired game.

Can I buy locked games?

Russian users are increasingly faced with blocked games. You can’t buy them directly, but there are proven sites with loopholes that sell games sometimes even cheaper than on Steam. Here is a small list of games that you can find at an affordable price on sites specializing in the sale of keys:

• Red Dead Redemption 2
• Borderlands 3
• Fallout 4
• Dying Light 2
• Monster Hunter World
• Mortal Kombat 11
• Fallout 76
• Forza Horizon 4
• Forza Horizon 5
• Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order
• Dead by Daylight
• DOOM Eternal
• THE OUTER WORLD
• God of War
• Ghostwire tokyo
• Elden Ring
• Total War WARHAMMER II

You can also see pre-orders there:

• STALKER 2 Heart of Chernobyl
• forspoken
• Monster Hunter Rise Sunset

More how to buy games not available in Russia.

How to top up your Steam Wallet in Russia

Under the sanctions, the purchase of games for users from Russia is complicated, because it is impossible to replenish the Steam wallet directly with a bank card. Intermediaries will help to solve this problem with minimal time, one of these sites Donatov.net, which provides direct replenishment of Russian Steam accounts.

There are many gift cards available in the store that can be used to purchase games or items from the Steam marketplace. Please note that recharge cards are strictly tied to regions, so buy only those whose currency matches the country specified in your profile.

The range of recharge cards for the following countries:

• Russia (rubles)
• Ukraine (hryvnia)
• Türkiye (lira)
• Worldwide (Hong Kong dollar)
• America (US dollar)
• Poland (zloty)
• Argentina (Argentine pesos)

To replenish your account, follow the instructions:

1. Open the site Donatov.net in the "Replenishment Steam (Russia)" section.
   
2. Specify the required amount of replenishment and Steam login (the one that was indicated during registration and by which you log in), and then click the button "Refill".
   
3. Make sure that the entered data is correct, select a convenient system for payment and click on the button "Create Purchase" button.
   
4. Confirm payment.
   

Donat comes instantly, for comparison, below are screenshots with a balance before and after payment.

If you have any questions or problems with your order while replenishing your Steam wallet, simply contact Donatov.net technical support and they will try to help in any situation.

How to buy a game on Steam through the MTS store

One of the ways to purchase a game on Steam without overpayments is to use the MTS store Rushbe. Press the red button "Sign In" in the upper right corner.

The site will take the user to another page where you need to enter a phone number any operator. A code will be sent to the specified contact to access the service, which must be entered.

After logging in to MTS ID, select the desired game. You can do this in several ways:

• Enter a name in the search box at the top of the screen.
• Set the genre and price segment of interest, and then select the game from the list that appears.
• Choose a product from the recommended sections: popular, special offers and more.

The store is in beta testing and is present on it not the entire Steam library, about 4000 more products will be added soon.

Once you have selected a product and edition, click on "Buy”, then enter the card details in the window that appears (Visa, Tinkoff, and so on). By clicking on the button next to the price, you can choose where to send the check: by mail, by SMS or not send.

Refresh the product page (or go to it again via the "My collection” in the upper right corner) so that instead of “Buy” a key appears, which must be entered into Steam.

The key in the format "game name - key" will also come to phone number, specified during registration, within a few minutes. With all questions or problems, you can contact support, the section with which can be found at the bottom of the site.

Account replenishment through the MTS-bank application

There is also a payment method using MTS-Bank. Even if the operator is different, it is still possible to log in.

• Download the MTS-bank application on the phone (for some reason, the payment method does not appear on the PC) and enter your number.
• After you enter the main page, in the search column, write Steam. Select it from the list that appears.
• Enter the login your Steam account and the payment amount below.

Users have reported that this method may be unstable, but it still works.

For internal payment, you can also use MTS virtual cards, but for this you need to confirm your passport data or log in through the "Gosuslugi".

Buying games on Steam through the Tinkoff Bank app

Information provided by the user under the nickname Alex.

To buy an unavailable game on Steam, you can use the Tinkoff service. First you need to download and install the bank application on your smartphone. Log in to your account and make sure that the card has the required amount of funds. Then do the following steps:

• On the main page, open the bottom tab "Services", Then select"goods". In the list that opens, click on "of play».

• In the search bar, specify the desired game and order it.

• After a successful purchase, next to the game icon should appear activation key. Write it down or copy it.

Then you need to go to your Steam account. There, open the library and at the very bottom select "add game"-> activate on Steam. In the window that appears, enter the previously received key, after which the game will become available in the shared library.

How to activate the key on Steam

To get the game using an activation code, follow these steps:

• Open the Steam app.
• Go to your game library.
• In the lower left corner, click on the "+" icon add a game > Activate on Steam.
• In the window that appears, enter the activation code you received and click "Next". Then the game will appear in the list.

We also recommend considering Family Sharing on Steam. The Family Library Sharing feature allows you to share your already purchased games with friends, so in order to save money, you should not discount this method.

A detailed guide on how to make Family Sharing on Steam.

How to buy an unavailable game on Steam after changing the region (Turkey)

It is possible that the purchased key can be activated in other regions, but the publisher itself blocks access from a certain country. To avoid this, we recommend that before activating the key, go to SteamDB.info and find the right game. If you see the inscription on its page: “This package can NOT be purchased in specified countries”, then you will not be able to activate the key without changing the region.

So, to switch the country on the account, follow these steps:

1. Sign out of your current account on all devices.
2. Log into your profile from a foreign IP address (preferably Turkish) and click on “Steam” in the upper left corner, then go to the “Settings” tab.
3. In the window that appears, click on the link "More about the account", it is located in the upper right corner.
4. In the very first section, "Store Operations and Purchase History", click on the "Change Store Country" button.

Alternative way:

1. Buy a bank card registered in the country you plan to switch to (for example, in lira). Such cards are sold on many intermediary sites.
2. Using a foreign IP address, find any game at a low cost and add it to your cart. Right there in the right corner, convert the store and wallet, switching to a new payment region.
3. After changing the currency, enter your card details and fill out the information window (For example: address - 5826. Sk. No:6; city - Antalya, State or Province: Antalya; postal code (index) - 07320; country/region: Turkey).
4. Confirm your purchase.

In a separate article, we have detailed how to top up Turkish Steam account in Russia.

How to buy a game on Steam via QIWI

The easiest and safest way to buy a game is to fund your account with a Qiwi wallet. This is what most users choose. This method will require Qiwi account. If not, you must register. Also, some users note that the method may not work if you do not link Qiwi with your account on "Gosuslugi" and do not make the wallet status the main.

To get the main one, click on the profile icon in the upper right corner, and then go to the "more about statuses". After that, the corresponding menu will open. To obtain the status, you must confirm your passport data and wait for the moderators to process the application.

Next, you need to replenish your wallet with a Visa, Tinkoff, Mastercard and so on, then create a new account in Kazakh tengeas shown in the screenshot below.

After that, you can transfer money to a new account. Replenishments from 2000 rubles are not taxed, but you still have to pay a conversion fee. Therefore, it is recommended to add another 250-300 rubles on top of the required amount in order to definitely get enough funds to the account.

When the money is in the account, you need to enter the word in the main Qiwi search line (magnifying glass next to the money) "Steam". The only option will pop up right away.

Now you just need to fill in all the required fields. You will need to enter account login. The main thing is not to confuse it with your nickname. Login - what is entered when entering the steam account. It is written in the account settings (account name).

The store has a slightly strange currency conversion system, due to which some of the money will also be lost. Therefore, it is worth considering this moment and putting a little more than the planned amount.

Buying a game by replenishing the balance via WebMoney

You can replenish your account and buy a game in Steam in Russia using an electronic wallet. To do this, follow these steps:

• Sign in on WebMoney official website or install WebMoney Keeper application.
• Sign up, enter your phone number and take a selfie so that the system makes sure that this is a real person.
• Add at least one wallet and get Formal attestationto make transfers (you must fill in your passport details). There is also an easier way: to do this, log in to the site Passport WebMoney and enter your profile details, then select authorization via State services.

• Top up your wallet with any card (Visa, Mastercard). Commission up to 3,5%.

• Choose Payments - the second item from the top in the left corner and click on Games. In the window that appears, click on Steam. Enter your account login and the amount of replenishment in dollars, then fill in the field with the code that will come to your phone. The purchase fee will be 1%.

The option with WebMoney is convenient because it has a small commission when replenishing in comparison with many other services and accepts Russian cards.

Sale of in-game items

At the moment, this method is the simplest and safest.

If your inventory contains skins from popular games, like CS: GO or Dota 2, you can just put them on the trading floor. Money will be credited to the balance as soon as the item is purchased. On the sale of the same boxes from CS or some types of weapons, you can earn a decent amount on your balance, starting from 1,000 rubles.

If valuable items are missing, they can be obtained outside of Steam. Although this method is associated with some risks, since all actions are carried out outside the site itself. The principle of such resales is that the user buys an item, which is subsequently sent as sharing. The key positive is that there is no commission, unlike the Marketplace, and there is also a chance to sell a thing for more than it actually is.

Verified sites that are preferred by most users:

• Lis-Skins.com. There are quite a lot of good reviews (though there are also 2% negative), a huge number of reviews from various well-known youtubers with checks. You can both sell items and withdraw funds, and buy. The exchange comes instantly, it remains only to confirm.
• Market.csgo.com. The exchange takes place directly between the players, through the bots-intermediaries of the site. However, as some users report, it may be that bots outbid prices, errors occur, or sellers do not accept the trade, and the money is not always returned or for a long time. There are also quite a few good reviews and many have been using it for a long time without any problems. But it is worth considering the risks.
• Market.dota2.com. The site is from the same creators as the store above, but for Dota 2.

Buying a game on Steam through third-party services

It is a least secure way, because the balance will be replenished through third parties. Accordingly, at any time you can run into scammers and lose money.

Replenishment of the account directly through intermediary sites

Entrepreneurial people quickly put the opportunity to replenish other people's accounts on stream. Ideally, choose trusted sellers with a large number of transactions and positive feedback. The commission in this case is extremely high. The less verified the seller, the lower the commission, but the higher the chance of losing your money, because. it could be a scammer.

The most popular services for payment through intermediaries:

1. plati.market;
2. funpay.com.

In the case of plati.market, it is enough to open the site and find in the list of services "Steam Wallet replenishment», and then select the desired artist from the list provided.

Likewise on funpay, but there are many more services, so it's easier to find Steam in a search engine. Next, select the desired seller from the list, fill in the data, indicate the amount you want to replenish your account.

There are also sites that themselves act as intermediaries. Among them are:

• Steam Balance. Judging by the comments and checks, the site is working stably. But the commission there is incredibly huge.
• Skin To Steam. The essence is a little different: choose the amount, replenish and throw a link to trade, and then the site picks up items for this value, which are subsequently sent by exchange. It may be that some things do not come for a long time or an error occurs. To solve this problem, click on "resend' until the item is replaced. As a result, sometimes it turns out to sell things even for a larger amount than originally invested. But it takes much longer.

Purchasing a key for Steam

Similarly, on such sites you can buy and activation keys. Steam blocked the ability to replenish the account through ruble cards and other services, but it is still possible to activate the key. Many services have both keys for individual games and lotteries.

By itself, the option with the keys is quite common, and it was used even before the problems with payment. However, in this case, most often licenses are purchased from intermediaries, so you should be careful and take into account seller rating.

The most famous sites where you can buy a Steam key:

• steam-account.com;
• funpay.com;
• steampay.

Most negative reviews about sites (many have no problems with payment and probably it depends on the sellers, but you need to be especially vigilant with these services):

• plati.market.

The principle of buying keys is similar to replenishing an account: select a service, and then a seller based on reviews.

Topping up your wallet with Steam Gift Cards

Gift cards are one of the fastest and easiest ways to get the necessary amount to your account, and use this money to buy a game. The card is a set of 12 digits, the so-called code, which is entered in the appropriate section in Steam and the balance is replenished by the specified amount. The current minimum amounts for gift cards are:

• 150 rubles;
• 300 rubles;
• 750 rubles;
• 1500 rubles;
• 3000 rubles.

List of sites where you can buy gift cards:

1. dundle.com (foreign service, but there are many complaints about it);
2. planetcards.com (more secure, judging by the reviews).

Gift cards price includes face value и percentage, which is taken by the intermediary.

After the purchase is made and the gift card code is received, you must do the following:

1. Open the Steam app.
2. Click on the profile icon in the upper right corner.
3. Open the "my wallet' and go to 'Steam wallet or gift card code«.

Replenishment with Ezzocard virtual card

This is a way for those who are not located on the territory of the Russian Federation, but used the cards of banks that fell under sanctions. In other cases, it is better to pay attention to the methods listed above (easier and cheaper).

• These cards support payment systems visa и Mastercard. You can open them in any name, so the service does not identify users.
• Card activation cost from $ 16,99. You can pay using the payment system Perfect Money or kriptovalyuty. The issuance takes place within a few minutes after the card is opened.
• Ezzocard allows you to make almost any purchase on foreign services, including Steam.

How to get a game in Steam for free on a Russian account

If all of the above options do not work, you can use the loopholes that allow you to pick up the game for free. Even in this case, most of the projects are not available for RF accounts, but there are workarounds. For example, official service steamdb quite quickly publishes all free games. To pick them up, do the following:

• Sign in to your Steam account on the website and on your computer.
• Find the desired game in the list that is not available in Russia or another region.
• Click on on Install, then give permission to open a window in Steam.
• Select the installation path and wait for the game to fully download and appear in the library. Note that the download can be canceled, but even in this case, the game will simply be saved in the archive.

We hope our article helped you find enough information on how to buy a game on Steam in Russia in 2026. If you know other ways, please share commentsand we will update the article.