Steam Controller launches today
Valve is launching its new Steam Controller today, as the first retail product from its 2026 hardware lineup. The controller goes on sale through Steam at 10 AM Pacific, with pricing set at $99 in the US, €99 in Europe, £85 in the UK, $149 CAD in Canada and $149 AUD in Australia.
The controller is launching separately from Steam Machine and Steam Frame. Valve has not confirmed final launch details for those devices yet. The company is still working on both products, but the Steam Controller is ready to ship now.
New Controller 11 years after original
The new Steam Controller follows Valve’s 2015 model, but it uses a more conventional layout. It has two TMR magnetic thumbsticks, two haptic trackpads, a D-pad, ABXY buttons, HD haptics, gyro controls, Grip Sense support and four remappable rear buttons. It also ships with the Steam Controller Puck, a 2.4GHz wireless receiver that doubles as a magnetic charging dock.
Source: Valve
Valve engineer Steve Cardinali said Bluetooth performance can vary across living-room setups and PC hardware, which can create interference, latency or multi-device issues. The Puck is meant to reduce those problems while keeping the receiver away from likely interference sources.
Source: Valve
The controller keeps Steam Deck-style profiles and customization in a standalone gamepad, which makes it useful for users who dock the handheld to a TV.
Source: Valve
Keep in mind that the Steam Controller is built around Steam Input, so it is not the same as using a standard Xbox controller on Windows. Games installed through the Xbox app may not work directly with the controller unless users rely on Steam-based or community workarounds. Valve only lists Steam, Bluetooth and USB modes, but it does not advertise native PC Game Pass support.
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Category | Steam Controller |
| Main controls | ABXY buttons, D-pad, L/R analog triggers, L/R bumpers, View/Menu buttons, Steam/QAM buttons |
| Rear buttons | 4 assignable grip buttons |
| Thumbsticks | 2 full-size TMR magnetic thumbsticks with capacitive touch |
| Trackpads | 2 square 34.5 mm trackpads with haptic feedback, pressure-sensitive configurable click strength |
| Haptics | 4 haptic motors, 2 LRA motors in trackpads, 2 high-output LRA motors in grips |
| Motion controls | 6-axis IMU gyro |
| Grip Sense | 2 capacitive areas on the back handles |
| Wireless receiver | Steam Controller Puck, 2.4 GHz wireless connection |
| Puck latency | Around 8 ms full end-to-end, 4 ms polling rate, measured at 5 m |
| Multi-controller support | Up to 4 Steam Controllers per Steam Controller Puck |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 4.2 minimum, Bluetooth 5.0 or newer recommended |
| Wired mode | USB-C tethered play |
| Charging | Steam Controller Puck charging interface or USB-C |
| Battery | 8.39 Wh Li-ion battery |
| Battery life | 35+ hours of gameplay, reduced when used for tracked gameplay with Steam Frame |
| Controller size | 111 × 159 × 57 mm |
| Puck size | 50 × 28 × 9 mm |
| Controller weight | 292 g |
| Puck weight | 16 g |
Source: Steam Store
