Can you play Steam games on Mac?

When my husband Dimi and I first got into the world of Mac gaming, we had a lot of questions. We knew that while some Steam games were available for macOS, others were only made for Windows and required extra steps to play. 

This article is about exploring the different ways of how to play Steam games on Mac. While we've been testing Steam on Mac, we've managed to pick up a few useful tricks. Let us share them with you. 

For quick solutions, we have prepared a short summary of what the article is about:

How to play native Steam games on macOS

Let's start with native macOS games. A lot of Steam games are available for macOS, allowing you to start playing right away without any extra steps. 

To save time, I recommend that you sort through Steam Mac games straight away. You can do this either in Store preferences or by filtering search results by the operating system. I'll show you how later.  

Let's first see how you can get started with macOS games on Steam:

1. Open your web browser and go to store.steampowered.com.
2. Click on Install Steam at the top of the page.
3. On the next screen, click the button with the Apple logo to download the correct version for your Mac.
4. After the installer finishes downloading, it might automatically start if it doesn't, head over to your Downloads folder and double-click the file.
5. When the disk image opens, just drag the Steam icon into your Applications folder. 

After that, you can set up your Steam account. It's really easy by following the on-screen instructions when you click Create Account in the app. 

Now, let's have a quick look at the way that I'm using to sort macOS games:

1. Click the magnifier beside the find field. 
2. Scroll down until you find the Narrow by OS section on the right.  
3. Check the box for macOS.  
4. This will filter your search results to show only games compatible with Mac.

Once you find the game you want to play, purchase or download it. You'll see the game then in your Library. Install it.

Running Windows-only Steam games on Mac using Boot Camp

Do all Steam games work on Mac? If you have an Intel-based Mac, the easiest way to play Windows Steam games is to create a Boot Camp partition using the Boot Camp wizard and install Windows on it. You can then sign in to your Steam account, download the Steam desktop application for Windows, and buy any Windows game you want to play.

Here's a short instruction for playing Windows-only Steam games via Boot Camp:

1. Open Boot Camp Assistant (Finder > Applications > Utilities > Boot Camp Assistant) and follow the steps to install Windows on your Mac. 
2. Boot into Windows whenever you want to play a Windows-exclusive game.

Note that Boot Camp isn't supported on M1 and M2 Macs.

Read more on how to install Windows on Mac via Boot Camp.

Using Parallels Desktop to play Windows Steam games on Mac

Can I play Steam games on Mac M1 or M2? If you have an Apple M-Series Mac, you can't use Boot Camp, but you can try a virtual machine tool like Parallels Desktop to install Windows and then connect to Steam to play Windows-only games.

Here's how you do it all with Parallels Desktop:

1. Visit the Parallels website to get the app. 
2. Open the downloaded file and follow the prompts to install it.
3. After installation, choose Windows, and the setup will download automatically.
4. Go to the Steam website, download the Windows version, and run the installer. Create an account if you need one.
5. Browse and search for games in the Steam store. Click Add to Cart, complete your purchase, and download your game.

You may also like the following: "How to set up Mac for games."

Running Steam games via cloud gaming services

Can I play Steam on Mac without installing Windows? There are game streaming services such as Nvidia GeForce Now and Microsoft Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for Mac users who prefer not to install Windows. These platforms allow you to play Windows games by hosting them on remote servers and streaming the gameplay directly to your Mac.

Here's how you do it all with cloud gaming services:

1. Create an account on a cloud gaming platform.

2. Link your Steam account to access your library.

3. Stream games through the cloud service.     

A stable, high-speed internet connection is crucial for cloud gaming. WiFi Explorer scans your network environment, identifying channel conflicts and coverage issues. It presents its findings in the form of visual graphs so that you can assess the situation at a glance and offers recommendations for basic wireless troubleshooting that you can carry out yourself without having to call in professional help.

Using compatibility layers like Wine and CrossOver

A compatibility layer allows you to run Windows games and applications on your Mac without having to install Windows.

One popular option is CrossOver. It's a paid app that lets you play many Windows games and use apps on your Mac for $74, but you can try it for free for two weeks to see if you like it.

Another option is Wine. It's a free, open-source tool that also lets you run Windows software on a Mac.

Here's how you do it all with compatibility layers:

1. Download and install CrossOver/Wine.
2. Use CrossOver’s/Wine's software library to install Steam.
3. Run Windows games from within the CrossOver/Wine environment.

Can Mac run Steam games: Final thoughts

So, we checked how lucky Mac users are when it comes to Steam games. And what did we find out? Those who prefer Windows can have a rest. Mac people are dying to sweat. Not all games are available to them. However,  they still have a way out of the situation. If the game is still not optimized for Mac, there are several options to run and enjoy it.

• For Macs on an Intel processor, try creating a Boot Camp partition using the Boot Camp wizard and installing Windows on it.
• For M-series Macs, run a virtual machine with Windows.
• If you don't want to deal with Windows, use platforms like Nvidia GeForce Now for direct access to games.

Alternatively, you can try compatibility layers like Wine and CrossOver.

In the course of our research, we used 3 apps:

• CleanMyMac to clean up the system by removing junk files.
• iStat Menus to check CPU, fans, sensors, etc.
• Wi-Fi Explorer to scan your network environment and identify channel conflicts and coverage issues.

If you want to try out these tools, get them on Setapp, a platform that gives access to 250+ Mac, iOS, and web apps for almost any task you can imagine. The best part? All apps are free to try without limitations for 7 days! We hope you'll like Setapp. 

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