Family Sharing on Steam offers a convenient and easy way to share your gaming library with your loved ones. At Asurion, our team of experts receives daily inquiries about gaming, from cross-platform gaming queries to casting Oculus to various screens. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the step-by-step process of setting up Family Sharing on Steam, allowing you to spread the joy of gaming with your family and friends.
Creating a Steam Account
To initiate Family Sharing, you first need to create a Steam account if you haven’t already done so. Follow these simple steps:
- Visit the Steam website: Navigate to the Steam website and click on the “Install Steam” button to download the application to your computer.
- Account Creation: Once installed, open Steam and click on “Create Account” in the upper-right corner.
- Enter Details: Enter your email address, choose a unique username and password, and then click on “Create Account.”
- Verification: Steam will send a verification email to the provided email address. Click on the link within the email to complete the process.
Setting Up Family Sharing
Family Sharing allows you to share your entire Steam library with up to 5 accounts or 10 devices. Follow these steps to enable Family Sharing:
- Launch Steam: Open the Steam application on your computer and log in to your account.
- Activate Steam Guard: Ensure Steam Guard is enabled by navigating to Steam > Settings > Security.
- Family Sharing: In the Settings window, go to the “Family” tab and check the box to authorize Library Sharing. Click “OK” to save the settings.
Managing Your Family Library
Once Family Sharing is enabled, you can easily manage and monitor who has access to your shared game library:
- Open Steam Settings: Navigate to your Steam Settings and go to the “Family” section.
- View Authorized Users: Under “Family Library Sharing,” you’ll find a list of all authorized family members with access to your library.
- Add or Revoke Access: From this page, you can add or revoke library-sharing access for any user at any time. To add a user, enter their username or email address. To revoke access, simply click the “Revoke Access” button next to their username.
Setting Up Parental Controls
If you wish to restrict access to certain Steam features, you can utilize Family View:
- Activate Family View: Sign in to the Steam account that your child will be using and navigate to Menu > Settings > Family > Family View > Manage.
- Customize Settings: Select the content and features you want to grant access to, set a recovery email address, and create a new Family View PIN.
- Confirmation: You’ll receive a confirmation code via email. Enter the code to complete the setup process.
Conclusion
Family Sharing and Family View on Steam offer valuable tools for sharing your gaming library with loved ones while maintaining control over access and content. By following these steps, you can ensure a seamless and enjoyable gaming experience for the entire family.