Steam Store, owned by Valve, published September statistics detailing the hardware used by service users on their personal computers. The data shows which graphics cards and operating systems are most common among Steam players, painting a clear picture of the PC gaming landscape as of late summer and early autumn.
The standout graphics card for September was Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3060, appearing in the systems of 6.27 percent of Steam players. This figure marks an increase of 1.4 percentage points from August, signaling a steady shift toward midrange GPUs among the Steam community. The RTX 3060 sits at the top of the list not by sheer horsepower alone, but by its broad accessibility and balance between price and performance for many gamers who build or upgrade their own machines.
Close behind is Nvidia’s GTX 1650, registered in 4.78 percent of machines. This share includes both desktop and laptop variants of the card. When isolating desktop configurations only, the GTX 1650’s position becomes even more pronounced: it is more than twice as powerful as the RTX 3060 in that specific subcategory, underscoring how portable systems remain a crucial segment for many Steam users who prioritize compact form factors and lower power requirements.
In third place stands the RTX 2060, present on 4.69 percent of respondents. Nvidia again leads the field in this tier, with the RTX 2060 outperforming the older GTX 1060 in popularity among Steam players. The persistence of the RTX 2060 highlights a common pattern of gamers keeping midlife GPUs in rotation rather than upgrading to the newest models every cycle, especially when performance still satisfies a wide range of titles and settings.
Turning to software, the operating system landscape shows Windows 11 occupying a solid position as the second most used platform, with a share of 37.4 percent. However, the data also reveal a modest decline of about 1.8 percentage points from the previous month, suggesting a cautious adoption curve among the user base. Windows 10 remains the dominant OS, powering 57.9 percent of Steam machines and climbing by roughly 1.9 percent in the last month. This ongoing shift reflects how many players prefer the familiar stability of Windows 10 while gradually exploring Windows 11 features and compatibility improvements in gaming software and drivers.
The September snapshot also captures ongoing dynamics in driver support, game optimization, and the wider PC ecosystem that influence how players choose their hardware. Steam hardware surveys provide a quarterly barometer of what configurations are actually in use, offering developers and publishers practical context for tailoring game updates, patches, and new features to the setups most common among their audience. The data help explain trends such as the continued popularity of midrange GPUs for budget-conscious builders, the enduring appeal of portable laptop GPUs for gamers who need mobility, and the evolution of Windows versions within the gaming community.
In this confidence-driven environment, hardware adoption patterns interact with software updates, driver releases, and evolving requirements for game engines. Even as newer GPUs arrive on the market with stronger performance and efficiency, a sizable share of players sticks with proven workhorses that keep delivering reliable frames and stable performance across a broad library of titles. This adherence to practical, tested configurations is a recurring theme in Steam’s quarterly reports and a reminder that the PC gaming market rewards a balance between cost, power, and compatibility.
The September figures thus offer a multi-faceted view of how Steam users are equipping their machines. Nvidia remains a dominant force across both desktop and laptop segments, while AMD credentials and other GPUs continue to occupy smaller slices of the pie. The operating system mix reinforces Windows as the platform on which most PC games run, with Windows 11 gaining ground and Windows 10 maintaining a significant majority that underpins the stability many players rely on. As developers plan future titles and optimize for a broad range of hardware, these insights guide expectations for performance, feature support, and the pacing of hardware upgrades within the Steam community. Marketing teams and hardware manufacturers typically monitor these trends closely to align product releases, driver packages, and promotional messaging with the needs and preferences of real users who are actively gaming on Steam.
Notes: The data reflect a broad user population of Steam players during the reported month. The figures cover both desktop and laptop variants for the GPUs where applicable and are subject to change as new hardware enters broader circulation and as software compatibility evolves. Readers seeking the most current snapshot should review the latest Valve hardware survey results when they are published, as monthly fluctuations can occur in response to pricing, availability, and new game releases.