Level up on Steam: badges, XP and trading cards
A high Steam Level unlocks more friends, profile showcases and a better chance of receiving trading card booster packs. Here’s how XP works, and how to progress without going broke.
Where Steam XP comes from
Most XP comes from badges: each game badge crafted from a full set of trading cards gives 100 XP, and the same badge can be upgraded up to level 5. Steam events and some special badges also give XP.
What a high level unlocks
- a higher friend limit (5 more friends per level);
- extra showcases on your profile;
- a better chance of receiving booster packs.
Progress without spending
The cards your games drop for free while you play are the foundation: collect them all, trade your duplicates, complete the sets missing one or two cards. SuperStreamDropper gets your games’ card drops in the background, so each badge costs you as little as possible.
Frequently asked questions
How much XP to gain a level?
It takes more at every ten-level tier: 100 XP per level at first, then more and more.
Does a foil badge give more XP?
It also gives 100 XP, but can only be crafted once, with foil cards.