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Epic Games said 295 million people used the Epic Games Store on PC during calendar 2024, about 25 million more than in 2023. That is a substantial annual reach figure, but it is not 295 million monthly active users, simultaneous players, or proof that Epic overtook Steam. Epic’s own engagement and spending data show a fast-growing audience with a more complicated commercial picture.
What Epic’s 295 million figure measures
The 295 million number is Epic’s reported total of PC users or customers during 2024. It is an annual reach measure: someone who accessed the PC store at any point during the year can be included. Epic has not presented it as an independently audited count of unique people who played games every day.
The more useful activity measures are much smaller:
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| Measure | Epic’s 2024 figure | What it indicates |
|---|---|---|
| Annual PC users | 295 million | People using the PC store during the year |
| Average daily active users | 31.5 million | Average users active on a typical day |
| Average monthly active users | 67.2 million | Average users active in a typical month |
| Peak daily active users | 37.2 million | Highest reported daily level |
| Peak monthly active users | 74 million | Highest reported monthly level |
Epic reported these figures in its 2024 year-in-review; the figures were also reported by Game Developer. Epic’s wording varies between “players,” “users” and “customers,” so the 295 million figure should be attributed to Epic rather than treated as a standardized industry metric.
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Was Epic actually growing in 2024?
Yes, on several important measures. Annual PC users rose from roughly 270 million in 2023 to 295 million in 2024. Average daily and monthly active users each increased 6%, peak daily users rose 3%, and third-party gameplay time climbed 11%, from 2.41 billion hours to 2.68 billion.
Growth was not uniform. Peak monthly active users reached 74 million, about 1% below the prior year. Total player spending increased 15% to approximately $1.1 billion, while spending on third-party applications processed through Epic Payments fell 18% to $255 million.
| 2024 indicator | Result | Year-over-year change |
|---|---|---|
| Annual PC users | 295 million | Up 25 million, from approximately 270 million |
| Third-party gameplay time | 2.68 billion hours | Up from 2.41 billion hours, an 11% rise |
| Total player spending | Approximately $1.1 billion | Up 15% |
| Third-party spending through Epic Payments | $255 million | Down 18% |
Epic says payment totals do not capture every transaction when publishers use their own payment systems. That explanation is relevant context, but it does not erase the reported decline in spending processed through Epic’s checkout.
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How free games built Epic’s reach
Epic’s recurring free-games program is a major customer-acquisition mechanism. It gives people a reason to create an account, install the launcher and return periodically, even if they do not buy a game. Fortnite and other Epic-connected products, along with third-party releases such as Genshin Impact, Grand Theft Auto V, Rocket League, Alan Wake II and Cyberpunk 2077, also bring different audiences into the ecosystem.
For 2025, Epic said users claimed 662 million free-game copies. Epic Games Store general manager Steve Allison said approximately 16% to 18% of people acquired through the program later became paying users, and that the program added roughly 7 million to 12 million new users annually. He described its budget as generally around $20 million, varying by opportunity. Those are executive estimates, not an independently audited cohort study.
A claimed copy demonstrates reach, not necessarily sustained play or a purchase. The 2025 free-game figures therefore should not be used as a direct explanation of the 2024 295 million total without qualification.
Free Epic promotions can also lift Steam activity
Epic said its 2025 analysis found that 77% of games offered free reached an all-time peak concurrent-player record on Epic during the promotion week. It also reported an average 40% increase in concurrent players on Steam for those games while the offers were running.
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That result is Epic’s own analysis. Publicity may bring back people who already own a game, prompt players to launch a Steam copy, or encourage purchases elsewhere. It does not show that Epic directly converted those Steam users or captured their primary storefront relationship.
What changed in 2025
Epic’s later results provide stronger evidence of momentum. Its 2025 review reported 78 million monthly active users in December 2025, described as a record. Total player spending reached approximately $1.16 billion, while third-party PC-game spending reached $400 million, up 57% year over year. Coverage of the review reported third-party gameplay time up 4%.
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These figures suggest that Epic improved the connection between audience scale and third-party monetization. They are 2025 results, however, and should not be folded into the original 2024 announcement.
Has Epic become more popular than Steam?
The available figures do not establish that. Epic’s 295 million is an annual PC-user measure; Steam commonly highlights concurrent-player peaks and uses different reporting methods. Comparing those numbers directly would be misleading.
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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteEpic’s annual total can include people who claimed a giveaway, played an Epic title, or briefly accessed a third-party game. It does not reveal how often each person returned, whether Epic was their primary launcher, or how many also used Steam. Epic and Steam also differ in payment systems, social features, user-generated content and catalog organization.
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The defensible conclusion is that Epic has become a major secondary PC storefront and is gaining reach. There is no like-for-like evidence here that it has surpassed Steam in overall PC-store usage. Epic has acknowledged the product gap by planning a launcher and social overhaul, as reported by PC Gamer.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why developers may still choose Epic
Epic’s commercial terms are designed to attract publishers. Its commonly stated standard storefront split is 88/12, compared with Steam’s standard 70/30 rate before Steam’s higher sales tiers apply. From June 2025, Epic’s terms allowed developers to keep 100% of the first $1 million in annual revenue per product before the standard Epic share applies, subject to the program’s eligibility and current conditions.
Epic also promotes initiatives such as Launch Everywhere with Epic and Now on Epic. A developer’s outcome depends on sales level, payment method, launch-program eligibility, exclusivity or other contractual terms, and whether the game’s own payment system is used. The terms are incentives, not a universal permanent 100% revenue share.
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Audience acquisition is less valuable if users open the launcher only to claim a giveaway and then leave. Epic’s reported 2026 priorities include a technical overhaul intended to improve library and tray performance, plus player profiles, avatars, private messaging, voice chat and game-independent parties. The company has also been testing community or forum features around selected games.
Those efforts target discovery, retention and social activity—the areas that can turn a distribution utility into a destination. Better revenue terms may bring publishers, but a large catalog alone does not guarantee that players will browse, discuss and buy there regularly.
How to read the “more popular than ever” claim
- Reach: 295 million annual PC users is a large and growing audience.
- Recency: Average MAU and DAU rose in 2024, and December 2025 MAU reached a reported record.
- Intensity: Third-party gameplay time increased in 2024.
- Commercial traction: 2024 total spending rose, but third-party Epic Payments spending fell; 2025 third-party spending improved sharply.
- Retention: Free-game claims and annual accounts do not prove repeat paid engagement.
- Developer adoption: Revenue-share incentives and catalog expansion make Epic attractive even while its storefront features continue to mature.
“More popular than ever” is supportable when it refers to specific records or growth measures, such as annual reach or December 2025 monthly activity. It is too broad if it implies that every metric improved or that Epic displaced Steam.
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