The Complete In-Depth Guide to Steam Selling |Updated: 11/10/09|

Table of Contents
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To use: Hit ctrl + f and enter the xxx code into the search input to quickly jump to a section.

1aa - What is Steam
2aa - What Are Digits or Steam ID's
3aa - Finding Your SteamID
4aa - Selling Your Steam Account
4ab - What to do During a Sale
5aa - Buying a Steam Account
6aa - Securing Your Steam Account
7aa - Preventing Disables
8aa - Steam Gifts *Important information inside*
9aa - Steam Tools and Phishers
1ba - FAQ
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(1aa)What is Steam?

Simply put, Steam is a digital distributor of game licenses. If you do not have steam, you can download it here: CLICK ME


Users purchase games digitally via their client, or can opt to purchase the disks and keys from the store. Do note that certain CD Keys cannot be added to Steam. The ones you can add are listed here: CLICK ME

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The client itself offers a full store built in, community/friends system, and server browser for your purchased games.

(2aa)What are "Digits" or SteamID's?

You may have seen a lot of sellers or players talk about "Digits." Each Steam account gets a unique ID upon registration. This ID starts with STEAM_0: and there are two variables, x and y (STEAM_0:X:Y).

X is determined by which of the two Steam servers handled your registration request. If server A handled your request, then X is 1. If server B handled your request, then X is 0.

Variable Y is purely sequential. This means that the earlier you registered your account, the lower Y is. Variable Y is the number people talk about when they say "Digits." Steam released late September 11th in Bellevue, Washington (PST GMT -8:00). You can check when a Steam account was registered on their community page.

This account, registered November 19th is a mid 7 digit.

A layman's guide to digit and registration date relation:
September 10th - 1 and 2 digits
September 11th - 3 and low 4 digits
September 12th - High 4 digits (Above 6xxx) and 5 digits.
September 13th to October 21st - 6 digits
October 21st to February 18th - Email Login 7 digits (22xxxxx and below)
February 18th to Late 2005 - Username 7 digits
Late 2005 to now - 8 digits

The yellow dates and digits above are accounts with Email user names. Steam originally used emails as user names. An email user denotes a Steam ID that is under 22xxxxx.

(3aa)How do I find my Steam ID?

There are two easy ways to find your Steam ID.

The first way is to join any Valve games (Counterstrike, Counterstrike: Source, Team Fortress 2, Left 4 Dead, etc.) and bring up your console by hitting the ~ (tilde) button. In the console, type the word "status". Next to your in-game name you will see STEAM_0:X:Y. This series of numbers is your Steam ID.
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The second way is to calculate your Steam ID with your community link. There are a few ways to go about this. To find someone's community link, add them to friends. Then, right click on their name in the friends list and hit "View Steam ID page". Their community link is the http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/XXXXXXXXXXX

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(Full sized image: HERE)

The math behind it is this:

Community ID to Steam ID:

1. You have the Community ID : 76561197960512641
2. Subtract the Community ID by (76561197960265728) you will get 246913.
3. Divide that # by 2 you will get 123456.5
4. If you get a .5 at the end of your number its 0:1, if you don't its 0:0

Steam ID to Community ID:

1. To find the Steam ID go to a game console and type "status" we'll use the same example STEAM_0:1:123456
2. Take off the STEAM_0:, since its the same for every Steam ID, you are just left with 1:123456
3. multiply the 123456, or the 2nd set of number by two (123456 * 2 = 246912)
4. now add the 0:0 or 0:1, in this case its 1 of the Steam ID to the result (246912 + 1 = 246913)
5. now add 76561197960265728 (246913 + 76561197960265728 = 76561197960512641)

Or you can opt to use a site that converts this ID for you:

1. AllSteams - SteamID Converter
2. Noobsticks - SteamID Converter
3. SteamCalculator.com - How much is your Steam Account worth?

(4aa)How do I sell my Steam Account?

For people new to selling, there are many ways to advertise your Steam account(s). Buyers prefer neat, detailed, and clear descriptions of accounts that are being sold. Some of the things you should make sure you include in your thread are the Steam ID (partly censored), games, and the price you would like to sell it for.

Example:

When setting up your thread, pictures are ALWAYS a bonus. Things that are essential to screenshot are the Settings page (1), Games List (2), and community page (3). Cropping these into one image is ideal and saves a lot of space.

This image proves you own the account, the games that are on it, the VAC status, and the date it was made (Digits).

Warning: DO NOT forget to censor your Account Name and Contact Email! Steam trading violates Steam's ToS, and Steam will disable any accounts they detect are being traded.
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Other useful information to include in a thread is your contact info, previous trade vouches/experience, and any other information you feel is necessary to sell the account. You can also provide any rules or conditions under which you trade, including your payment methods. As you continue to trade, it's also a good idea to include a list of impostors.

Example of a Good Trader Thread:

Example of a Poor Trader Thread:

(4ab)What do I do during a sale?

There are a lot of opinions on how Steam sales should work. I highly recommend you use a trusted middleman or Official MiddleMan to help you with your trades at first. You can find me to middleman any time, simply add me at: (PLEASE DO NOT POST HERE WITH MIDDLEMAN REQUESTS)

MSN - [email protected]
AIM - jcrazed1
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Once you build a sizeable reputation, this is how I generally conduct my trades:

Steam for Paypal
1. Seller describes account.
2. Buyer sends money to Seller.
3. Seller sends account information

Steam for Steam/Trade
1. Lower rep user sends item 1.
2. Higher rep user verifies item 1.
3. Higher rep user sends item 2.

Pro Tips:
1. Always check for impostors by making the buyer post in your thread!
2. Take screenshots of the entire conversation and carefully log any details you feel are important about the buyer.
3. Ask for verification that the buyer owns the paypal or credit card they are paying you with. This ensures you aren't being sent stolen money!

(5aa)How do I buy a Steam Account?
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When looking for a Steam account, there are a few things to consider:

Account Legitimacy: Many many Steam accounts sold are hacked/phished/stolen in some form. Ask the seller where he got the account from and if he has original email or proof of purchase. Steam accounts are easily retrievable so take the necessary steps to secure your purchase (I will cover this momentarily).

Seller Legitimacy: It's sad but true. There are a lot of scammers out there. Make sure your seller is who he says he is, by asking to post or PM you, then request a Middleman if you feel unsure. It's best to go with trusted users with high post count and reputation.

Before the purchase: Ask about the sellers retrieval/disable policy. Most sellers have a 24 hour grace period on their accounts for refunds.

During the purchase: Make sure you log all your conversations and chats. Do NOT buy things over VoIP programs! You are only endangering yourself. If anything seems wrong, back out immediately or request a middleman.

After the purchase: Take the necessary steps to secure your new Steam account! Change the password, email, security question, and verify your new email immediately.

(6aa)Securing your Steam Account
Step 1: Change your information

Change the Email Account




Change your Password





Change your Secret Question


(Credits to Buciukaz for the above images)

Verify your Email

Step 2: Create a Steam Support Account
https://support.steampowered.com/register.php




Step 3: Buy games on your account for Proof of Purchase

Keep any CD Keys, Credit Card Info, Paypal Info, and Emails related to your purchases!

(7aa)How do I prevent Disables?

There are many reasons why account will be disabled. Here are the main reasons your accounts will get disabled.

1. Piracy or Hacking: This includes using an unauthorized ("hacked") Steam client to access Steam, attempting to register fake CD Keys or attempting to register a CD Key which has been published on the internet.
2. Payment Fraud: Any fraudulent credit card use, credit card chargebacks, or Paypal chargebacks (regardless of when the transaction occurred).
3. Redeeming Fraudulent Gifts: Never accept a gift from an unknown user. Any accounts tied to a redeemed gift from a fraudulent source will be permanently disabled.
4. Hijacking or Sharing Accounts: Do not use Steam accounts which you did not create.
5. Account "Phishing" and Deliberately Deceptive Activity: This includes contacting other users outside of Steam or over the Friends network under a misleading screen name or e-mail address (i.e. "Steam Admin", "VAC Administrator", "You Won Free Game Gift") and requesting password or account information.
6. Buying, Selling, or Trading Accounts: Accounts which have been bought, sold or traded will be permanently disabled. This includes any other accounts in your possession at the time of the sale or trade, regardless of whether those accounts were also sold or not.
7. Violating Steam's Subscriber Agreement or Rules of Online Conduct

These reasons were taken from the Steam Support Website. These are the reasons why your accounts could be disabled. Below are some steps that sellers use to help PREVENT disabled accounts.

1. Use the Disable Prevention Tool as much as possible. I use the tool myself everytime i login to a steam account. What this does is clear your registry. You can find the Disable Prevention Tool by clicking Here.
2. Delete your Clientregistry.blob file. You can find this file in your steam folder. Default location would be: C:/Program Files/Steam.
3. Delete your appcache and logs folder under the C:/Program Files/Steam directory.
4. Use a simple program such as KLC's SMAC to change your MAC ID. *Will upload link later
5. Spoof your routers MAC Address - This is going to vary for different router brands, contact xeL. for help.
6. Delete the username folders under the /steamapps/ directory.
   
7. Do NOT use the same email under two accounts.
8. Do NOT log into a high risk/recently stolen account on the same MAC ID as your own accounts or other accounts.
9. Do NOT log into multiple accounts in one session without clearing your cache or changing your MAC ID's.
10. Do NOT log into an account with another person logged into it.

Protip: The Steam Community website has a purpose. Use it!!

[COLOR=White](8aa)[/COLOR]What are Steam Gifts[COLOR=White]?[/COLOR]

Steam Gifts - Steam allows you to buy games and "gift" them a CD Key/Link virtually. This allows them to redeem the game on their own Steam account.

• [COLOR=White][COLOR=Red]Warning - [COLOR=White]Most often, gifts are "carded" or bought with stolen Credit Cards and Paypals. This results in the gifts getting revoked and the Steam account being disabled.
  [/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR]

Do NOT buy gifts from people who claim to be "suppliers" or can get any gift from you. They are using stolen Paypals, credit cards, and bank accounts. These games will be revoked within a few days to a few weeks and will cause your Steam account to be disabled. There is no such thing as free money. If it is too good to be true, it isn't legit.

• When buying a Gift - Ask the seller to provide a receipt for his gift purchase and also provide you with his ID. This way you know he used his own money to legitimately purchase a gift.

[B][SIZE=6][COLOR=White](9aa)[/COLOR][/SIZE][/B][FONT=Trebuchet MS][B]What are Steam Tools and Phishers[COLOR=White]?[/COLOR][/B][/FONT]
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[COLOR=Red][COLOR=White][COLOR=Lime][COLOR=White]
[COLOR=Yellow]Steam Tools - [COLOR=White]Steam tools are any programs that relate to Steam. This can include anything from my Disable Prevention tool to Gift Bruteforcers and Steam Account Managers.

[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR]

• [COLOR=White][COLOR=Red][COLOR=White][COLOR=Lime][COLOR=White][COLOR=Yellow][COLOR=White][COLOR=Red]Warning - [COLOR=White]As always, never download or accept suspicious files from others. Exercise caution and use free virus scanners such as virustotal.com to scan suspicious files.[/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR][/COLOR]

Steam Phishers - Phishers are essentially scam sites/scammers who impersonate or fake their identity in order to gain your information. Always make sure you log into [URL="http://www.steampowered.com/"]www.steampowered.com[/URL] or [URL="http://www.steamcommunity.com/"]www.steamcommunity.com[/URL]. [COLOR=Red]Never give your login information to anybody![/COLOR]

[SIZE=6][COLOR=White](1ba)[/COLOR][/SIZE]FAQ (Will be constructed as time goes)

















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I'm just curious, but if you can sell Steam accounts, how and where can you sell EA/Origin accounts? Should they only be posted in the "other accounts" section?

Or is Origin not as "mature" as Steam? and there's no active resale market?
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Fantastic guide, btw!

 

People usually sell Origin accounts in the Other Sales section of the market.

 

"Usually"...

Those EA/Origin accounts are not Steam Accounts therefore they belong in the "Other Sales" section which can be found here: http://www.sythe.org/forumdisplay.php?f=370

 

wow looks so complicated, planning to put all games here to sell easier