Last verified 2026-09-28 by ReviewGamers Editorial
Steam runs two separate systems for earning profile cosmetics, and the biggest practical difference between them is whether you can actually trade or sell what you get.
How trading cards are actually earned
In games that support them, players can earn up to roughly half of that game’s full card set just by playing. The remaining cards come from trading with other players, buying them on the Steam Community Market, or opening booster packs, rather than being earned through gameplay alone. In practice, this means completing a full set for most games involves the wider Steam trading economy at some point, not playtime by itself.
Completing a set unlocks a badge and an emoticon
Collecting a full card set lets a player craft a badge, with five regular badge levels available plus one additional foil badge. Crafting a badge also grants a single custom emoticon that can be used in Steam chat or, notably, traded on the Marketplace like the cards themselves, giving badge crafting a small economic dimension beyond just profile decoration.
The Points Shop runs on spending, not playing
Points Shop cosmetics are earned differently: 100 points are awarded for every $1 spent on games, DLC, hardware, applications, soundtracks, or other in-game items through Steam. Playing a game does not itself generate points, purchasing something through the store does.
The key difference: tradability
Items bought from the Points Shop cannot be traded or sold on the Steam Marketplace, unlike items derived from trading cards. This is the clearest practical split between the two systems: trading cards feed into a tradable, sellable economy, while Points Shop cosmetics stay locked to the account that redeemed them.
Why both systems exist side by side
Trading cards reward actually playing and engaging with a game’s community-driven marketplace, while the Points Shop rewards straightforward spending regardless of what genre or how much someone plays. They serve different behaviours rather than being two competing versions of the same reward, and a single active Steam user can participate in both at the same time without either one interfering with the other.
What this means for someone new to both
A player earning trading cards from games they already own and play regularly is getting a side benefit at no extra cost, while Points Shop cosmetics are effectively a loyalty reward tied directly to how much has been spent on the platform, not to playtime at all.
Neither system requires opting in specifically
Both trading cards and Points Shop earning happen automatically in the background for eligible activity, playing a supporting game or spending through the store, rather than requiring a player to sign up for either program separately before it starts counting.
The takeaway
Steam trading cards are earned partly through play and partly through the Marketplace or trading, and lead to items that can themselves be traded or sold, while Points Shop cosmetics are earned purely through spending and can never be resold, making the two systems genuinely different despite both existing to decorate a Steam profile in visible, comparable ways.