Parsec vs Steam Link (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Steam Link grades higher than Parsec: 3.2 against 2.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Steam Link grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Parsec
Low-latency remote desktop for games and creative work
Steam Link
Stream Steam games from your PC to phones, TVs and other PCs
Which one is for you
Pick Parsec if
- Fits if you want to play games on your own gaming PC from the sofa or a laptop
- Works for studios inviting playtesters onto a machine, at $25 per outside guest
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you use it for work, since that needs Teams at $30 a user a month, or $45 on Enterprise
- Skip it if you want to connect from an iPhone or iPad, as there's no iOS app
- Not for you if the computer you want to reach runs Linux, as only Windows and Mac can host
- Tight if you stay free: one monitor, 60 FPS, and no 4:4:4 color, privacy mode or Wacom pressure
- Watch out: outside guests cost $25 an invitation on Teams, there are no volume discounts, and Enterprise is yearly only
Pick Steam Link if
- Fits if you own games on Steam and want to play them on a TV, phone or laptop
- Works for couch co-op with Remote Play Together
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want to administer a PC for support or unattended work, as it is not a general remote-access tool
- Watch out: it needs a computer running Steam as the host
- Tight if you play on a small screen, as the App Store reviews note games play worse there
- Watch out: quality depends on your network and device
How we grade them
| 2.6GPAParsecGood | 3.2GPASteam LinkVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CGaming at home is free, and Warp, the personal plan with extra monitors and 4:4:4 colour, is $8.33 a month billed annually. Any work use needs Teams at $30 a user a month, though, well above what Splashtop's Performance plan and Jump Desktop's Teams Enterprise charge for the same creative job. | AThe app is free, with no plan or subscription to buy. |
| Free plan and trial | BPersonal Use is free for gaming and other non-commercial use, with 60 FPS, controllers and link sharing, and one person can live on that. It's one monitor only, no 4:4:4 colour and no work use at all; Teams has a 14-day trial. | AFree outright: the Steam Link app costs nothing and has no cap listed, though the host computer must run Steam and own the games. |
| Features | CLow-latency streaming at up to 4K and 240 frames per second, controllers, Wacom pressure, shared sessions and guest access. The gaps it lists itself: only Windows and Mac computers can be hosts, there's no iOS app, and outside guests cost $25 an invitation. | CIt does one job: streaming games, with PC-to-PC streaming, Remote Play Together and game controls. That is a smaller job than a full remote desktop. |
| Ease of use | BNo App Store rating on record. Install it on the computer you want to reach and the one you're sitting at, and connect. There's nothing to configure for a game at home. | BNo store rating on record. You install it and pair it with a Steam computer, which is a short setup. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWindows, Mac, Linux, Android and a Chrome browser client, with a Teams API on Enterprise. There's no iPhone or iPad app, and Linux, Android and the browser can only connect, not host. | BWindows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and Android are listed, tied to Steam. No API is listed. |
| Best for | streaming games and creative work from a PC | streaming PC games to a phone, TV or laptop |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Parsec and Steam Link. How we grade
Price against what you get
Parsec starts at $8.33 a month for each person and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Steam Link has no paid plan and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Steam Link starts $8.33 a month lower. Of the other remote desktop apps on the chart, 2 score higher than Parsec for less, and none scores higher than Steam Link for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
At a glance
| Parsec | Steam Link | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free |
| Starts at | $8.33 per user / month, billed annually ($9.99 billed monthly) | Free |
| Free plan | Personal Use is free for non-commercial use: low-latency 60 FPS desktop capture, link sharing, keyboard, mouse and gamepad support and encrypted peer-to-peer connections, on one monitor. | The Steam Link app is free; it connects to a computer running Steam, which hosts the games you own. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of Teams and Enterprise | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Unity Technologies SF | Valve Corporation |
| Price read from | parsec.app | apps.apple.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Parsec
- The free and Individuals plans are for personal, non-commercial use only; any work use needs Teams or Enterprise.
- Only Windows 10+ and macOS 10.15+ computers can be hosts; Linux, Android and the Chrome web client can only connect. There is no iOS app.
- Guest access for external users costs $25 per invitation on top of the Teams plan.
- Parsec does not offer volume discounts, and Enterprise is sold with annual billing only.
Steam Link
- It needs a computer running Steam as the host, and it streams games rather than a full remote desktop session.
- It is not a general remote-access tool for managing a computer for support or unattended work.
- Quality depends on the network and the device; the App Store reviews note that games play worse on small screens.
- The listed platforms include Apple TV and Meta Quest, which this directory does not list as separate platforms.
Key features
Parsec
- Low-latency streaming
- Up to 4K resolution and up to 240 frames per second (60 at 4K), with 4:4:4 color on paid plans, over direct peer-to-peer connections.
- Controllers and Wacom tablets
- Keyboard, mouse and gamepad input on every plan; paid plans add pressure- and tilt-sensitive Wacom tablet support.
- Shared sessions
- Share a link so someone can watch or take control of your computer, for co-op games, live reviews or working on something together.
- Team computers
- Teams can provision computers on demand to a team member or group, and block computers inside the network from hosting connections.
- Guest access
- Invite outside people into a Teams computer for up to five days, for playtests, events or user research, using separately bought credits.
- Enterprise relay and API
- Enterprise adds a high-performance relay that sits in your firewall, a Teams API for automating deployment, SCIM and role-based admin roles.
Steam Link
- Stream to many devices
- Valve lists iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Vision Pro, Android phones, tablets and TV, Amazon Fire TV, Raspberry Pi, Meta Quest, Windows, Linux and macOS.
- PC to PC streaming
- Log in to Steam on two computers and stream games from one Steam library to the other.
- Remote Play Together
- Share a local multiplayer game with Steam friends online, with each player on their own controller or sharing the keyboard and mouse.
- Controls tuned for games
- The page says control schemes are optimized for hundreds of top titles when playing on a phone or tablet.
- Play on lower-end hardware
- Demanding games run on the host PC, so a weaker device or an operating system without native support can still show them.
Plans
Parsec
Personal Use$0
Free for gaming and other non-commercial use. No multi-monitor streaming, 4:4:4 color, privacy mode or Wacom pressure support.
Individuals (Warp)$8.33
per user / month, billed annually ($9.99 billed monthly)
Personal, non-commercial use with up to 3 monitors, 4:4:4 color, virtual monitors, privacy mode and Wacom pressure and tilt.
Teams$30
per user / month, billed annually ($35 billed monthly)
Licensed for work: admin panel, SAML single sign-on, team-managed computers and groups, 7 days of audit logs and paid guest access.
Enterprise$45
per user / month, billed annually only
Adds the high-performance relay server, Teams API, role-based access, SCIM provisioning, full audit logs and usage analytics.
Steam Link
Steam Link$0
Free app listed on the App Store. Remote Play Together is described as free on Valve's page.
Ways to pay less
Parsec
- Annual discount
Annual billing saves up to about 17%
Individuals is $8.33 a month paid annually against $9.99 monthly, about 17% less; Teams is $30 against $35, about 14% less.
Steam Link
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Parsec or Steam Link?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Steam Link is cheaper to start with: it is free, against $8.33 a month for each person for Parsec. Parsec starts at $8.33 per user / month, billed annually ($9.99 billed monthly), and Steam Link is free.
Which has a free plan, Parsec or Steam Link?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Parsec and Steam Link have a free plan.
Which platforms do Parsec and Steam Link run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Parsec lists a web app and only Steam Link lists an iOS app. Both list macOS, Windows, Linux and Android apps. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.