How to Stream Steam Games to Your TV with Raspberry Pi 4 and Steam Link: Step-by-Step Guide

Want to play the latest Steam games on your home's biggest screen? Although Valve discontinued the physical Steam Link device, the software lives on. This guide walks you through streaming Steam games using a Raspberry Pi 4 and the Steam Link app—a reliable setup I've used for lag-free big-screen gaming.

Steam Link and the Raspberry Pi

Steam Link is now an app for smartphones, smart TVs, and Raspberry Pi. With a compatible Raspberry Pi, you can stream any game from your Steam library to a TV or monitor, freeing you from small laptop screens.

Enable Remote Play in Steam

On your gaming PC, open Steam and go to Settings > Remote Play.

1. Check the box for Enable Remote Play.
2. Select OK to save.

Steam is now ready for remote streaming to your Raspberry Pi.

Set Up Raspberry Pi OS

Flash the latest Raspberry Pi OS (formerly Raspbian) to a microSD card using balenaEtcher, a free cross-platform tool.

1. Download Raspberry Pi OS with desktop from the official site.
2. Insert your microSD card (16GB+ recommended).
3. Launch Etcher.
4. Click Select Image and choose the downloaded file.
5. Click Select Target and pick your SD card.
6. Click Flash to write the image.

Boot Your Raspberry Pi

1. Insert the SD card into your Raspberry Pi 4.
2. Connect it to your TV or monitor via HDMI.
3. Attach a keyboard.
4. Power it on—it boots automatically.

On first boot, complete the setup wizard: set country, timezone, Wi-Fi, and keyboard. Then, open the Terminal from the toolbar.

sudo apt update

This ensures your system is current before installing Steam Link.

Install Steam Link on Raspberry Pi

In Terminal, run:

sudo apt install steamlink

Once installed, launch it:

steamlink

Follow the prompts to pair your game controller (USB or Bluetooth) with on-screen guidance.

Start Streaming Your Games

1. On the Steam Link home screen, select Get Started.

2. Select your PC from the list (ensure same network).

3. Enter the PIN shown on your TV into Steam on your PC.

Steam Link tests your network, then connects. Tweak settings: Settings > Controller for input, and Streaming for video/audio quality.

Choose a game and play! To end:

• Exit the game to return to Steam.
• Click the power icon in the toolbar.
• Select Stop Remote Play.

You're back to the Raspberry Pi desktop. For retro gaming instead, try installing Recalbox on your Pi.