Quest 3 was the fourth most used VR headset on Steam in December, surpassing the original HTC Vive.
The data point comes from the Steam Hardware & Software Survey. It's offered to a random sample of Steam’s user base each month. If you accept, it uploads a list of your PC specs and peripherals to Valve, as well as any headset used on SteamVR in the past month.
Quest 3's usage share grew more than any other headset by far, jumping from 5.2% in November to 9.27% in December. That took it past the original HTC Vive, and on its current trajectory it probably won't be long until it surpasses the Oculus Rift S to take the #3 spot.
Quest 2 still holds the top spot, as it has since just after it launched, but its share actually declined somewhat, despite it being priced at just $250 since mid-November. This could be reflecting Quest 2 owners upgrading to Quest 3, or just lower retention amongst Quest 2 owners compared to Quest 3.
The hardware survey counts using Quest as a PC VR headset via Valve's Steam Link app, Meta's (Air) Link mode, and the third-party app Virtual Desktop.
All Meta headsets together - Oculus Rift, Rift S, Oculus Quest, Quest 2, Quest Pro, and Quest 3 - make up the majority of VR headset use on Steam at almost 64%, and there's no known serious competitor inbound. Meta might actually increase its lead if the rumored 'Quest 3 Lite' launches. Valve remains a distant second with its Index headset, at just over 18%.
The percentage of Steam users using any VR headset at all decreased slightly, from 1.89% to 1.84%. This figure has fluctuated at roughly 2% since early 2020, when the survey methodology was revised, so previous data isn't comparable. This reflects the general stagnation of PC-based VR as the market shifted to the standalone Quest platform.
Update January 3: Valve slightly adjusted the data after publication, moving some 'Other' percentage to Quest 3. This article has been updated to reflect this.
