Buy Now or Wait for the Next Sale?
By Lowstamp Editor · 2026-06-20
A game on your wishlist just went on sale and you're staring at the price. Buy it and watch it drop further next week, and it stings. Wait, and the sale ends and you're back to full price. I used to decide this on gut feeling. Now I run five questions in order, and by the fourth one the answer is usually obvious.
1. How far is today's price from the lowest we've tracked?
Start here because it's the most objective. The same percentage can mean opposite things. A game that drops to 50% off at every sale isn't a special deal at 50%. That's just its sale price. A game that rarely discounts hitting a new low at 50% is rare. Search the game on Lowstamp and the tracked low sits next to today's price, with a chart of how it's moved.
- Today's price is at the low, or within about 5% of it: buy. Waiting is unlikely to save more than pocket change.
- Around 10% to 20% above the low: a gray area. Let the other questions decide.
- Far above the low, say 30% off today when it's been 70% off before: waiting wins.
2. How often, and how deep, does this game go on sale?
Every game has a discount habit. Some drop hard at every seasonal sale like clockwork. Others dip a little once or twice a year. If a game discounts often and deep, missing this one costs nothing, because a similar chance comes back within months. If it's a rarely discounted title, today's modest cut might be the best you see for a long time.
A quick look at the price chart tells you which camp a game is in. Lots of deep valleys means you can wait comfortably. A nearly flat line with one or two small dips means today's 15% off might genuinely be as good as it gets.
3. Do you want to play it now?
On price alone, waiting always looks smarter. But games are for playing. If it's the multiplayer game all your friends are on, waiting two months to save $8 means they're forty hours ahead by the time you join. If it's the release everyone's talking about, there's real value in playing before the ending gets spoiled. If it's a single-player game you'd get to someday, urgency is low and price can carry more weight.
Wait and the price nearly always falls. The moment when everyone's playing it doesn't come back.
4. How big is your backlog?
Be honest. How many games in your library did you buy on sale and never launch? If the pile is already tall, one more won't get played for months, and by then the next sale will have made it cheaper anyway. If you just finished something and have nothing lined up, this purchase gets played tonight, which is what it's for.
- A mountain of unplayed games: wait, or reconsider whether you want it at all.
- Just finished something, nothing next: buying wins.
- Only wishlisted, not sure you'd play it: let it sit until the next sale and see if you still care.
5. Can you undo it?
Even after all that, you might be unsure. The refund window takes the pressure off. Steam refunds any game for any reason if you've played under 2 hours and bought it within 14 days. So if the price is decent and you want to play now, you can buy, try an hour, and reverse it if it's not for you. Just know that short games and multiplayer games burn through 2 hours quickly, so decide early.
Putting the five together
Buy now when today's price is near the tracked low, the game doesn't discount often, you'd play it tonight, your queue is empty, and you can refund if it misses. Wait when the price is far above the low, the game drops hard at every sale anyway, you're in no rush, and your backlog is already overflowing. In real life the five rarely all agree. When they split, weigh them by what you care about. If every dollar matters, let price decide. If playing with friends this week matters more, let urgency decide.
Lowstamp handles the price half. The stamp already reflects the distance from the low and the depth of the discount. Add the parts only you know, urgency and backlog, and the decision gets easy.
One last thing. Don't try too hard to nail the perfect moment. Sitting on a game you genuinely want for months to save $5, and then losing interest, is the worst outcome of all.
Near the low and you want it now? Buy. Far from the low and no rush? Wait for the next sale.