Borderlands 4 is playable at no cost on Steam right now as part of a Free Play Weekend tied to the game’s first anniversary. You get the complete base game, so you can test how the looter shooter runs on your PC and see whether the campaign on Kairos is worth buying before the window closes.
Quick answer: Borderlands 4 is free on Steam until September 14, 2026 at 10:00 AM PT (6:00 PM BST). Install it from the Steam store page, let it finish compiling shaders once, then start playing solo or in co-op.
When the free play window ends on each platform
The promotion runs across Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox, but the cutoff times differ. Steam and PlayStation share the same end time, while Xbox closes several hours earlier the night before.
| Platform | Free play ends | Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Steam (PC) | Sept 14, 10:00 AM PT / 6:00 PM BST | Steam account |
| PlayStation (PS5) | Sept 14, 10:00 AM PT / 6:00 PM BST | PlayStation Plus (any tier) |
| Xbox (Series X/S) | Sept 13, 11:59 PM PT | Xbox Game Pass (any tier) |
Access ends the moment the window closes. This is a play-for-free trial, not a keep-forever giveaway, so there is nothing to claim into your library. The only deadline that matters is actually playing before the cutoff.
How to start playing Borderlands 4 free on Steam
The game is Verified for the Steam Deck, so it will run there without extra setup if you want to try it on a handheld.
What the free trial includes and what it locks out
The trial gives you everything in the base game plus the free post-launch additions. Paid story content and the DLC Vault Hunters stay behind a purchase.
- The full base-game campaign, every bandit, monster, and boss fight on Kairos.
- Free post-launch base-game content, including Circle of Slaughter mode.
- Cross-platform saves during the event through a free SHiFT Account.
If you join friends who already own DLC content, such as the C4SH or Loveless the Hacker Vault Hunters, they can still play as those characters. Your party will be limited to the base-game missions, and DLC story packs remain unavailable until you buy in.
Keeping your progress after the weekend
Nothing you earn during the trial is thrown away if you decide to keep the game. Buy any edition on the same platform where you played the trial, and all of your progress, loot, and achievements carry over so you continue exactly where you stopped.
You will not finish the full campaign in a single weekend. A run takes roughly 30 to 50 hours, so treat the free window as a way to get several hours in and gauge performance and feel rather than a complete playthrough.
Anniversary sale pricing on Steam
If the trial convinces you, every edition is 50 percent off until September 24. The standard game drops from $69.99 to $34.99, and the Deluxe and Super Deluxe editions are discounted at the same rate.
| Edition | Full price | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Borderlands 4 | $69.99 | Full base game |
| Deluxe Edition | $99.99 | Base game, Firehawk’s Fury Weapon Skin, Bounty Pack Bundle |
| Super Deluxe Edition | $129.99 | Deluxe contents plus Ornate Order Pack and Vault Hunter Pack |
Older entries are discounted too. Borderlands 2 and Borderlands 3 are marked down by up to 90 percent, and Steam bundles combining several games apply Complete Your Collection pricing so you only pay for what you do not already own.
New content and performance to check during the trial
The free weekend lands alongside a major update. Loveless the Hacker arrived as a new playable Vault Hunter with a large snake-like cyborg companion, and a new story DLC added bosses, missions, maps, and weapons. Both sit behind a purchase, so use the trial to decide whether the base game earns that spend.
Performance is the main reason to test before buying. The PC version launched with heavy stuttering, inconsistent frame rates, crashes, and startup problems, which is why its Steam reviews sit at a mixed rating despite well-received gameplay. Gearbox says updates have raised average frame rates by roughly 20 percent since launch, though some players still report long shader compilation and longer loading times after recent patches. Running it yourself is the clearest way to know how it performs on your hardware.
