4 Affordable VR Headsets You Should Try Instead of the Steam Frame

Valve’s new Steam Frame has a lot to offer. Not only is it wireless, but it can play VR and non-VR games. It also supports fully standalone play. Unfortunately, all of these benefits come with a hefty asking price. The 256GB Steam Frame starts at $1,059, and those wanting to upgrade to the 1TB model will have to shell out up to $1,299.

This might be easier to swallow if you’re already heavily invested in Steam and want everything Valve offers. But if you primarily want to play VR games or expand your desktop with virtual monitors, you don’t necessarily need to spend more than $1,000 to achieve this. Indeed, over the years we have seen several cheaper VR headsets hit the market. All of these can handle these tasks, and some cost almost a third of what Valve charges for the base Steam Frame. Opting for another headset doesn’t necessarily mean giving up wireless VR either, as many of these cheaper options offer similar features.

Of course, opting for something cheaper usually means giving up something, and that’s the case with some of these options. When we tried to select alternatives to the Steam Frame, we focused on ones that were not only affordable, but didn’t sacrifice all the features you might expect from Valve’s offering. And while some are designed more specifically for gaming and multimedia experiences, others are more suited to working in VR. Of course, none of these will give you the exact same experience as the Steam Frame. Depending on what you actually want from VR, you probably won’t need it, especially if it saves you money.

If price is the main thing stopping you from purchasing the Steam Frame, then the Meta Quest 3S is one of the best alternatives available. The 128GB model currently starts at $349.99, about a quarter of what it would cost you to buy the Valve headset. The best part is that it still gives you a completely wireless and standalone VR experience, can run games directly from the Meta library, and can even be connected to a Windows PC for PC VR using Meta Link.

If you want a good mix of gaming and productivity, then the Quest 3S is a good option, especially since it supports turning your Windows 11 PC into a virtual, multi-monitor workspace. Of course, like any cheaper product in the VR space, there are trade-offs.

Most notably, the Quest 3S sports a lower resolution screen than the more expensive options. It also has a narrower field of view, which could make it less appealing to users who plan to spend a lot of time in VR. However, for just $349.99, the headset is more than capable of playing some games and letting you work in a virtual space.

If you like the idea of ​​the Quest 3S, but want something better, then the Meta Quest 3 is a solid alternative to consider. It costs a few hundred dollars more than the Quest 3S, with the cheapest option starting at around $599.99.

However, it will be the better buy if you are serious about using your VR headset for productivity beyond just gaming. It sports the same Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 platform as the Quest 3S, but has a higher resolution of 2064 x 2208 per eye and offers a wider field of view than the 3S. Its resolution still isn’t as high as the Steam Frame, of course, but it should provide more than enough clarity for heavy text use. It also works with Microsoft’s Windows Mixed Reality Link for multiple virtual monitors.

You also don’t sacrifice gameplay to get these upgrades. The Meta Quest 3 can play standalone Meta Quest games or connect to a PC for titles requiring PC VR support. At $599.99, it’s not exactly cheap, but you’re still saving over $450 compared to the cheapest option Valve offers for the Steam Frame.

If you’d rather avoid Meta – a decision we wouldn’t blame you for considering its past data practices – then there are other companies to watch. PICO is another great, affordable option, especially for users outside the United States. The PICO 4 Ultra starts at around £529, which works out to around $707 USD.

You may have to look for this one outside of the usual US stores, but it’s a good option to consider if you lean more towards productivity features. Indeed, the PICO 4 Ultra fully supports Immersed, a VR display system designed for Mac, Windows and Linux.

Gamers can also use the PICO 4 Ultra thanks to PICO Connect, an app that lets you easily stream a computer’s desktop into the headset. It’s a great way to enjoy SteamVR games on Windows. As noted above, PICO is not always an easy option to find if you are in the United States. You will probably need to import it. But if you can find a good deal on it online, it might be worth the extra work, especially since it has similar specs to the Steam Frame.

The next option on our list is a little different from the others, as it is primarily focused on gaming. The PlayStation VR2 may initially seem like a limited platform for virtual reality, however, thanks to a price cut in 2025 that brought the headset to $399, as well as support for PC use, the PS VR2 has become a solid alternative to higher-end, more expensive VR headsets.

Not only can it be connected to your PlayStation 5 and used to play games, but you can also import it to your PC using software like Desktop+, which allows you to create individual windows and desktop workspaces within the virtual environment. It is, however, a wired headset, which could be a hindrance for those looking to use the wireless access that the Steam Frame provides.

However, if you primarily want a VR headset for gaming and plan to rarely use VR productivity apps, the PlayStation VR 2 is a great alternative to the Steam Frame, as you’ll only have to shell out an extra $60 for Sony’s PC adapter. The setup requires you to follow a few steps to run it on PC. However, at almost a third of the Steam Frame’s cheapest price, it’s not a bad deal.