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Destiny 2 vs Payday 2
Destiny 2 is the more played game right now: 37,775 players on Steam against 25,292 for PAYDAY 2, about 49% more players. Destiny 2 has been ahead for 2 days straight, and has led on 63 days of the 149 days Coilr has tracked both games.
PAYDAY 2 counters with better Steam reviews: 89% positive vs 79%. Destiny 2 is free to play, while PAYDAY 2 costs $9.99. Across all tracked metrics, PAYDAY 2 leads 5 of 9.
Players over time
Live Steam player counts, read every 5 minutes. Both are Action games.
Which one have you played more?
Coilr members average 373h in Destiny 2 and 197h in PAYDAY 2. Connect your Steam account and this row fills in with your own hours instead — then keeps tracking both, so you can see which one you are actually still playing.
Destiny 2
373h
average of 140 members
PAYDAY 2
197h
average of 162 members
See my hours in both
Free · read-only via Steam OpenID · no password · delete anytime
Destiny 2
30,618PAYDAY 2
27,385Daily averages · latest day · Destiny 2, 12% ahead of PAYDAY 2
One point per day, averaged · Your time zone · drag or use arrow keys to read the lines
Tracked by Coilr since April 2026 · Read every 5 minutes · methodology
These are Steam players only. A game that also runs on its own launcher, a storefront of its own or on console has players this number cannot see, so read it as a comparison of Steam audiences rather than of total ones.
Head-to-head record
Destiny 2 has had the higher daily player count for the last 2 days. PAYDAY 2 last led on Oct 9, 2026.
Destiny 2 led 63 daysPAYDAY 2 led 86 days
- Days tracked
- 149
- Current streak
- 2 days
- Destiny 2
- Lead changes
- 11
- Closest gap
- <1%
- Sep 27, 2026
How this works: each game's daily average concurrent players (from Coilr's own Steam readings), compared on the 149 days where both games have data. Whichever averages higher leads that day.
Side by side
Every number Coilr has for both games. The better figure in each row is in green.
| Metric | Destiny 2 | PAYDAY 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Players right now | 37,775 | 25,292 |
| 24-hour peak | 39,119 | 32,999 |
| 7-day average | 28,059 | 29,675 |
| 30-day average | 22,466 | 30,245 |
| 30-day trend | +5% | +2% |
| Peak (tracked) | 167,568 | 36,901 |
| Steam reviews | 79% positive | 89% positive |
| Recent reviews (3 mo) | 80% positive | 88% positive |
| Total reviews | 663,403 | 675,010 |
| Owners (SteamSpy est.) | ~20,000,000 | ~20,000,000 |
| Release date | Oct 1, 2019 | Aug 13, 2013 |
| Price | Free to play | $9.99 |
Players by month
Monthly average and peak concurrent players on Steam, from Coilr's own tracking (readings every few minutes for the biggest games, hourly averages beyond 30 days).
Frequently asked
Which has more players, Destiny 2 or Payday 2?
Destiny 2 currently has more players: 37,775 concurrent players on Steam vs 25,292 for PAYDAY 2, about 49% more players.
Is Destiny 2 bigger than Payday 2 on Steam?
Over the last 30 days Destiny 2 averaged 22,466 concurrent players and PAYDAY 2 averaged 30,245. By that measure PAYDAY 2 is currently the bigger game.
Has PAYDAY 2 ever had more players than Destiny 2?
Yes. Across the 149 days Coilr has tracked both games, PAYDAY 2 had the higher daily average on 86 days, most recently on Oct 9, 2026. Destiny 2 has led for the last 2 days.
Is Destiny 2 better than Payday 2?
By Steam review score, PAYDAY 2 rates higher: 89% positive across 675,010 reviews vs 79% across 663,403 for Destiny 2. Destiny 2 has the larger player base right now (37,775 vs 25,292 concurrent). Player counts, ratings, price and trend are compared side by side above.
Is Destiny 2 growing or declining on Steam?
Destiny 2 averaged 22,466 concurrent players over the last 30 days, up 5% vs the previous 30 days. Its highest tracked player count is 167,568.
Is PAYDAY 2 growing or declining on Steam?
PAYDAY 2 averaged 30,245 concurrent players over the last 30 days, roughly flat vs the previous 30 days. Its highest tracked player count is 36,901.
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