What is region lock on PC game keys?
A cheap key is no bargain if it won’t activate on your account. Region lock is the most common reason a key fails, so it’s worth understanding.
Why region locks exist
Publishers price games differently around the world. To stop people buying the cheapest regional edition and using it everywhere, they sometimes restrict a key to a specific region or set of countries.
On Steam this can mean a key only activates if your account is in the matching region, or that gifting across regions is blocked.
How to spot a region-locked key
Look for labels like “EU only”, “ROW” (rest of world), “RU/CIS”, or a specific country list. “Global” means no region restriction.
KeyRadar surfaces region information on store listings where it’s available, and flags region risk so you don’t get caught out.