Shadow PC for free: is it possible, or do you have to pay?

Emily

Last updated: April 15, 2026

Reading time: ~ 2 min

Shadow PC does not offer a free tier, a free trial, or a discounted entry point. At €32.99 per month for the Neo plan and €49.99 for Power, it sits at the expensive end of the cloud gaming market. Both plans can be cancelled at any time, but there is no way to try the service without paying first.

Can you play Shadow PC for free?

No. Shadow PC has no free plan and no unpaid access tier. Because it gives you a full Windows PC in the cloud rather than a curated game library, free-to-play titles work fine on it, but you still need an active subscription to access the machine in the first place. You can check which free-to-play titles are available using our game search on cloudbase.gg.

If you are specifically looking for gaming without any upfront costs, check out our guide on free cloud gaming services.

Is a Shadow PC trial available?

Shadow PC does not offer a free trial. Given the monthly price, that is a more meaningful gap than it is for cheaper services. The only realistic way to evaluate it is to subscribe for one month and cancel if it does not suit you.

Before doing that, it is worth knowing that Shadow PC does not work with every game. Titles using kernel-level anti-cheat software, including Valorant and several EA titles, actively block virtual machine environments and will not run. If the games you want to play fall into that category, Shadow PC is not the right service regardless of price.

How can you get Shadow PC cheaper?

There are no permanent discount codes, referral programs, or annual plans that reduce the monthly cost. That said, Shadow runs special offers fairly regularly, so it is worth checking the Shadow website before subscribing since the current deal changes frequently.

If the price is the sticking point, it is worth comparing Shadow PC against airgpu, which uses hourly billing and may work out cheaper depending on how much you play. Our best Shadow PC alternatives guide covers the closest options.

Share now