Steam Won't Open: Five Quick and Easy Ways to Fix it

If Steam won't open, this can have several reasons. Luckily, there are a couple of options you can try out to get Steam running again: Here are five ideas for what you can do if the steam client doesn't start.

Steam
Steam won't open? Here's what you can do to fix the problem. | © Valve

Steam having trouble opening or working properly is actually a pretty common issue. As the problem often has its origin in the computer rather than in Steam itself, there are very simple and fast ways to fix this.

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Steam Won't Open: How To Fix It

1. Restart your computer

This should be the first thing that comes to your mind, if something isn't working right. In many occasions, restarting the computer or a program works like magic.

2. Steam is running in the background - close it completely

Sometimes Steam doesn't close properly, so when you are trying to start it, it won't open because it already is open. To fix this, you just have to open your Task Manager and look for Steam in "Processes". If you found it, just right-click it and select "end task". Now you should be able to open Steam again.

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3. Antivirus program is preventing Steam from starting

There is a slight chance, that your Antivirus program might be the problem because it sees Steam as a threat.

Don't worry, Steam is legitimate and completely safe to use. To stop this from happening, just whitelist Steam in your Antivirus Program.

Steam logo
If Steam won't open, the problem often originates from a hardware-specific issue. | © Valve

4. Running Steam as administrator

Running programs as the administrator works wonders if an application doesn't start. To do this, just right-click the application and select "run as administrator".

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5. Check for Windows update

Sometimes applications don't work properly if there is a Windows update available. Just go to your settings >"Update & security" or for Windows 11 "Windows Update" > Check for Update. Be aware that Steam will stop working on older Windows versions soon.

That's it! Now you know how to fix the issue of Steam not opening. We hope that these tips could help you with your problem and that you can use Steam without any issues now.

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