The Steam client is a great storefront for many PC games! But if you don’t want it running when you turn on your PC, here’s how to stop Steam from opening on start-up!
Valve’s Steam service is one of the most used applications on PC. Thanks to a generous game library offering and plenty of deals, it’s a great idea to download Steam!
However, upon installation, Steam will automatically set itself up to launch when your PC turns on. For some, this can be frustrating!
If you’re wanting to stop the Steam client launching when turning on your PC, there are a few methods. We’ll look at some of these methods below:
How to Stop Steam Launching Upon Start-Up
Method 1: Stopping Steam on Start-Up via Steam Client
This method uses the Steam client itself to disable the application launching on a computer start-up. To disable in another way, head to Method 2.
- First, head to the Steam client. Click on “Steam” in the upper left and then “Settings”.
- Once you’ve clicked on Settings, a box will pop up. From here, click the “Interface” tab and then uncheck the “Run Steam when my Computer starts” option. This will disable Steam starting up on launch. Click OK to enable these changes.
Method 2: Using Windows Task Manager to Disable Steam Upon Start-Up
This method uses the Windows Task Manager tool to disable Steam from launching when your computer starts up. Here’s how:
- Right-click the Windows logo or the taskbar at the bottom of the screen, then select “Task Manager”.
- Alternatively, you can access the Task Manager in another way. Press the Alt, Ctrl and Del keys at the same time to access the aptly named “Alt+Ctrl+Del” screen and select Task Manager.
- When the Task Manager pops up, head over to the Startup tab at the top. Once here, find the Steam application. Click on Steam and then select the Disable option at the bottom of the Task Manager
Why Disabling Steam on Startup is a Good Idea
Having Steam launch on startup is easy for those who find themselves spending most of their time playing games on PC. However, people who use their PCs for other purposes may find Steam launching annoying.
Disabling Steam from launching when you turn on your PC will speed up the launch time. This means, that if your computer takes 30 seconds to fully launch, disabling Steam may make it quicker.
If you’re trying to download a game on Steam, and find the unpacking or download going slow, here’s how to solve slow unpacking speeds on Steam.
