Fix Steam is Slow in Windows 10

Steam is a well-known name in the gaming community, being the largest PC game distribution platform. But even the king sees some bad days. It is not uncommon to face issues with Steam PC clients and a lot of users have complained about Steam running slow at times to the point it literally stops to respond. You may eventually observe that Steam is slow and you can’t find your way around your library anymore. But worry not. We have compiled a list of remedies that you can try when you experience Steam is slow problem in Windows 10. So lets see what those methods are.

Fix Steam is Slow in Windows 10

How to Fix Steam is Slow in Windows 10

There may be numerous reasons behind Steam running slow issue. Some of them are listed below.

  • Lack of enough CPU and memory resources causes a computer to overheat.
  • Too much cache and cookies
  • Outdated Device Drivers
  • Outdated Steam app

We have shown all the possible methods to fix Steam is slow issue in the below section. But, before trying the given methods you should boot your system in safe mode. Read our article to boot to safe mode in Windows 10

Method 1: Run Steam as Administrator

You must always run Steam as administrator as it will give administrative privileges to Steam to run all games. So, follow the given steps to run Steam as administrator.

1. Hit the Windows key and type Steam in the Search Bar.

2. Now, click on Run as administrator, as shown.

search steam and select run as administrator

Method 2: Remove Background Processes

Unnecessary apps running in the background may result in high Memory usage. This can case Steam is slow issue in your system. So, follow these steps to remove background processes.

1. Launch Task Manager, press the Ctrl + Shift + Esc keys at the same time.

2. Locate and select the unwanted background processes using high Memory.

3. Then, click End task, as shown highlighted.

select a process and click on End task in Task Manager

Also Read: How to Fix Steam Not Opening on Windows 10

Method 3: Change Steam Process Priority

You can also set Steam priority to high from the Task Manager by following the given steps below.

1. Launch Task Manager and go to the Details tab.

go to the Details tab. Fix Steam is Slow

2. Scroll down and select the Steam.exe process.

3. Right-click on the Steam process and hover to Set Priority, then select any one of the below options.

  • Realtime
  • High

right click on Set Priority and select Realtime or High. Fix Steam is Slow

Note: You can also set the priority to Low if Steam uses high memory by following the above steps and selecting the Low option in step 3.

pick Set Priority and then Low

Method 4: Switch to High Performance Power Plan

If you are using a power-saving plan then, it may cause Steam is slow issue. Follow the given steps to switch to high performance power plan to fix Steam running slow issue.

1. Right-click on the Battery icon on the Taskbar and select Power Options.

right click on Battery icon on Taskbar and select Power Options

2. Now, select the High performance option as highlighted in the pic below.

Now, choose the High performance option under High additional plans

Also Read: Fix Steam Error Code e502 l3 in Windows 10

Method 5: Delete HTTP, HTML Cache & Temporary Files

Follow the given steps below to delete the temporary files and HTML cache file to fix Steam is slow issue.

1. Press the Windows + R keys together to launch the Run dialog box.

2. Type %temp% and click on OK.

run

3. Press Ctrl + A keys together to select all the unrequired files and press the Shift + Del keys together to delete them permanently.

Note: Some files cannot be deleted coz they are being used, so you can skip these.

Delete all the files that are not necessary for any processes. Fix Steam is Slow

4. Press Windows + E keys together to open File Explorer

5. Navigate to the location where you installed Steam: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam

Note: If you are not sure, read our guide: Where are Steam Games installed? here.

Navigate to the path where steam is installed. Fix Steam is Slow

6. Double-click on the appcache folder.

open app cache folder

7. Here, delete the httpcache folder.

Delete the HTTPcache folder. Fix Steam is Slow

8. Then, go to the following path and delete the htmlcache folder.

C:\Users\<UserName>\AppData\Local\Steam

htmlcache folder in Steam app data

9. Finally, restart your PC and check if the issue persists or not.

Also Read: Fix Steam Stopping Downloads on Windows 10

Method 6: Clear Steam Browser Cache & Cookies

Here is how to fix Steam is slow issue by clearing Steam web browser cache and cookies.

1. Hit the Windows key, type Steam, and click on Run as administrator.

Select Run as administrator from the context menu when you right click the Steam icon

2. In the upper left corner of the window, click on the Steam tab and select Settings from the drop-down box.

click on the Steam tab and Select Settings. Fix Steam is Slow

3. Then, go to the Web Browser settings from the left pane.

Navigate to the Web Browser tab

4. Click on both the given buttons to delete web browser cache and cookies respectively.

  • Delete Web Browser Cache
  • Delete Web Browser Cookies

Click both Delete Web Browser Cache and Delete Web Browser Cookies selections one by one

5. Click on OK in the confirmation prompt of both options.

click on OK. Fix Steam is Slow

6. Finally, restart Steam to check if Steam running slow issue is fixed or not.

Also Read: How to Disable Steam Overlay in Windows 10

Method 7: Clear Download Cache

There may be download cache of the games in Steam which can result in Steam is slow issue. So, here are the steps to clear download cache.

1. Launch the Steam app as administrator.

2. Now, go to the Steam tab and select Settings from the drop-down menu. Refer to the pic below.

click on the Steam tab and Select Settings. Fix Steam is Slow

3. Select the Downloads settings on the left pane.

Navigate to the Downloads tab

4. Scroll down to the bottom and click on the CLEAR DOWNLOAD CACHE button.

press the Clear Download Cache option. Fix Steam is Slow

5. Click on OK in the Clear Download Cache confirmation prompt.

6. Finally, click on OK to save changes.

Wait until the procedure is finished before pressing Ok

Method 8: Run Steam in Compatibility Mode

You can also try running Steam in compatibility mode on different Windows versions to solve Steam is slow problem.

1. Right-click the Steam executable file and select the Properties option.

choose Properties

2. Go to the Compatibility tab in Steam Properties window and check the Run this Program in Compatibility Mode for option.

Select the Compatibility tab in Steam Properties and tick the Run this Program in Compatibility Mode for option. Fix Steam is Slow

3. Select the Windows version from the dropdown menu.

Select a version of the operating system from the dropdown menu that appears. Fix Steam is Slow

4. Click on Apply > OK to save changes and run Steam as administrator.

Click OK and Apply

5. Check if the issue is fixed, else try running Steam in different Windows versions by repeating the above steps.

Also Read: Fix Steam Image Failed to Upload

Method 9: Verify Integrity of Game Files

If you experience Steam running slow problem while playing a particular game then, you should check the integrity of that game file on Steam. Read our easy-to-follow tutorial on How to Verify Integrity of Game Files on Steam.

Method 10: Modify Graphics Driver Settings

Follow these steps to modify graphics driver settings to fix Steam is slow issue.

1. Right-click on empty space in the Desktop and select NVIDIA Control Panel.

Select Nvidia Control Panel from the context menu

2. Click on the Manage 3D settings option in the left pane and go to the Program Settings tab.

Click the Manage 3D Settings tab in the Nvidia Control Panel then the Program Settings tab

3. Choose Steam from the Select a program to customize dropdown list.

choose Valve Steam from the list.

4. Then, select the preferred graphics processor for this program. We recommend you select the High-performance NVIDIA processor.

select high-performance NVIDIA processor

5. Finally, click on Apply button to save changes.

click Apply. Fix Steam is Slow

Method 11: Modify LAN Settings

There may be network configuration issues which is resulting in Steam running slow problem. So, here are the steps to Modify LAN configuration settings.

1. Press the Windows key, type control panel, and click on Open.

Open Start. Type Control Panel and click on Open on the right pane.

2. Now, set the View by option to Category and select the Network and Internet link as shown below.

Now, set the View by option to Category and select the Network and Internet link. Fix Steam is Slow

3. Here, click on Internet Options as shown below.

Here, click on Internet Options

4. In the Internet Properties window, switch to the Connections tab and select LAN settings as shown below.

Now, in the Internet Properties window, switch to the Connections tab and select LAN settings. Fix Steam is Slow

5. Now, in Local Area Network (LAN) Settings, check the box to Automatically detect settings in the Automatic configuration section.

Here, check the box Automatically detect settings and ensure Use a proxy server for your LAN box is unchecked

6. Also, uncheck the checkbox for Use a proxy server for your LAN.

Untick the box next to Use a proxy server for your LAN. Fix Steam is Slow

7. Finally, click on OK to save the changes and relaunch Steam to observe any performance improvement.

Also Read: Fix Steam Keeps Crashing

Method 12: Update Device Drivers

Outdated drivers may also result in Steam running slow problem. So, following are the steps to update the device drivers.

1. Click on Start, type device manager, and hit the Enter key.

In the Start menu, type Device Manager in the Search Bar and launch it.

2. Double-click Display adapters to expand it.

Double-click Display adapters to expand it. Fix Steam is Slow

3. Right-click on video driver (e.g. Intel (R) UHD Graphics) and choose Update driver as depicted below.

Right click on your video device and choose Update driver.

4. Next, click on Search automatically for drivers as shown.

click on Search automatically for drivers. Fix Steam is Slow

5A. If the drivers have been updated already, it shows The best drivers for your device are already installed.

If the drivers have been updated already, it shows The best drivers for your device are already installed.

5B. If the drivers are outdated, then they will get updated automatically.

6. Finally, update all the outdated drivers by following the above steps and restart your PC.

Method 13: Update Steam

Here are the steps to update Steam to fix the bugs and errors causing Steam is slow issue.

1. Launch Steam and navigate to the menu bar.

2. Now, click on Steam followed by Check for Steam Client Updates…

Now, click on Steam followed by Check for Steam Client Updates. Fix Steam is slow

3A. Steam – Self Updater will download updates automatically, if available. Click RESTART STEAM to apply the update.

click on Restart Steam to apply update. Fix Steam is Slow

3B. If you have no updates, Your Steam client is already up-to-date message will be displayed, as follows.

If you have any new updates to be downloaded, install them and ensure your Steam client is up to date

Also Read: How to Download Steam Games on External Hard Drive

Method 14: Repair Steam

Follow these steps to repair Steam app to fix Steam is slow problem.

1. Press the Windows key, type windows powershell and click on Run as administrator.

Start menu search results for Windows PowerShell

2. Click Yes in the User Account Control prompt.

3. Type the following command and hit Enter key.

“C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\bin\SteamService.exe” /repair

Note: If your Steam file is placed in another location, you need to enter that directory instead. Read our guide: Where are Steam Games installed? here.

Type the following command and hit enter

4. Once the repair completed message is displayed, restart your PC.

Also Read: How to Uninstall Steam Games

Method 15: Reinstall Steam

If none of the above methods works for you, then reinstalling Steam is the last option to fix Steam is slow problem. Follow the given steps to reinstall Steam.

1. Firstly, go to the Steam folder and right-click on steamapps folder, then select the Copy option.

Copy the steamapps folder

2. Then, paste the folder in the other location to create a backup of the installed games.

3. Now hit the Windows key, type Apps and features, and click on Open.

type apps and features and click on Open in Windows 10 search bar. Fix Steam is Slow

4. Select Steam and click on the Uninstall button shown highlighted.

click on Steam and select Uninstall

5. Again, click on Uninstall to confirm.

6. In the Steam Uninstall window, click on Uninstall to remove Steam.

Now, confirm the prompt by clicking on Uninstall. Fix Steam is Slow

7. Then, restart your Windows PC.

8. Download the latest version of Steam from your web browser, as shown.

Click INSTALL STEAM to download the installation file

9. After downloading, run the downloaded SteamSetup.exe file by double-clicking on it.

10. In the Steam Setup wizard, click on the Next button.

Here, click on the Next button. steam repair tool. Fix Steam is Slow

11. Choose the Destination folder by using the Browse… option or keep the default option. Then, click on Install, as depicted below.

Now, choose the destination folder by using the Browse… option and click on Install. steam repair tool

12. Wait for the installation to be completed and click on Finish, as shown.

Wait for the installation to be completed and click on Finish. Fix Steam is Slow

13. After installing Steam, move the steamapps backup folder you previously made to the installed Steam folder. 

14. Finally, restart your PC

Recommended:

We hope this information was helpful and that you were able to fix Steam is slow issue. Please let us know which best method worked best for you. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them in the comments area.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *