The Steam community overlay is one of the in-game interfaces with which players can access several Steam Community features while playing online games. Steam is great when it is working fine and smoothly but that is not always the case. Sometimes, Steam creates several issues that include Steam controller not working or connecting issue, or Steam deck not working after updating, and many others. Recently, many players are complaining that the Steam overlay isn’t working at all. If you have the same issue, here is how you can fix it.
Fixing The Steam Overlay Not Working Issue
We can’t say exactly why Steam Overlay is not working and so we can’t come to a specific solution to fix this issue. But if you want to get rid of this problem, there are certain things you can try to run the Steam Overlay.
1. Check For Pending Updates
Make sure your Steam Overlay is updated to the latest version. For this, go to Steam and click on Steam from the top-left corner. Next click on “Check for Steam Client Updates” and check if you don’t have any pending updates.
2. Allow Administrator Access
Make sure you have given Steam client administrator access. For this:
– Right-click on the Steam client desktop shortcut and then select “Properties”.
– Select “Compatibility”
– Next, check the box marked “Run this program as an administrator”
– Save the changes
– If required, you can repeat this same process with the file name “GameOverlayUI.exe”
3. Enable or Disable Steam Overlay
It is important to check that you have enabled the overlay. Here is how you can check it:
1. First of all, go to Stem client and click on Steam in the top-left corner
2. Go to “Settings” from the in-game option on the left side of the screen
3. Make sure to check the box next to “Enable the Steam Overlay while in-game”
4. Once it is done, go to “Library” from the top of the Window and click on it
5. Right-click on the game on which the overlay is not working and then select “Properties”
6. Make sure to check the box next to “Enable the Steam Overlay while in-game”
Once done, close Steam and run it again and check if the issue is resolved or not.
In the same way, if you have already enabled overlay, try to disable it by unchecking the box. Then rerun the Steam and re-enable it.
4. Check Your Firewall and Antivirus
Sometimes, security programs such as firewalls and antivirus can block a few functions with Steam. So, make sure to list the Steam client as a “Safe” program. In addition, you can temporarily disable your antivirus or firewall and see if the issue is resolved or not.
5. Disable gameoverlayui.exe
It is also possible that the gameoverlayui.exe file prevents Steam overlay from working properly. So, try to disable it. Here is how you can do it:
– Press “Win+R” on your keyboard and type “taskmgr” and open up the task manager
– Click on processes and check for “gameoverlayui.exe” and disable it
– Once disabled, launch Steam and the issue should be fixed
6. Try to Reinstall the Steam Client
If the above solutions don’t work, the last resort is to go for some extreme method. Uninstall the Steam client completely and then reinstall the fresh copy. Here are some simple steps to follow:
1. Go to “Apps” on your PC
2. Look for “Steam” and click on it
3. Select “Uninstall”
4. Once it is uninstalled, return to the Steam download page and reinstall it
That’s all you can do to fix the Steam Overlay error.
Also check – Can you fix Steam error E502 L3?
