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How to Run a Steam Game as Administrator
This up-to-date 2026 guide is focused on showing you exactly how to grant administrator privileges to your Steam games to resolve various software issues. If you are searching for how to run a steam game as admin to fix frustrating launch crashes, saving errors, or performance drops, you will find all the necessary steps below.
Reasons to Launch a Steam Game with Admin Privileges
You might need to give a game administrator rights for several common reasons. Taking this step can fix games that crash immediately on startup, resolve errors when a game fails to save your progress, or allow strict anti-cheat software to run properly without being blocked by Windows security. While Steam typically handles most file permissions for you in the background, specific older titles or heavily modded games often require you to manually grant admin rights to work correctly.Guide to Running a Steam Game as Administrator (Windows 10 & Windows 11)
The following steps apply to both Windows 10 and Windows 11, so you can easily follow along on either operating system. Keep in mind that you must navigate directly to the game's actual installation folder on your hard drive to change these settings. You cannot elevate permissions by simply right-clicking the desktop shortcut or clicking the play button inside your Steam library.Locating the Game’s Local Files
Before changing any settings, you need to find where the game files are stored on your computer. You can do this easily through the Steam client.- Open your Steam Library.
- Right-click the game you want to modify.
- Select Manage from the drop-down menu.
- Click Browse local files to automatically open the installation folder.
How to Start a Steam Game as Admin (One-Time Launch)
If you want to quickly test if admin rights will fix your issue, you can use this method for a single play session.- Find the main executable file, which usually ends in .exe, inside the local folder you just opened.
- Right-click this executable file.
- Select Run as administrator from the context menu.
- Click Yes when the User Account Control (UAC) prompt appears on your screen.
How to Always Run a Steam Game as Administrator
If the one-time launch resolved your problem, you can set the game to permanently launch with admin rights. This ensures you do not have to manually right-click the file every time you want to play.- Right-click the game's .exe file.
- Select Properties from the menu.
- Go to the Compatibility tab at the top of the window.
- Check the box next to Run this program as an administrator.
- Click Apply and then click OK to save your changes.
How to Run a Non-Steam Game as Administrator
If you have added third-party games to your Steam library, the process for elevating permissions is identical to regular Steam games. You must locate the original executable file on your hard drive, which will be outside of your normal Steam folders. Once found, go to the file's Properties, open the Compatibility tab, and check the Run this program as an administrator box. Furthermore, running the Steam application itself as an administrator can often force non-Steam overlay features and controllers to work properly with these outside games.How to Stop Running a Steam Game as Administrator
You can quickly revert these changes if you no longer want to deal with the UAC prompt every time you launch the game, or if granting admin rights caused unexpected bugs.- Navigate back to the game's .exe file in your file explorer.
- Right-click the file and select Properties.
- Go to the Compatibility tab.
- Uncheck the box that says Run this program as an administrator.
- Click Apply and save by clicking OK.
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