Fix: Steamwebhelper.exe is not responding Steam UI will not be usable

Steamwebhelper is one of the Steam client processes that handle the web-based functionality of Steam, such as rendering in-game overlays, community tabs, and more. Steamwebhelper is designed to offload the browsing tasks, which helps run Steam more smoothly.

Why Does Steamwebhelper.exe Stop Responding?

Steamwebhelper.exe not responding means that one of the key processes is slow and not responding to user requests. This could occur due to interference from third-party antivirus software. A large number of users have reported on reddit.com that adding a Steam folder to the antivirus exception list has resolved their issue. Hence, it may be inferred that using third-party antivirus software is a primary cause of this issue.

Before we begin, make sure to restart Steam. Restarting Steam will re-establish the connection between the client and the server. So if there is something preventing the key component from responding to the request, restarting Steam might fix this issue.

1. Add a Steam folder to the Antivirus exceptions list

If you are using third-party antivirus software, you can try adding a Steam folder to the antivirus exceptions list. Adding a Steam folder in the exceptions list will exclude it from being scanned or blocked by the antivirus software.

Third-party antivirus software can block any application or service by interfering, which often leads to not responding or crashing issues. Therefore, it is recommended to start troubleshooting by adding a Steam folder to the antivirus exception list. To do so, follow the steps:

The following steps might be different if you are using other antivirus software.

1. Launch your antivirus software, go to Menu, and click Settings.
   
2. Navigate to Exceptions from the left pane and click Add Exception.
3. Click Browse and select the Steam folder and click Add Exception.
4. Once the Steam folder has been added, restart the Steam and check if the error persists.

2. Uninstall Your Antivirus Software

If adding a Steam folder to the antivirus exceptions did not work for you, either try uninstalling or disabling the antivirus software, which will work for you if it is blocking the Steamwebhelper.exe from running in the background. To uninstall the antivirus software, follow the steps:

1. Press the Win + R keys together to open the Run Window.
2. Here type appwiz.cpl in the search box and click OK to open the Apps and Features Window.
   
3. Right-click your antivirus software and click Uninstall.
   
4. Now follow the on-screen instructions to uninstall the antivirus software.
   
5. Once done, launch Steam and verify if the error is fixed or not.

3. Disable Steamwebhelper

Since Steamwebhelper is not an essential process, we can try running Steam without Steamwebhelper. This can be done by using the launch options that will execute before any Steam configuration files.

The launch option we are going to use is -no-browser, which will disable the sandbox feature. A sandbox allows web applications to run in an isolated environment to prevent malware. According to the Steam article about Steamwebhelper.exe not responding, restarting Steam with the sandbox disabled can fix this error.

To add a launch option, follow the steps:

Before moving down to the steps, make sure Steam is not running in the background.

1. Open the Start Menu and type Steam.
2. Right-click Steam, and select Open file location.
3. Here right-click the Steam shortcut, and go to Properties.
   
4. Add -no-browser at the end of the target value.
5. Once done, click Apply and click OK.
   
6. Launch the Steam and see if the error persists or not.

4. Disable GPU Acceleration

According to the official article on Steam, GPU drivers can have a rendering issue with the Steam client if the GPU acceleration feature is enabled. In this case, Steam has recommended restarting the Steam with the disabled GPU acceleration. If the issue gets fixed, either try updating GPU drivers or disabling the GPU acceleration feature. To do so, follow the steps:dw

1. Navigate to Settings by pressing Win + I simultaneously.
2. From the System, go to Display settings and scroll down to the bottom.
   
3. Scroll down to the bottom, and go to Graphics settings, and click Change default graphics settings.
   
4. Turn off the Hardware-accelerated GPU scheduling, then launch Steam to check for the error.
   

6. Reinstall GPU Driver

If the error still persists, you can try reinstalling the GPU driver because Steamwebhelper.exe is a process that requires a significant amount of rendering. Therefore your GPU driver should not be corrupted or outdated. If it is, then reinstalling the GPU driver will work in this case.

Usually, we use DDU or Display Driver Uninstaller to uninstall the GPU drivers. It is because uninstalling the driver via the device manager does not remove the drivers completely from the system. Therefore, we recommend Display Driver Uninstaller, as it uninstalls the driver along with the registry files without leaving any traces behind.

To uninstall the GPU drivers, follow the steps:

1. First of all, download the Display Driver Uninstaller by visiting the link.
2. Once it is downloaded, use any archive utility to extract the DDU Zip folder.
3. Then, navigate to the extracted folder and run the DDU 7zip file.
4. Click Extract and wait for the extraction to be finished.
   
5. Once done, open the extracted folder, and launch the display driver uninstaller.
6. Select the Device Type and the Device from the right pane. 
7. Then, click Clean and restart.
   
8. Once the GPU driver is removed, proceed to reinstall the graphics driver from the official GPU manufacturer’s website. To do so, go to your manufacturer’s site, and search for the GPU driver according to the OS and the GPU name.
   
9. Then, download and install the GPU driver by simply following the instructions.

7. Restore the Steamwebhelper.exe

Corrupted Steamwebhelper.exe is also among the leading causes that could trigger this error. It is obvious if the Steamwebhelper.exe file gets corrupted by any third-party program, such as antivirus software or any other application, it will lead to this error. Therefore, try restoring the Steamwebhelper.exe. file.

To do so, follow the steps:

1. Open the Steam folder and navigate to the following directory.

   bin\cef\cef.win7x64

   

2. Delete the Steamwebhelper.exe file and run the Steam.exe.
3. Wait for Steam to download the Steamwebhelper.
4. Once done, check for the error.

8. Reinstall the Steam

Finally, if nothing works from the above solutions, you can try reinstalling Steam. Since Steamwebhelper.exe is not a necessary process, you should not reinstall Steam, as you can run Steam without Steamwebhelper.exe.

If you don’t want to disable the Steamwebhelper.exe, you can try reinstalling Steam, but before that, make sure to back up the Steamapps folder so you won’t need to install the games again.

1. First, you will have to back up the games located in the Steam apps folder.
2. For that, simply open the Steam folder and navigate to the Steamapps > Common folder.
3. Copy all of the games installed in the directory, then paste them into any other directory.
   
4. Once done, now you can uninstall Steam without worrying about the installed games. To do so, launch Settings by pressing Win + I on the keyboard.
5. Navigate to Apps > Installed apps.
6. Here locate Steam and click the three dots.
7. Then, click Uninstall, and again click Uninstall to remove the Steam application.
8. Once done, download the Steam installer from the link.
9. Once it is downloaded, install Steam, and check if the error is fixed. If it is, simply move the games to the Steam apps folder, then locate them from Steam to install them.

In case you are still facing the same issue even after trying every solution listed in this article. In this case, the final option that you can try is to contact Steam support for better assistance.

You can use the attached link to navigate to the page where you just need to click the Contact Steam Support then give the necessary details about the problem you are facing right now.