Discord has emerged as one of the most popular messaging and collaboration platforms. As many as 140 million users use Discord every month. Discord is the go-to communication channel for not only gamers, but several brands like Epic Games, YouTube, and Newegg use Discord to build their community. Therefore, Discord overlay not working can be an intimidating situation.
Problems with Discord overlay can be due to several reasons, and the resolution method will depend on the cause of the issue. Here is a detailed guide to resolving Discord overlay not working.
Table of Contents
How to Fix Discord Overlay Not Working Easily in 2020?
Double-Check the In-Game Overlay Option
Sometimes, your Discord overlay may not be working because you haven’t turned it on. In most cases, the option is activated by default, but it’s good to check it once.
To check if the overlay option is enabled, head to the Discord app and click on Settings from in the bottom left corner. In the Settings section, select Overlay. You’ll find an “Enable in-game overlay” option. After clicking on it, you’ll see an Overlay Lock toggle. Keep it turned on.
Once you have activated the overlay feature, head to the Games section in your Discord settings. Select the video game you want to play and turn on the Overlay On option in the Game Activity section. If the game you’re playing doesn’t show up in the Discord Games section, you’ll need to add it first.
Fix Software Interruptions, if Any
If Discord overlay is not running, you might have some applications on your PC that interrupt Discord from displaying over other apps. Two types of apps are most likely to cause this issue:
- Apps that have overlay permissions
- Apps that can access the microphone
These apps could stop Discord overlay from working properly. Try shutting down these apps to check if they are causing the issue. To shut them down, open the task manager by pressing CTRL + Shift + Esc, click the problematic app, and click on End Task. Now, check if Discord overlay is working or not.
Disable Antivirus or Whitelist Discord
Although antivirus tools don’t generally interfere with Discord, some third-party tools may interrupt Discord overlay. You can easily find out if that’s the case by turning off your antivirus system for a while or whitelisting Discord. Then, try using the overlay feature and see if it works.
If the issue persists, the antivirus isn’t causing the problem. However, if the issue resolves, you’ll have to keep Discord in the whitelist.
Disable Hardware Acceleration if Discord Overlay Not Working
Discord has a Hardware Acceleration feature that uses your GPU to optimize GPU. While it improves the gaming experience, some users have faced overlay issues after turning on hardware acceleration. If you have enabled the feature, it might be the reason for the Discord overlay not working.
Disable the hardware acceleration feature and see if the issue persists. You can do that by heading to the Discord Settings and scrolling down to the Appearance section. Click on Appearance, and in the Appearance settings, find the Hardware Acceleration option. If you have, it turned on, turn it off and see if the problem persists.
Run Your Discord App in the Administrator Mode
I prefer running every software program in administrator mode. It gives the app extra permissions needed to run the program. If you aren’t running Discord as an administrator, overlay issues may occur. See if the problem resolves by running Discord as an administrator.
You can do that by right-clicking the Discord icon and then clicking on Properties. Select the Compatibility tab and check “Run this program as an administrator.” You could also click on “Run compatibility troubleshooter” to troubleshoot any hidden problems.
After turning on the administrator option, click on OK to save the settings. Open Discord again and run your game to see if the issue is still there.
Reinstall Discord
If none of the methods discussed above work, the final resort is to reinstall Discord. The Discord app may not be installed properly or have some bugs that the troubleshooter is not detecting. Uninstalling Discord and installing it again can resolve this issue.
To uninstall Discord, open Control Panel and click on Uninstall a program. You can open the Control Panel by opening the Start menu and searching for “Control Panel.” Or, you can open the Run window by pressing Win + R, type “control,” and click Ok.
After clicking on Uninstall a program, Control Panel will show a list of programs currently installed on your device. Select Discord and then click on Uninstall. Then, install Discord again, and repeat all the steps mentioned above.
Switch Your Device if Discord Overlay not Working
If none of the above methods work and you are still facing issues with overlay, your device likely has an issue. Try using a different PC or laptop, if possible. If the issue is fixed, it means your device was causing the problem. In that case, changing your PC or laptop will be the only viable option.
Are There Any Discord Alternatives?
While changing your device is a viable option, not everyone might be able to do it. In that case, you could try using an alternative to Discord. With the gaming and messaging industries booming, several Discord-like communication tools exist in the market.
Moreover, Discord lacks some features, such as privacy assurance, self-hosting availability, robust integration options, and a sleek user interface. Some amazing Discord alternatives are:
- TeamSpeak
- Slack
- nTask
- Flock
- Telegram
- Wire
- Chanty
- Element
- Mumble
- Rocket.Chat
Many of these tools, like Telegram, Slack, Mumble, and Element, are available on multiple platforms, like Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS, making them an ideal alternative to Discord.
Conclusion: Discord Overlay Not Working
If you are a gamer or community manager, Discord overlay not working can be a stressful event. Various reasons can cause the issue, and there are several steps you can take to resolve it. In most cases, you’ll be able to fix the overlay issue by following the troubleshooting steps discussed above. However, your device may be causing the problem in some cases, and you’ll need to change it.
