Starfield Crashing: 12 Effective Fixes For PC

Starfield is inarguably one of the biggest game releases of 2023 that’s been touted as Bethesda Studio’s magnum-opus in the works since 2018. But taking the sheer scale of the game into consideration, there are bound to be bugs and issues with it. Thankfully, there aren’t many bugs compared to other prominent AAA releases. However, Sudden crashes are one of the worst issues that’s been bothering players on PC. We’ll investigate this issue and find the best solutions for the Starfield crashing issue for both Xbox and PC.

Why Is Starfield Crashing On Your PC?

Starfield just fully launched today, and players have been facing crashing issues in it ever since the early access days. This is quite problematic for players who’ve been waiting for the game’s release and counting down every second until they can get their hands on it.

Now, the Starfield crashing problem might be happening due to several reasons, including: 

• Issues with Xbox Game Pass subscription on PC.
• Servers are overloaded with players.
• PC lacks components with the power to run the game.
• Starfield lacks proper permissions to run.
• Missing/Corrupted game files.
• Problems with your internet connection.
• Outdated GPU drivers.
• Issues with the Xbox App.
• Starfield is restricted by your system antivirus.

These are just some of the factors that can cause Starfield crashing issues and prevent you from playing the game for a longer period of time without any hitches. Now that we’ve identified a handful of issues let’s work towards resolving them. 

System Requirements For Starfield

Just before we start applying different fixes to help you solve the Starfield crashing issue, we first need to make sure your PC can run the game at all. 

Starfield, being one of the biggest games of 2023, will require a decent PC to run it properly with all the graphical bells and whistles turned on. As you can see from the infographic above, Besthesda encourages players to run the game on AMD hardware to get the most optimal experience. However, the game will run just fine on non-AMD hardware just as long as your PC matches or exceeds the official Starfield system requirements below: 

Minimum System Requirements For Starfield

• Operating System: Windows 10 version 21H1 (10.0.19043)
• CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 2600X, Intel Core i7-6800K
• System RAM: 16 GB RAM
• Graphics Card: AMD Radeon RX 5700, NVIDIA GeForce 1070 Ti
• DirectX Version: 12
• Network Type: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage Space Requirement: 125 GB of available space
• Further Notes: SSD Required

Recommended System Requirements For Starfield

• Operating System: Windows 10/11 with updates
• CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600X, Intel i5-10600K
• System RAM: 16 GB RAM
• Graphics Card: AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080
• DirectX Version: 12
• Network Type: Broadband Internet connection
• Storage Space Requirement: 125 GB of available space
• Further Notes: SSD Required

Have you finished comparing your PC specs with the system requirements of Startfield? If your PC matches or exceeds the requirements above, then you can move ahead with the Starfield crashing fixes below. If not, then I’m afraid upgrades are in order if you’re really looking forward to playing the game. 

Fix Starfield Crashing Issue On PC

You should consider that Starfield is a game that’s just released, and it’s bound to have some bugs and glitches, including the Starfield crashing issue. However, until the developers fix these issues, our fixes will come in handy to let you continue your space odyssey without any bumps. 

Verify Whether The Game Servers Are Normal

The problem with a game like Starfield is that there are tons of players just waiting to get into it and start playing. The same thing happened with Diablo 4, and the same is happening with Starfield as well.

So, before you start bashing your system for crashing every time you launch Starfield, I recommend that you first check whether the servers are operational and not overloaded with traffic. To do that, you can simply visit either the official Starfield Twitter/X page or check out Bethesda server status from third-party sites like downdetector.

If you don’t find any server indicators on the above platforms, you can also join Starfield’s official discord server and ask the community here directly. 

Diagnose Your Internet Connection

Another reason behind your Starfield crashing problem might be your internet connection. The slow internet connection can lead to connectivity issues with the Starfield servers. Apart from connectivity problems, not having a fast enough internet connection can also timeout your connection before your game can properly contact the servers. 

There are several problems that originate from having problems with your internet connection. This is why I recommend you test your network connection first. You can check the internet speed through third-party speed testers on the internet, e.g., Speedtest.net or Fast.com.

If your internet speed is lower than its usual bandwidth, then you can try the following actions to help improve the speed:

• Restart Router/Modem: The first course of action in treating slow internet is to restart your internet modem. When you restart your modem or router, it’s internal. The cache gets cleared, and the stability of the internet improves. 
• Reduce Network Load: It often happens that your friends or family members might be using the internet at the same time. This can lead to network congestion, which slows down your internet access a lot. Try to disconnect unnecessary devices off your network that aren’t in use and just idly consume your bandwidth. 
• Use Wired Connection: Using an Ethernet cable from the modem directly to your PC or laptop is a significantly better option. A wired connection is much more reliable and faster as there is no bandwidth drop due to signal drops compared to WiFi. 
• Contact ISP: If nothing else works and your internet connection continues to be a problem that’s causing the Starfield crashing issue, then you should contact your ISP. Try to explain to them the problem that you’re facing in detail. They’ll give you an ETA when the problem will be fixed. 

Check Your Steam/Xbox App

Sometimes, there can be problems with the game clients themselves that you’re trying to launch the game on. You can play Starfield right now on both Steam and Xbox App. So, you should try the following to see if the issue is resolved. 

Restart The Game Client

Sometimes, a game client can get buggy due to malfunction, which can cause certain features to stop working. The same could be the reason why you’re facing Starfield crashing issue. To restart it is really great for it. Here’s how to properly restart both Steam and Xbox App: 

1. Open up Task Manager by using the shortcut key CTRL+SHIFT+ESC. 
2. You need to click on the Details tab on the left, and you’ll come face to face with tons of applications running on your PC.
3. To close Steam Client, simply press the “S” key to quickly jump to the apps whose names start with S. Here, you’ll see Steam processes. All you need to do is simply Right-Click on the main Steam.exe process and end it. 

   

4. To close down the Xbox App, you can use the same Task Manager method or type Xbox in Windows Search and Right-Click on it, then access App Settings. 

   

5. Inside the App Settings, you need to scroll down until you see the terminate option. Simply click on the Terminate button to close down the Xbox App.

   

6. After you close down Xbox App/Steam, simply start them back up by searching for them in Windows Search and clicking on the first result. 

Clear Cache Of Steam Or Xbox App

If restarting the Steam or Xbox App didn’t work for you, then you can try clearing the cache for them. These game clients build up cache over time as you play different games through them. This cache can become corrupted, causing problems for the game client. So, you can simply clear the cache for both Steam and Xbox App. Here’s how:

Steam

1. Open up Steam and click on the Steam button on the top-left corner of the screen. 
2. As the context menu opens, select the settings from it. 

   

3. After the settings open, head over to the Downloads tab on the left and then click on the Clear Cache button on the right side. 

   

After you’re done, Steam will reboot, and you’ll need to login back. This will make Steam snappier on top of solving the Starfield crashing issue.

Xbox App

1. You’ll have to access Xbox App settings by following the same method I’ve shown above. 
2. After you’ve accessed the Xbox App settings, you’ll need to scroll down until you see the Repair button. Simply click on it. 

   

The process will take mere minutes. I recommend that you also terminate the application just for safe measure. After you’re done, relaunch the Xbox App and start up the game to see if you’ve finally solved the Starfield crashing issue. 

Repair/Reinstall Game Client

As a last resort, you can try uninstalling Steam or Xbox App and do a fresh install to get Starfield working again. This has proven highly effective in my testing when games are simply not launching or crashing a lot. The process is also quite straightforward.

You can simply uninstall either by looking up Add or Remove Programs in the Windows Search and clicking on the first link. After the Window opens up, simply search for either Steam or Xbox App and choose to uninstall it. After you’re done, you can install them back up and check whether Starfield is working or not. 

Update Microsoft Gaming Services & Xbox App

Since most of the players are excited to get their hands on Starfield through Xbox Game Pass on Day 1, they’re having problems playing it without the game crashing all of a sudden. The problem might originate from the Microsoft Gaming Services and Xbox application being outdated or corrupted on your PC. 

Here’s how you can update Microsoft Gaming Services & Xbox App:

1. You’ll have to open Microsoft Store by searching for it in the Windows Search. Simply Type “Microsoft Store” in the search and click the first result. 
2. After accessing the store, you’ll need to go to your app library on the second-last icon in the bottom-left. 
3. Here, the first thing you need to do is click on the “Get Updates” button on the top right. 
4. After the Store completes its scan, it’ll start updating the apps that have pending updates. This will also get your Xbox Application and Microsoft Gaming Services updated. 

After you’re done, simply close down the Microsoft Store and try launching Starfield through the Xbox App. Your game would start working normally if the problem originated from an outdated app or framework. 

Run Starfield With Administrator Privileges

Most of the time, when games like Starfield are having trouble running normally on your PC, it’s probably because of a lack of permissions. By default, Microsoft Windows doesn’t give applications or games complete access to your PC as a security measure. However, you can bypass this security measure by simply running Starfield as an administrator. Here’s how to do it: 

1. All you need to do is simply locate the installation folder for Starfield on your PC.
2. If you’re playing on the Xbox App, you’ll find the Starfield folder inside C:/XboxGames. 

   

3. If you’re playing on Steam, you’ll need to go into your Game Library, right-click on Starfield, hover over manage, and select the browse local files option. 
4. After you gain access to Starfield’s install directory, right-click on the main Starfield executable file and access its properties.
5. After you’re inside properties, head over to the compatibility tab.

   

6. Here, you need to check Run this program as an Administrator and Disable Fullscreen Optimizations.
7. Once you’re done, simply click on OK to save changes. 

After this, you can launch Starfield and play for a while. If the Starfield crashing issue was occurring due to a lack of proper permissions, this will resolve it. You’ll be able to play the game without any issues moving forward.

Repair Starfield Game Files

Another major reason why you’re facing the Starfield crashing problem is that game files might have gone missing or corrupted. This will cause the game to crash, even if you’re just in the main menu or don’t launch at all. So, to fix this, you’ll have to verify the game files for Starfield whether you’re playing it through Steam or Xbox App. Here’s how to do it: 

Xbox App

If you’re playing Starfield through the Xbox App, you can repair Starfield right from inside the Windows. Just follow the steps below: 

1. Open up Windows Search and type “Starfield” in the search.
2. Once the Starfield icon pops up, right-click on the Icon and select App Settings.
3. Inside the App Settings, scroll down until you see the Reset section. Click the Repair Button that’s right under it. 

   

This process will take a few minutes to several, depending on your storage device. Once the process is done, simply restart the Xbox App and launch Starfield. 

Steam

Unlike the Microsoft Windows method of repairing applications, Steam has a dedicated game file verification utility that saves you the trouble of redownloading the game entirely. Here’s how to do it: 

1. Open up Steam from either the taskbar or the Windows Search. 
2. Once Steam opens up, look up Starfield in your Game Library and right-click on it to access its properties.

   

3. Once you Open up Starfield’s properties, you’ll need to head over to the installed files and click on the Verify Integrity of Game Files on the right.

   

After you click on the verify integrity of game files, Steam will start to scan Starfield’s game directory and figure out which files are missing or have become corrupted. Once the scan finishes, Steam will notify you of the number of files that need to be downloaded. Now, it’ll start downloading said files and replace them automatically in your install directory. 

Now you can simply start up the game and rest easy knowing that verifying game files has fixed the Starfield crashing issue.

Turn Off FSR And Turn VSync On

Players in the forums are reporting that FSR 2.0 implementation in the Starfield is actually making the performance worse. In some cases, it’s even causing the Starfield crashing issue for them. Until FSR is fixed, or you opt to install the popular DLSS mod, I recommend turning it off and capping your frames to 60. Here’s how to do it: 

1. Launch Starfield, and from the main menu, head towards the Settings menu. 
2. Inside Settings, you’ll need to access the Display settings. 
3. Inside the Display settings, go ahead and disable turn the Upscaling option to Off and Vsync to On. 

After you’re done, simply restart Starfield and start playing the game. You’ll notice the game is quite stable this time around, and you won’t be facing any crashing issues at this point. 

Lower In-Game Settings

Starfield takes a major toll on your GPU. This means you’ll need a beefy GPU to run the game anywhere from medium to high settings at modern resolutions. Now, the problem is, even if you have a GPU that’s right according to the Starfield requirements, it’ll get under immense load running the game’s textures, and the game will become noticeably unstable before it crashes to the desktop. 

In this situation, I recommend that you simply lower some graphics settings until the game gets a few more patches. Once it becomes more stable than it is in the current position, then you can crank these backups. Here are the settings that you need to use: 

• Set the Shadows Quality to Medium.
• Indirect Lighting should be set to Medium as well.
• Set the Reflections to Low.
• Particle Quality should be turned to Low.
• Medium is a great sweet spot for Volumetric Lighting.
• GTAO should be set to Medium.
• Grass Quality is also quite demanding. Set it to low or medium.
• Contact Shadows should be set to Low.

These settings will get you a significant boost in performance and also lighten the load on your PC. It’ll prevent your system from crashing Starfield every time you enter a planet with densely populated objects and scenery. 

Clear DirectX Shader Cache

The next fix to prevent the Starfield crashing issue is clearing up the built-up DirectX Shader Cache in your Windows PC. We usually do this fix for EA games, as they get the most benefit from this fix. However, for readers who’re especially playing Starfield through the Xbox App, clearing the DirectX shader cache will help them solve the crashes. Here’s how to do it:

1. To clear DirectX Shader Cache, you’ll need to first step into the Windows Settings by hitting the shortcut key WIN + I.
2. After you access the settings, go into the Storage Settings.

   

3. Once you are inside the Storage settings, open up the Temporary Files section.

   

4. Here, all you have to do is checkmark the option that says DirectX Shader Cache and then simply click on the remove button on the top of the page.

   

This will clear all the DirectX Shader Cache stored on your PC. After you’re done cleaning it, I recommend that you restart your PC once. 

Now, you can boot up, and you’ll notice that the game is recompiling shaders. After this process is completed, start up the game, and hopefully, you won’t be facing crashing issues anymore. 

Update Your GPU Drivers

As I’ve said before, Starfield is one of the biggest games of 2023, and GPU manufacturers have the latest driver updates ready for you to install. These updates contain several performance enhancements to make your gameplay experience better in every aspect. So, I highly recommend that you update your drivers for both Nvidia and AMD GPUs before playing Starfield. Here’s how to do it: 

Nvidia

The latest Game-Ready drivers for Starfield are available, and you should install them immediately before you step into Starfield. You can install them either manually or through the GeForce Experience Application. I recommend the latter as it’s much easier. Here’s how to do it: 

1. First, you have to open the GeForce Experience Application through the taskbar in the bottom-right corner of your desktop. 
2. Once you have it opened, head over to the Drivers tab and check for updates.
3. If you haven’t already installed the latest drivers, you’ll see the Download button. Click on it to start downloading the latest Game-Ready driver.

   

4. After it’s downloaded, click on Express Installation to start installing the driver.
5. Once it’s done, simply restart your PC to finalize the new driver’s installation.

Now, you’re running the latest and greatest Game-Ready drivers from Nvidia. So, if your Starfield was crashing due to outdated drivers, installing these drivers will resolve that. You can further boost the performance of these new drivers by following my Nvidia best settings guide. 

AMD

AMD is Starfield’s official Bethesda PC partner, so it’s obvious they’d push the latest drivers for the game as well. You can install these drivers by simply downloading the AMD Software Adrenaline Edition. Here’s how to do the whole process. 

1. First, you need to open up AMD Software by right-clicking on the desktop and opening it from the context menu. 
2. After the software opens up, you’ll need to head over to the Home page and spot the Driver & Software section on the right. 
3. Click on Check for Updates to ensure your GPU’s latest drivers are available. Once the check is completed, all you need to do is click on the Download button. 
4. After the AMD software finishes the installation process, all you need to do is restart your PC to finalize the process. 

And there you have it; you’ll have the latest AMD drivers at your disposal to conquer planets in Starfield. This will not only improve your overall gameplay experience with Starfield but also resolve any Starfield crashing issues that you were facing before. To further enhance your driver’s capabilities, follow my AMD best settings guide. 

Whitelist Starfield From Your Antivirus

The antivirus software is the number one reason behind several problems in games, and this can also be the reason behind the Starfield crashing issue. To verify whether this is really the case, we’ll need to disable the antivirus on your PC temporarily. We’ll be taking Windows Defender as an example, but you can apply the same method to any antivirus solution you have on your PC. 

Disabling Antivirus

1. Open Windows Search and type Windows Security. Click on the first result that shows up. 
2. After you’re inside the Windows Security settings, you need to go into the Virus and Threat Protection tab. Here, simply click on the Manage Settings option.

   

3. In this section, you need to toggle off the Real-Time Protection service which will disable the antivirus on your PC.

   

Now that we’ve deactivated the antivirus shields on your system go ahead and launch Starfield. Play around for a bit and check whether you’re experiencing any crashes or not. If you aren’t facing any crashes, then the problem really was the antivirus messing with Starfield. 

However, we can’t leave Windows Defender disabled just to play a game. So, instead, we’ll be whitelisting the game’s installation folder in Windows Security. This way, even if we turn back on the antivirus, it won’t interfere with Starfield anymore. Here’s what you need to do: 

Whitelisting Game Directory

1. Since you’re already in the manage settings section of the Windows Defender, all you need to do is scroll down to the bottom until you see the Exclusions section. Here, you need to click on Add or Remove Exclusions.

   

2. Once you go inside the Exclusions settings, you need to click on the +Add An Exclusion button and add the installation folder for Starfield. 
3. After you’re inside the exclusions settings, you need to click on +Add an Exclusion and select the folder option.

   

Starfield will be excluded from being scanned from your system’s antivirus. Now you can re-enable the Virus and Threat Protection and play Starfield without any interruptions. 

Remove Overclocking Profile From Your PC

If you had been waiting for Starfield for a long time, you might have prepared your PC to run the game at its maximum performance capabilities. This means you might have applied overclocks to your hardware so you can squeeze every bit of performance when you finally have access to the game. 

However, this isn’t working well for players as the overclocking profile can conflict with the game, causing it to crash and even not launch at all. This might be a letdown for a few PC players, but you can do two things in this scenario. 

• You can either completely restore the clock speed of your hardware, essentially disabling overclocking profiles of any sort.
• Or you can fine-tune the overclocking limits and keep testing Starfiled to see what overclocks the game runs stable at. Once you find that limit, go nuts. 

Did You Fix The Crashing Issue?

And there you have it. I’ve listed every possible solution to help you solve Starfield’s crashing issue. Starfield just got released today, so expect this kind of issue to surface, considering the sheer scale of the game. However, the developers are actively listening to player feedback and devising hotfixes and patch notes as you’re reading this.

If your problem is severe and you need an expert opinion, I suggest you contact official support. They’ll surely analyze your particular issue and provide the best solution that’ll work. 

Here’s what you can read next on Starfield from eXputer: 

• Starfield How to Install DLSS Mod
• Starfield Best Graphics Settings
• Starfield Into The Unknown Bug [FIXED]
• How To Fix Starfield Not Downloading
• Best Starfield Settings For Maximum Performance On PC
• Starfield Unable To Log In Error [SOLVED]