Fix: Discord Not Working with CSGO

2012’s Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) is still popular worldwide for its team-based multiplayer first-person shooter gaming and the free-to-play option is competing with other FPS titles greatly. Most of the gamers and streamers do prefer Discord overlay for text & voice chat with teammates, getting notifications, and more. However, it seems that somehow the Discord overlay is not working with the CSGO gameplay on the Windows PC.

Plenty of CS:GO players have reported the same and it’s one of the common issues among PC gamers because the particular Discord overlay issue also appears on other video games. Obviously, it becomes frustrating for someone to deal with, especially while in the gaming sessions. So, there is nothing to worry about it. Here we’ve shared a couple of possible workarounds for you that should help a lot. So, without wasting any more time, let’s jump into it.

1. Quit and Run Discord Again

The first thing you should do is simply quit Discord forcefully and run it again by following the steps below. Sometimes a normal close and open program on Windows may not work as expected.

Make sure to click on the User Settings option from the Discord interface.
Now, scroll down and click on Log Out.
Again click on the Log Out button to confirm.

Note: Try repeating this process for a couple of times until it registers.

Once logged out of your account, right-click on the Discord icon from the taskbar then select Quit/Exit.
Finally, open the Discord app again, and sign in to the account to check for the overlay not working issue.

2. Disable and Enable Discord Overlay

The second thing you should do to disable and re-enable the Discord overlay option by following the steps below.

Open the Discord app > Click on the gear icon at the bottom.
Click on Overlay under App Settings > Make sure to Disable the Enable in-game overlay toggle.
Restart the system to apply changes > Go to the Discord Overlay option again.
This time you’ll have to Turn On the Enable in-game overlay toggle.
Now, click on the Games tab > Select CS:GO.

3. Reset Voice Settings on Discord

Try resetting the Discord voice settings option via the steps below to ensure there is no issue with the audio adjustments. An incorrect audio setting can ruin the gaming experience.

Open Discord > Click on the User Settings icon on the Discord windows.
Next, select Voice & Video > Click on Reset Voice Settings.
Then click on Okay to confirm the reset voice setting.
Finally, reconnect your headset microphone and try to send an audio message to others.

4. Select Headset Mic from the Input Device

You can also try this method to select the particular headset microphone from the Input Device option on Discord.

First, click on the User Settings on the Discord windows.
Next, click on Voice & Video.
Select the microphone from your headset under the Input Device.

5. Run Discord as an Administrator

Make sure to run the Discord app executable file as an administrator to avoid user account control regarding privilege issues. To do this:

Right-click on the Discord exe shortcut file on your PC.
Now, select Properties > Click on the Compatibility tab.

Make sure to click on the Run this program as an administrator checkbox to checkmark it.
Click on Apply and select OK to save changes.

6. Whitelist Discord in the Antivirus Software

It’s also highly recommended to whitelist the Discord application file in the antivirus software manually by following the steps below.

Go to the Start menu > Go to Settings.
Go to Update and Security > Click on Windows Security.
Select Firewall & Network Protection > Select the Allow an App through the Firewall option.
Now, check for the Discord.exe file by browsing from the location and clicking on OK to add it.

If in case, you’re using any other third-party antivirus application then make sure to add an exception to the antivirus program for the Discord exe file.

7. Try Disabling Hardware Acceleration in Discord

Well, the Hardware Acceleration feature in Discord uses the graphics card to make its processes smoother. However, many users have reported that sometimes, this feature may cause the Discord overlay not working issue.

If in case, you’ve turned on the hardware acceleration feature in Discord and the Discord overlay doesn’t work issue may appear. Try disabling hardware acceleration in Discord by following the steps below.

Open the Discord app > Click on the gear icon to open User Settings.
Click on Appearance from the left pane > Make sure to Turn Off the Hardware Acceleration toggle.
Once done, you can run the CS:GO game again to check the Discord overlay issue again.

8. Allow Microphone Access on Windows

You should try allowing the microphone access on Windows manually to the apps to use it properly. If your system doesn’t have enough access to your headphone mic then the installed apps will also find it difficult to continue using it. To do so:

Click the Windows icon on the taskbar to open the Start menu.
Now, click on Windows Settings > Click on Privacy.
Scroll down to App Permissions on the left menu and click on it > Click on Microphone.
Make sure to Turn On the Allow apps to access your microphone option.

9. Ensure to Enable Browser Access

If the problem is still bothering you then you can try turning on the browser access for the Discord site to work the microphone properly. To do that:

For Google Chrome:

Open Google Chrome > Click on the Menu (three dots icon) from the top right corner.
Now, click on Settings from the menu > Click on Privacy and Security from the left pane.
Click on Site Settings > Choose to Microphone.
If the Discord site is listed under the Blocked section, then make sure to click on the trash icon to remove it.
Now, visit the Discord site on the browser > Click on the lock icon on the left side of the address bar to check whether the microphone access is enabled or not. If not, you can also turn it on from there directly.

For Firefox:

Open the Mozilla Firefox browser > Type about:permissions on the address bar and hit Enter.
Now, the browser will show you a list of apps and their permissions whether granted or not.
Search and click on Discordapp.com site from the list > Under the Use Microphone section, click on Allow.
Once done, open the CS:GO game to check for the issue.

10. Add CS:GO to Discord In-Game Activity

Some of the affected CS:GO players did mention that adding the game file to the Discord in-game activity option worked best to fix this issue. Therefore, you should also try it out.

Open the Discord app > Go to Settings.
Head over to Game Activity > Here you’ll get a list of games that you’ve allowed for the overlay feature.
Just select CS:GO and enable the overlay option for it.

11. Verify and Repair Game Files

The chances are high that somehow the installed CS:GO game files become corrupted or missing on the PC. Therefore, the game is unable to run properly. You can follow the steps below to easily verify the game files and try repairing them automatically via the Steam client.

Open up Steam > Go to Library.
Right-click on the CS:GO game.
Click on Properties > Go to the Local Files tab.
Select Verify Integrity of Game Files…
This process will start verifying and checking all the installed game files to whether there is a missing/corrupted file located or not.
Let the process be completed. Once done, close the Steam client, and restart your computer to apply changes.
Finally, re-open Steam, and try running the CS:GO game again.

12. Reinstall Discord

If the above methods didn’t work for you and the Discord overlay is still not working then you can try the following steps:

Press the Windows icon on your keyboard to open the Start menu.
Search and open Control Panel > Click on Uninstall a program.
Make sure to double-click on Discord from the list to start Uninstalling it.
Once the Discord app has been uninstalled, make sure to restart your PC to apply changes.
Now, head over to the official Discord website and download the installer file on the PC.
Install the Discord application as usual we do and log into the account.
Finally, Turn On the Enable the in-game overlay option for your CS:GO game.

13. Update CS:GO

If in case, you haven’t updated your CS:GO game for a while then it may also be possible that there is a new patch update available with bugs fixes and more improvements. Make sure to follow the steps below to check for the game update and install the latest patch (if available).

Open the Steam client > Go to Library > Click on CS:GO from the left pane.
It’ll automatically search for the available update. If there is an update available, make sure to click on Update.
It may take some time to install the update > Once done, make sure to close the Steam client.
Finally, reboot your PC to apply changes, and then try launching the game again.

14. Reinstall CS:GO

If none of the methods worked for you then you can try uninstalling and reinstalling the CS:GO game properly to check if that helps you or not. We can understand that uninstalling and reinstalling a game can be a headache for some users but there is nothing to do on your end. To do so:

Launch the Steam client on your computer.
Now, go to Library > Right-click on the CS:GO game.
Head over to Manage > Select Uninstall.
You’ll be redirected to Control Panel (Uninstall a Program) > Here click on CS:GO and select Uninstall.
If prompted, click on Uninstall again to confirm the process and follow the on-screen instructions to complete it.
Once done, make sure to reboot your computer to apply changes immediately.
Finally, launch the Steam client > Reinstall the CS:GO game again using the existing Steam account. [Make sure to select a different location for installation this time]
You’re good to go.

That’s it, guys. We assume this guide was helpful to you. For further queries, you can comment below.

Fix: Discord Not Working with CSGO