Stopping Steam from launching at startup involves modifying your computer’s startup settings. Here’s how you can do it:

Note: The steps might vary slightly depending on your operating system, but I’ll provide instructions for Windows and macOS.

For Windows:

1. Using Task Manager:
   • Right-click on the taskbar and select “Task Manager” from the context menu.
   • In the Task Manager window, click on the “Startup” tab.
   • Locate “Steam Client Bootstrapper” in the list of startup programs.
   • Right-click on “Steam Client Bootstrapper” and select “Disable.”
2. Using Steam Settings:
   • Open Steam.
   • Click on “Steam” in the top-left corner and select “Settings.”
   • In the Settings window, go to the “Interface” section.
   • Uncheck the box that says “Run Steam when my computer starts.”
   • Click “OK” to save the changes.

For macOS:

1. Using System Preferences:
   • Click on the Apple menu in the top-left corner and select “System Preferences.”
   • Choose “Users & Groups” (or “Users & Accounts” on older macOS versions).
   • Select your username from the list on the left and click on the “Login Items” tab.
   • Find “Steam” in the list of login items.
   • Select “Steam” and click the “-” button below the list to remove it from startup.
2. Using Steam Settings:
   • Open Steam.
   • Click on “Steam” in the top-left corner and select “Preferences.”
   • In the Preferences window, go to the “Interface” section.
   • Uncheck the box that says “Run Steam when my computer starts.”
   • Close the Preferences window to save the changes.

Remember that these steps will prevent Steam from launching at startup, but you can still manually open Steam whenever you want to use it.

If you ever change your mind and want Steam to start at startup again, simply reverse the steps and enable the “Run Steam when my computer starts” option in the Steam settings or re-add Steam to the startup items list in your operating system’s settings.