Photoshop 2026 will not open

Since you've already reinstalled both Photoshop and Creative Cloud several times and the NVIDIA Studio driver is up to date, I wouldn't keep repeating the reinstall.

The fact that Photoshop shows the splash screen for a few seconds and then disappears makes me suspect something outside the basic installation — especially a plugin, Windows component, GPU-related conflict, or corrupted user data.

One thing I'd check next is Windows Event Viewer:

Start → Event Viewer → Windows Logs → Application

Try launching Photoshop, wait for it to disappear, then immediately check for an Error at that exact time. Look specifically at the Faulting application name, Faulting module name, and Exception code.

The faulting module could give you a much better clue than another reinstall. For example, if it points to an NVIDIA/graphics component, Windows DLL, or third-party plugin, you can troubleshoot that specific component instead of reinstalling Photoshop again.

I'd also temporarily disable any third-party Photoshop plugins and utilities such as GPU overlays, screen-recording tools, MSI Afterburner/RivaTuner, or similar background software.

Given your Aero 5 + RTX 3070 Ti + Windows 11 setup, I'd especially like to see the Event Viewer crash entry. If you post the Faulting module name and Exception code here, someone may be able to narrow down the actual cause.

Philip, Since you’ve already reinstalled Photoshop several times, tried the keyboard reset shortcuts, and closed Adobe processes from Task Manager, I wouldn’t keep reinstalling it. If Photoshop starts loading and then suddenly disappears, the cause is often a GPU driver, plugin, corrupted settings, permissions, or another Windows component.

Here’s what I would check, step by step.

1. Update or Roll Back Your GPU Driver

Photoshop uses the GPU heavily, and a driver problem can cause it to crash during startup.

• Check whether you have an NVIDIA, AMD, or Intel GPU.
• Download the latest stable driver directly from the manufacturer's website.
• Install it and restart Windows.
• If the problem started immediately after a recent GPU driver update, try installing the previous stable driver instead.

Also avoid using a very old driver just because Photoshop worked with it previously.

2. Start Photoshop Without Third-Party Plugins

An incompatible plugin can make Photoshop crash before the interface even appears.

If you recently installed or updated a plugin, temporarily remove or disable it and try launching Photoshop again.

If Photoshop starts normally afterward, enable your plugins one at a time until you find the one causing the crash.

3. Reset Photoshop Preferences Manually

You already tried the keyboard shortcut, but I would still try creating a completely fresh preferences folder.

Close Photoshop and Creative Cloud completely first.

Instead of immediately deleting your existing preferences, rename the Photoshop preferences folder. This gives you a backup and allows Photoshop to create a new one automatically when it launches.

If Photoshop opens after this, the old preferences were probably corrupted.

4. Check Windows Event Viewer

This is probably the most useful step if Photoshop simply disappears without displaying an error.

Open:

Start → Event Viewer → Windows Logs → Application

Then:

1. Try opening Photoshop.
2. Wait for it to crash.
3. Go back to Event Viewer.
4. Look for an Error recorded at the same time.
5. Open the error and look for:
   • Faulting application name
   • Faulting module name
   • Exception code

The Faulting module name is particularly useful. If it points to a graphics driver, DLL, plugin, or another component, that can give you a much better idea of what is actually causing the crash.

5. Temporarily Disable Overlays and Background Utilities

Some applications inject themselves into other programs and can interfere with Photoshop.

As a test, temporarily close things such as:

• MSI Afterburner / RivaTuner
• GPU overlays
• Screen-recording software
• Game overlays
• Third-party antivirus features
• RGB/control utilities
• Other applications that monitor or modify graphics applications

Then try Photoshop again.

6. Check Photoshop's Permissions

Right-click the Photoshop shortcut and open Properties → Compatibility.

Make sure you aren't forcing Photoshop to run in compatibility mode unless Adobe specifically recommends it for your setup.

Also check whether Run this program as an administrator is enabled. If you previously changed this setting while troubleshooting, return it to the normal/default configuration and test again.

7. Check Creative Cloud

Because Photoshop is managed through Creative Cloud, make sure the Creative Cloud desktop application itself is working normally.

Sign out and back into Creative Cloud, then check for pending updates.

I'd also restart Windows after updating Creative Cloud rather than immediately launching Photoshop.

8. Test With a Clean Windows Startup

If nothing above works, another application or service may be interfering with Photoshop.

You can perform a clean boot of Windows and then try launching Photoshop.

If Photoshop works after a clean boot, that strongly suggests another startup application or service is causing the conflict. You can then enable the disabled services gradually to identify the culprit.

9. Check Windows and System Updates

Make sure Windows 11 is fully updated.

Also check:

Settings → Windows Update → Advanced options → Optional updates

Look for relevant driver updates, particularly graphics or chipset drivers.

However, if the Photoshop problem started immediately after a Windows or driver update, don't assume that installing even more updates will fix it. In that situation, identifying the recent change is more useful.

10. Don't Keep Reinstalling Photoshop

Because you've already performed several reinstallations, I wouldn't make that the next step.

A reinstall generally won't fix:

• A broken GPU driver
• An incompatible plugin
• Corrupted user preferences
• A Windows DLL problem
• Overlay software conflicts
• A permissions issue
• A problem introduced by a recent driver or Windows update

That's why I'd troubleshoot the environment around Photoshop instead of repeatedly reinstalling the application.

What I Would Check First

If this were my system, I'd go in this order:

1. GPU driver — update or roll back
2. Disable third-party plugins
3. Reset Photoshop preferences
4. Check Event Viewer for the faulting module
5. Disable overlays/background utilities
6. Check Creative Cloud and Windows updates
7. Try a clean Windows boot

The Event Viewer result would be especially helpful. If you can post the Faulting module name and Exception code from the crash, along with your GPU model and Windows 11 version, people here should be able to narrow this down much more accurately instead of guessing.

Hopefully one of these steps gets you back to work without having to reinstall Photoshop for the fifth time.

Also note this is how disingenuous Adobe is.  The answer listed as “correct” does not actually solve the inherent problems.  It might in some cases where the basis is relatively simple.  

Sorry.

The opening screen appears then disappears after a few seconds. 

I have uninstalled and reinstalled PS and Creative Cloud Desktop.

My NVIDIA studio driver is up to date.  

I try to run as administrator from the file location.

I have ran task manager and ended all Adobe tasks.

Sometimes after re-installing, it will open the first time.  After that it goes back to just not opening.

Gigabyte Aero 5

12th Gen Intel i7-12700

64GB RAM

GTX 3070 TI 8GB

I still can’t launch Photoshop.  I am so sick of Adobe.  I have to spend so much time trying to uninstall and then reinstall  Creative Cloud, or an app that won’t launch.  It’s pathetic that I spend so much money on Adobe and have to go through all of this.

I travel for work and most of the time the internet that I can get is very slow.  

Thank you, I will run through these suggestions.  I can’t be sure what caused this issue, it has been happening on and off for a year or so.