diff --git a/crates/ui-egui/src/screen_picker.rs b/crates/ui-egui/src/screen_picker.rs
index 865f6537d1..b9c163d3f8 100644
--- a/crates/ui-egui/src/screen_picker.rs
+++ b/crates/ui-egui/src/screen_picker.rs
@@ -259,7 +259,9 @@ fn viewport_builder(ctx: &Context, image: &ScreenImage) -> egui::ViewportBuilder
         .with_resizable(false)
         .with_position(image.position / ctx.zoom_factor())
         .with_inner_size(image.size / ctx.zoom_factor())
-        .with_window_level(egui::WindowLevel::AlwaysOnTop)
+        // Not `AlwaysOnTop` here: a monitor-sized window created topmost makes the DX12 backend
+        // fail its swapchain creation (0x887A0001) and the app panics. The level is raised once
+        // the first frame has been painted, in `show`.
         // Do not expose the native window's empty first frame over the desktop.
         // The viewport is made visible after its snapshot has been painted below.
         .with_visible(false)
@@ -280,7 +282,10 @@ pub fn show(ctx: &Context) {
         let shared = r.clone();
         let vid = egui::ViewportId::from_hash_of(("screen-color", generation, n));
         let builder = viewport_builder(ctx, &image);
-        ctx.show_viewport_deferred(vid, builder, move |ui, _| {
+        // Immediate, so it paints inside the main window's own frame: as a deferred viewport the
+        // main window stopped being redrawn on Windows (OpenGL) once the picker was up, so a click
+        // or Esc was never turned into an answer and the overlay could not be left.
+        ctx.show_viewport_immediate(vid, builder, move |ui, _| {
             {
                 let s = lock(&shared);
                 if s.generation != generation || s.owner.is_none() {
@@ -334,6 +339,11 @@ pub fn show(ctx: &Context) {
             // Showing a new native viewport before this frame is painted can briefly cover
             // the screen with the window's default white clear color.
             ui.ctx().send_viewport_cmd(egui::ViewportCommand::Visible(true));
+            // Once per picker window: `show` runs every frame, so a local flag would resend it.
+            let raised = Id::new(("screen-picker-raised", ui.ctx().viewport_id()));
+            if !ui.ctx().data_mut(|d| std::mem::replace(d.get_temp_mut_or_default::<bool>(raised), true)) {
+                ui.ctx().send_viewport_cmd(egui::ViewportCommand::WindowLevel(egui::WindowLevel::AlwaysOnTop));
+            }
         });
     }
 }
@@ -393,6 +403,12 @@ mod tests {
         assert_eq!(builder.visible, Some(false));
     }
     #[test]
+    fn screen_picker_viewport_is_not_created_always_on_top() {
+        // Creating the monitor-sized window topmost fails DX12 swapchain creation (Windows).
+        let builder = viewport_builder(&Context::default(), &image());
+        assert_eq!(builder.window_level, None);
+    }
+    #[test]
     fn pixel_mapping_handles_display_edges_negative_origins_and_hidpi() {
         let i = image();
         let rect = Rect::from_min_size(i.position, i.size);