How to back up Steam game saves before switching PCs

The new PC is ready. Steam is installed, your library is there, and you are one download away from carrying on where you left off. Before you erase the old machine, there is one smaller thing to check: the save that contains your actual progress.

To back up Steam game saves before switching PCs, find each game's save folder, copy it to a separate dated backup, and check that the expected progress loads on the new computer. For games that support Steam Cloud, let synchronisation finish on the old PC before launching on the new one. Keep your original files until that final check succeeds.

This guide focuses on Windows PCs and games with local save files. It draws on Valve, Microsoft and developer documentation checked on 23 October 2026; the steps are based on documentation, with game-specific details called out where they matter. Account-based online games may need their publisher's own transfer instructions.

What does Steam actually move to a new PC?

A Steam library, a working game installation and your latest save answer different questions. Treat them as separate items on your moving list.

Valve's Steam Cloud documentation explains that developers choose the files their games synchronise. Configured files normally upload after a game exits and download before it launches on another computer. Changes, including deletions, can be replicated.

That makes a dated backup useful: you choose when to replace it. A copy stored outside the active save folder gives you a checkpoint to return to if the working version changes.

Steam Cloud keeps supported files in sync. A dated copy stored outside the active save folder gives you a separate checkpoint. Original Jitsumi diagram.

Be careful with the word “backup” in Steam's menus, too. Valve's game-file backup guidance specifically says backups for Valve-created games exclude saved games. For third-party titles, check the developer's save location. A completed installation backup is not enough evidence that your campaign came with it.

Before you launch on the new PC

1. Identify the progress you want to preserve

Start with the computer you last played on successfully. Note something you can recognise later: the character name, chapter, in-game date, unlocked area or save-slot name. A quick screenshot of the load screen can help you compare the two machines.

If the game is already open and working normally, finish saving and exit it properly. If Steam is showing a cloud warning, pause here and use the conflict section below before opening the game again. Avoid turning a backup task into a recovery problem by clicking through a warning just to check something.

Prioritise the games whose progress would hurt to lose. You do not need to audit every title you have ever claimed before protecting the three you are actually playing.

2. Copy the actual save folder

Find the save location in the developer's support documentation for your game and Windows version. Games can use different folders, so copying the entire Steam installation is a poor substitute for identifying the files you need.

With the game closed, copy its documented save folder to a separate destination, such as a USB drive or external SSD. Make this copy before changing Cloud settings, retrying a failed sync, or launching the game on another PC. Leave the original in place. Put the copy inside an outer folder labelled with the date and game name; keep the save folder's own name and internal files unchanged.

Microsoft's external-storage transfer guide explains the basic copy-and-transfer process. Browse the destination after copying and eject removable storage before disconnecting it.

A second folder on the drive you are about to erase will disappear with the original. Choose the destination with that next step in mind.

3. Check Cloud support and let synchronisation finish

Look for Steam Cloud in the game's Steam store features. In the desktop client, check the game's Properties → General and the global Steam → Settings → Cloud controls. If you plan to transfer through Steam Cloud, check that the game supports it and that it is enabled. The setting alone does not show that the last upload succeeded. Steam's Cloud FAQ covers these controls and sync errors.

After exiting, leave Steam connected and wait for the game's cloud status to finish syncing. Do that before shutting down the old PC or opening the game elsewhere. If synchronisation fails, preserve the local files and resolve the error first.

If you deliberately disabled Cloud, keep that choice in mind when planning the transfer. Follow the game's manual save-transfer instructions instead of turning it on simply to make the checklist look complete.

Worked example: back up Stardew Valley saves on Windows

Stardew Valley's Steam listing includes Steam Cloud. Its developer also publishes the local save structure, making it a useful example of checking both routes.

With the game closed:

1. Open File Explorer and enter %AppData%\StardewValley\Saves in the address bar.
2. Find your character's folder. Its name ends with an underscore and a sequence of numbers.
3. Check inside for a main save file matching the folder's name and a file called SaveGameInfo.
4. Copy the whole character folder, including any files ending in _old, to your backup destination.

These locations and filenames come from the developer's save troubleshooting guide . The matching main file holds the save data; SaveGameInfo supplies information for the load menu. Keeping the folder together avoids separating those pieces.

For example, your external drive could contain an outer folder named Game-save-backups\2026-10-23\Stardew-Valley, with the original character folder inside. This is an illustrative naming scheme. Put your date on the outer folder, rather than renaming the character folder or its main file.

Open the copied folder on the external drive and compare its filenames, file count and sizes with the original. This catches obvious omissions; it does not prove that the game can load the save. That second check happens on the new PC.

What if Steam shows a cloud conflict?

A sync error and a conflict call for different decisions. A sync error means the transfer did not complete. A conflict means Steam has differing local and cloud data and needs a choice about which to keep. The Steam Cloud FAQ warns that continuing after sync problems can put progress at risk.

Preserve the local save folder before choosing a side. If another PC might hold the good copy, copy its local files through File Explorer before launching the game or retrying synchronisation there. Then compare the displayed times with the device and session you actually remember.

For example, suppose you finished a chapter on the old PC, then started a fresh game on the new one. A more recent file could describe the fresh start. “Newest” and “the progress I want” are different questions in that situation.

This caution also appears in NugemStudio's Steam Cloud conflict guidance : it recommends backing up the save folder and considering the last device played, as well as modification time. Its detailed restore filenames are specific to its own game.

Check the game before you retire the old PC

There are two checks to complete, and the first cannot stand in for the second.

The copy check asks whether the backup destination contains the expected folders and files. The game check asks whether the new PC actually loads the character, chapter or in-game date you meant to preserve.

Checking the copied files and loading the correct progress are separate checks. Keep the old PC and backup until both succeed. Original Jitsumi diagram.

On the new PC, sign in to the correct Steam account and install the game. If you are using Cloud, let its synchronisation finish and address any warning before launching. Then compare the loaded progress with the note or screenshot from the old PC.

If the expected progress is missing, stop before playing further or creating a replacement save. Keep the old PC and backup intact while you investigate.

For a manual transfer, follow that game's documented restore location. If copying prompts you to replace existing files, preserve the destination version separately before making a decision. A blanket “replace everything” instruction cannot account for what you have already played on the new machine.

Keep a small migration note for each important game: save location, backup date, last known progress, and checked on new PC. It is more useful than trying to remember which of several folders called “backup-final” was the good one.

Once the right progress loads and you can save and reopen it on the new PC, make a fresh backup. Keep the pre-move copy as a separate checkpoint until you are satisfied the move is complete.

Will Windows Backup already include my saves?

Check the actual folder coverage. Microsoft's Windows Backup documentation lists Desktop, Documents, Pictures, Videos and Music as its folder choices. The Stardew Valley location above sits under AppData, outside that list. A “backed up” message for your Documents folder therefore does not establish that this particular save is protected.

For ongoing protection, File History can retain versions of folders in libraries, including additional folders you deliberately include. Microsoft also documents restoring a version to another location, which lets you inspect it without replacing the current file.

Whichever backup tool you use, check that it covers the game's real save path and that you can retrieve a copy. Do that while the original still exists.

If the old PC is already gone

Start with the backups you already have and the game's own recovery guidance. You can also check Steam's remote-storage page after signing in for cloud files available to your account. System Era documents this view-and-download route in its Astroneer Steam Cloud notes .

Preserve any useful downloads separately while you investigate. Treat the available files as possible recovery material, not a promise that every previous save version is still there. Restoration details remain game-specific.

The best time to settle this is before the old PC leaves your desk: keep an independent copy, load the expected progress on the new machine, and only then consider the move finished.

Sources and further reading

• Valve: Steam Cloud documentation
• Steam Support: Steam Cloud
• Steam Support: Using the Steam Backup Feature
• ConcernedApe: Stardew Valley save troubleshooting
• Microsoft: Transfer files using external storage
• Microsoft: Windows Backup
• Microsoft: File History
• NugemStudio: Steam Cloud conflicts
• System Era: Astroneer Steam Cloud notes