HOW-TO • PIXEL PRESS
How to back up game saves on PC before reinstalling
Reinstalling a game, or a whole PC, should feel like a fresh start, not a disaster. Yet every week, players lose hours of progress because they assumed their saves would magically follow them. Sometimes they do, thanks to cloud saves. Sometimes they do not, because a save lives in a local folder that gets wiped with the game. Backing up your saves first takes only a few minutes, and it is the difference between picking up where you left off and starting from zero.
The golden rule is simple: never delete or reinstall anything until you have a copy of your saves somewhere else, and you have checked that the copy actually contains files. A backup folder that is empty is not a backup.
Where game saves actually live on PC
PC game saves hide in several places, which is why they are easy to lose. Many games store saves in your Documents folder, often inside a folder named after the game or its publisher. Others use a hidden AppData folder in your user profile, or a folder inside the game's own installation directory. Some store saves in the cloud, and some do both, keeping a local copy and syncing it online when you close the game. There is no single location that works for every game, so you need to check game by game.
The easiest way to find a save location is to search the web for the game's name plus save location, or to check the game's community pages on Steam, where players often share the exact folder path. Write down each location as you find it, because you will thank yourself the next time you reinstall. If you are improving a setup at the same time, our guide in How to build a budget gaming setup without overspending reminds you to protect the parts that matter most, and saves are one of them.
Make a backup in five calm steps
First, close the game completely, and close any launcher that might still be syncing. Copying a save while the game is running can give you a half-written file that looks fine but will not load. Second, create a backup folder on a different drive, a USB stick, or a cloud folder, and name it clearly with today's date, for example Game Saves Backup. Third, copy, never move, each save folder into it. Copying leaves the original untouched, so if you make a mistake you can try again. Fourth, check the sizes and dates: a real save folder usually contains several files with recent dates, not a single empty folder.
Fifth, and most importantly, test the backup if you can. If you are reinstalling on the same PC, try restoring one save before you wipe the original. If you are moving to a new PC, install one game first, restore its save, and confirm your progress loads before you reinstall everything else. Cloud saves can help here, but do not rely on them blindly: open the game's cloud settings, confirm syncing is on, and let the game close cleanly so the final save uploads. For performance after a reinstall, the free fixes in How to boost FPS on a low-end PC without buying anything will help you get back to smooth play quickly, and The Ultimate Beginner Gaming Guide covers the wider setup in one place.
Cloud saves, manual saves, and the traps in between
Cloud saves are wonderful when they work, and confusing when they do not. A game may sync only its most recent save, or only when you close it through its launcher, or only if you are signed into the same account. If you play offline or with a different account by accident, the cloud may hold an older save, or none at all. That is why a manual backup is still worth doing: the manual copy is yours and works offline.
Watch out for three traps. The first is deleting the local save folder while the cloud is still set to sync, which can delete the cloud copy too. Turn off syncing before you delete anything, or restore from your manual backup after the reinstall. The second is restoring a save into the wrong folder, which the game will simply ignore. Always match the folder structure exactly, and keep a note of where each save came from. The third is forgetting games that are not in your main launcher. List every game you care about before you start, not just the ones in one library, and see our free games guide if you need to rediscover what you installed.
Keep saves safe after the reinstall
Once you are back up and running, make backups a habit. Copy your most-played saves to a backup folder once a month, and always before a big update, a hardware change, or a reinstall. Keep two copies when you can: one on an external drive, and one in a cloud folder. Name your backups with dates, and keep the newest three.
Also protect the drive itself. A failing drive can take saves with it silently, so back up immediately if games suddenly fail to save or anything feels wrong. A few minutes of backup habit will save you from the worst feeling in gaming: a progress screen that says New Game when it should say Continue.
Game save backup checklist
- List every game whose progress you care about, across all launchers.
- Close each game and its launcher fully before copying anything.
- Copy, never move, save folders into a dated backup folder on another drive.
- Check file sizes and dates so you know the backup is not empty.
- Test one restore before you wipe the original, whenever possible.
- Turn off cloud sync before deleting local saves, then restore carefully.
- Keep two copies, dated, and refresh them monthly and before any reinstall.
Frequently asked questions
Do cloud saves mean I never need a manual backup? Not quite. Cloud saves help, but they can sync the wrong version, fail offline, or follow the wrong account. A manual copy is a safety net that works even when the cloud does not.
Where do I find a game's save folder? Check Documents, the hidden AppData folder in your user profile, and the game's installation folder, and search for the game's name plus save location. Player guides on Steam often list the exact path, and Epic Games free games covers games from that store too.
Can I move saves to a different PC? Usually yes, if you copy the save folder into the same location on the new PC and use the same game version. Install the game first, then restore, then launch it to confirm your progress appears.
What if I already reinstalled and lost my saves? Check the cloud, the recycle bin, and any old backup drive before you play further, because new saves can overwrite old ones.
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