You can move Steam games between drives using Steam's built-in library manager, which copies the game files without making you download them again.

Steam stores games in folders on your computer. When you want to use a different drive — a larger one, an external drive, or a faster solid-state drive — you can tell Steam where those folders are, and it will recognize the games already there. You do not need to uninstall and reinstall; you just move the files and point Steam to them.

The process takes a few minutes to set up but can save hours of download time, especially for large games. Steam handles the technical work; you mainly need to decide which drive to use and make sure it has enough free space.

Key Takeaways

  • Steam's library manager lets you add a new game library folder on any drive, then move existing games into it without redownloading.
  • The destination drive must have enough free space for all the games you want to move, and it must be formatted as NTFS on Windows or APFS on Mac.
  • You move games by right-clicking them in your Steam library, selecting "Properties," then "Installed Files," then "Move Install Folder."
  • External drives and network drives work, but games may run slower or fail to launch if the drive disconnects or the connection is unstable.
  • Steam will verify the game files after the move to make sure nothing was corrupted during the transfer.

Check your destination drive's format and free space

Before you move anything, make sure the drive you are moving to can actually hold Steam games. On Windows, the drive must be formatted as NTFS; on Mac, it must be APFS or Mac OS Extended. If you are not sure what format your drive uses, right-click it in File Explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac), select "Properties" or "Get Info," and look for the file system listed there.

Next, check how much free space the drive has. Open File Explorer or Finder, right-click the drive, and look at the available space. Add up the size of all the games you want to move — you can see each game's size in your Steam library by right-clicking it and selecting "Properties" — and make sure the drive has at least that much free space, plus a few extra gigabytes as a buffer.

If the drive is too small or formatted wrong, you will need to either use a different drive, expand the one you have, or reformat it. Reformatting erases everything on the drive, so only do that if the drive is empty or you have backed up what is on it.

Add the new drive as a Steam library location

Open Steam and go to "Settings" (the gear icon in the top right). Click "Storage" on the left side. You will see a list of your current library folders — usually just one, the default Steam folder. Click "Add Library Folder" and navigate to the drive where you want to store games. You can create a new folder on that drive or use an existing one; Steam will create a "SteamApps" folder inside it to hold the games.

Steam will ask you to confirm. Once you do, that drive is now registered as a valid location for Steam games. You do not need to move anything yet; you are just telling Steam that this drive exists and is available.

Move individual games to the new drive

In your Steam library, find a game you want to move. Right-click it and select "Properties." Click the "Installed Files" tab, then click "Move Install Folder." A window will pop up showing all your available library folders — including the new one you just added. Select the new drive and click "Move." Steam will begin transferring the game files.

The time this takes depends on how fast your drives are and how large the game is. A 50 GB game might take 10 to 30 minutes to move between internal drives, longer if you are moving to or from an external drive. You can continue using Steam and playing other games while the move happens, but do not unplug the destination drive or shut down your computer.

When the move finishes, Steam will verify the files to make sure nothing was corrupted. This verification is automatic and usually takes a few minutes. Once it is done, the game is now on the new drive, and Steam will launch it from there.

Move multiple games at once

If you want to move several games, you can queue them up instead of waiting for one to finish before starting the next. Right-click each game, go to "Properties" > "Installed Files" > "Move Install Folder," select the destination, and click "Move." Steam will add each move to a queue and process them one at a time in the order you started them.

Queuing saves you from having to babysit the process, but be aware that Steam will work through the queue even if you close the window. If you want to pause or cancel a move, go back to "Storage" in Settings and you will see the current operation listed there.

Using external drives and network locations

Steam can store games on external USB drives, portable SSDs, and network drives, but there are trade-offs. Games on external drives will launch more slowly than games on your internal drive because the connection is slower. If the external drive disconnects — you unplug it, the network drops, or the drive goes to sleep — Steam may not be able to launch the game until the drive is connected again.

External drives work best for games you play occasionally or want to keep as backups. For games you play regularly, an internal drive is more reliable. If you use an external drive, make sure it stays plugged in and connected whenever you want to play those games.

What to do if a move fails or gets stuck

If a move fails partway through, Steam will usually tell you why — most often because the destination drive ran out of space or the connection was interrupted. Check your free space on the destination drive, make sure it is still connected, and try the move again. Steam will resume from where it left off rather than starting over.

If a move gets stuck and Steam is not responding, you can force-quit Steam (use Task Manager on Windows or Force Quit on Mac), then restart it. Steam will resume the move when it starts back up. If the move keeps failing on the same game, try moving a different game first to make sure the destination drive is working properly.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I move games to a drive that already has other files on it?

Yes. Steam will create a "SteamApps" folder on the drive and put games there, leaving your other files alone. Just make sure you have enough free space for both your existing files and the games you are moving.

What happens to my game saves and settings when I move a game?

Game saves and settings stay in your Steam cloud storage or your user folder, not with the game files themselves. Moving a game does not affect them. Your progress and settings will be exactly the same when you launch the game from the new drive.

Can I move games back to my original drive?

Yes, use the same process. Right-click the game, go to "Properties" > "Installed Files" > "Move Install Folder," and select your original drive. Steam will move it back without any issues.

Do I need to uninstall a game before moving it?

No. Steam's move function handles everything. If you uninstall and reinstall instead, you will have to redownload the entire game, which takes much longer.

Will moving games to an external drive slow them down?

Yes, slightly. External drives are slower than internal ones, so games may take longer to load. The difference is usually noticeable for large games with lots of textures, but less noticeable for smaller or simpler games. For regular play, an internal drive is faster.