This guide shows you how to move your PC games to a new SSD without redownloading them, whether you are upgrading your boot drive or adding a second drive for more space. By the end, your launchers will point to the new location, your saves will stay intact, and you will free up space on the old drive. You will need administrator access to your PC, your game launchers installed and logged in, and enough free space on the target SSD for the games you plan to transfer.
These steps work for Steam, Epic Games Launcher, GOG Galaxy, EA App, Battle.net, and standalone installations. As game sizes continue to grow in 2026, moving rather than reinstalling saves hours on even a fast connection.
Before You Start
| What you need | Why | Optional? |
|---|---|---|
| New SSD installed and initialized (M.2 NVMe or 2.5-inch SATA) | Windows must recognize the drive and assign a drive letter before you can move files | No |
| File Explorer with hidden items visible | Lets you verify hidden save folders like AppData | No |
| At least 15 percent free space remaining on target SSD after transfer | Prevents performance degradation and failed updates | No |
| External drive or second partition for backup | Protects against power loss or interrupted copy | Yes |
| Phillips #1 screwdriver and M.2 standoff screw | Required for physical M.2 installation if not already installed | Yes, if SSD already installed |
| Administrator Windows account | Needed to create folders in Program Files and change drive permissions | No |
Before moving anything, close all games and launchers completely. Right-click each launcher icon in the system tray and choose Exit or Quit. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager, check the Processes tab, and end any remaining Steam.exe, EpicGamesLauncher.exe, GalaxyClient.exe, EADesktop.exe, or Battle.net.exe processes.
Step-by-Step
Step 1: Prepare and Format the New SSD – Time: 5 to 10 minutes
What causes it: A brand new SSD is unallocated and will not appear in File Explorer until it is initialized and formatted. How to check: Press Win + X and select Disk Management. Look for your new drive listed as Unknown, Not Initialized, or as Unallocated space with a black bar. What to do: In Disk Management, right-click the disk label where it says Disk 1 or Disk 2 and select Initialize Disk. Choose GPT for any system with UEFI and for drives larger than 2 TB. Right-click the Unallocated area, select New Simple Volume, accept NTFS as the file system, set Default allocation size, assign a drive letter such as D: or E:, and name it Games-SSD. Leave Quick Format checked. How to undo: If you chose the wrong disk, do not proceed with formatting. Close the wizard and verify the disk size matches your new SSD before retrying.
Step 2: Create Launcher Library Folders on the New Drive – Time: 2 minutes per launcher
What causes it: Launchers will not detect games unless they are in a registered library folder. How to check: Open File Explorer and navigate to D:\ and confirm you have write access by creating a test folder. What to do: For Steam, open Steam and go to Steam > Settings > Storage. Click the dropdown at the top that shows your current drive, select the new SSD letter, click the three dots or New Library button, and click Create New Library. Steam will create D:\SteamLibrary. For Epic Games, create D:\Epic Games manually in File Explorer. For GOG Galaxy, go to GOG Galaxy > Settings > Installations > Game installation folders > Add folder and select D:\GOG Games. For EA App, go to Menu (three lines top left) > Settings > Download > Install location and set it to D:\EA Games. For Battle.net, go to Battle.net > Settings > Downloads > Default Install Directory and set it to D:\Battle.net. How to undo: In each launcher’s settings, you can remove the folder path you just added and delete the empty folder in File Explorer.
Step 3: Move Steam Games With the Built-In Mover – Time: 2 to 15 minutes per game depending on size (50 GB typically 4 to 10 minutes on NVMe to NVMe)
What causes it: Copying the Steamapps folder manually breaks the library manifest files and forces a Verify. How to check: In Steam, confirm the game shows as installed under Library. What to do: Go to Steam > Settings > Storage. Check the box next to each game you want to move on the source drive. Click Move, select your new SSD library from the Destination dropdown, and click Move again. Do not open the game or shut down your PC during the move. For a single game, you can also right-click the game in Library > Properties > Installed Files > Move install folder > select the new library > Move. How to undo: Return to Steam > Settings > Storage, select the game on the new drive, and move it back to the original library using the same Move button.
Step 4: Move Epic, GOG, EA, and Battle.net Games – Time: 5 to 20 minutes per game
What causes it: These launchers verify game location through internal config files, so simple drag and drop without updating the launcher will show the game as uninstalled. How to check: In File Explorer, note the exact install path, for example C:\Program Files\Epic Games\Fortnite. What to do: For Epic Games Launcher: In File Explorer, cut the game folder from the old location and paste it to D:\Epic Games on the new SSD. In Epic Games Launcher, click Library, click the three dots under the game, and select Uninstall. When prompted, confirm to remove it. The launcher will delete the now-empty registry entry but the files are already on D:. Then click Install on the same game, and when the file browser opens, select D:\Epic Games as the install location. The launcher will detect Existing files found and begin Verifying instead of downloading. For EA App: Cut and paste the game folder to D:\EA Games, then in EA App click the game > Manage > Repair and point it to the new folder if asked. For Battle.net: Go to Battle.net > Settings > Game Install/Update, click Use a Different Folder for the game, select the new location, and click Scan and Repair. For GOG Galaxy: Move the folder, then in GOG Galaxy click the game > Settings (gear icon) > Manage Installation > Import folder and select the new path. How to undo: Move the folder back to the original path, uninstall in the launcher, and reinstall pointing to the original location to trigger verification again.
Step 5: Move Standalone and Microsoft Store Games – Time: 3 to 10 minutes
What causes it: Microsoft Store and Xbox app games are protected WindowsApps folders and cannot be moved by cut and paste. How to check: Press Win + I and go to Apps > Installed apps. If the game lists Move as an option, it is a Windows Store-managed install. What to do: Go to Settings > Apps > Installed apps. Locate the game, click the three dots > Move. Select your new SSD from the Choose a drive dropdown and click Move. Windows will transfer the entire package including permissions. For standalone games not tied to a launcher, simply cut and paste the entire game directory to D:\Games, then right-click the game’s .exe, select Send to > Desktop (create shortcut), and update any firewall or antivirus exceptions that reference the old path under Windows Security > Firewall and network protection > Allow an app through firewall. How to undo: Go back to Settings > Apps > Installed apps > Move and move the Store game back to C:, or move the standalone folder back and recreate the shortcut.
Step 6: Transfer Save Files and Configuration Data – Time: 5 minutes
What causes it: Many games keep saves outside the install folder, so moving only the game directory can appear to delete progress. How to check: Navigate to C:\Users\[YourUsername]\Documents, C:\Users\[YourUsername]\AppData\Local, C:\Users\[YourUsername]\AppData\Roaming, and C:\Users\[YourUsername]\Saved Games. Press Win + R, type %USERPROFILE%\Documents and %APPDATA% to jump there directly. What to do: Leave saves in place unless you are migrating your entire Windows installation to the new SSD. If you are cloning your OS drive, your saves will move with it. If you are keeping Windows on C: and only moving games, do not move save folders. Instead, back them up: Copy the relevant game folders from Documents\My Games, AppData\Local, and Roaming to a backup folder on D:\Save Backups before you delete anything from C:. Ensure Steam Cloud, Epic Cloud Saves, or GOG Cloud Saves is enabled by checking each game’s Properties > General > Steam Cloud or the launcher’s Cloud Saves toggle before you remove the original. How to undo: Restore the copied save folders to their exact original paths. Most games require the folder name and structure to match exactly.
Verify It Worked
Launch each moved game directly from its launcher at least once and check that your saves load. In File Explorer, right-click D: > Properties and confirm Used space has increased by the expected amount, then check C: > Properties to confirm space was reclaimed after you use the launcher’s Uninstall for the old location or manually delete the old folder. In Steam, go to Library, right-click a moved game > Properties > Installed Files > Verify integrity of game files. Click Verify and wait for the dialog to report All files successfully validated. In Epic Games Launcher, click Library > three dots > Manage > Verify. In Battle.net, select the game > Options (gear icon) > Scan and Repair > Begin Scan. Test performance by launching a game with an SSD-sensitive load, fast travel or continue a save should be noticeably faster than on a hard drive, and Task Manager > Performance > Disk D: should show active read activity when the game loads. If a game fails to start, right-click its executable > Properties > Compatibility > Run as administrator and try again, then remove that setting if it does not help.
Mistakes to Avoid
Deleting the original folder before verification. What causes it: Impatience to free up space leads to permanent loss if the copy was incomplete. How to check: Compare folder sizes. Right-click the old folder and the new folder > Properties and confirm Size on disk matches within a few megabytes. What to do: Keep the original folder until you have launched the game from the new drive and verified files. Only then delete the old folder or use the launcher’s uninstall for the old drive entry. How to undo: Restore from Recycle Bin or from your backup drive if you have already deleted.
Copying instead of using the launcher’s Move or Verify flow. What causes it: Dragging files without telling the launcher leaves its config pointing to the old path. How to check: After moving, if the launcher shows Install instead of Play, it did not register the move. What to do: Always use Steam > Settings > Storage > Move or perform the uninstall-then-reinstall-to-same-folder trick to trigger detection for Epic and others. How to undo: Point the launcher back to the original path if available, or use Locate Installed Games / Scan for games if the launcher offers it.
Moving games while cloud sync is disabled or in conflict. What causes it: Local saves overwrite newer cloud saves when sync is not enabled. How to check: In Steam, check Library > Right-click game > Properties > General > Steam Cloud Sync is toggled on. For Epic, check Library > Three dots > Cloud Save enabled. What to do: Enable sync before moving, launch once from the new location, and if prompted with a Cloud Conflict dialog, choose the newer timestamp. Select Upload to the Cloud if your local save is newer. How to undo: Download the cloud save again via the launcher’s conflict dialog by choosing Download to machine.
Formatting the new SSD as FAT32 or exFAT. What causes it: Using the wrong file system during initialization prevents large game files over 4 GB from copying. How to check: In File Explorer, right-click D: > Properties > General and look at File system. How to undo: Back up any files, right-click the drive > Format > set File system to NTFS > check Quick Format > Start. You can also reformat from Disk Management > Right-click volume > Format.
FAQ
Can I just copy and paste my entire SteamLibrary folder to the new SSD?
You can copy the folder for backup purposes, but you must also register it. After pasting D:\SteamLibrary to the new drive, open Steam and go to Steam > Settings > Storage > click the dropdown > Add Library and select D:\SteamLibrary. Steam will scan and discover all valid appmanifest_*.acf files and list the games as installed. Without this step, Steam will not show the games as playable.
Do I need to reinstall Windows when I move games to a new SSD?
No, if your new SSD is a secondary drive. You only need to clone or reinstall Windows if you are replacing your boot drive. For adding storage, just initialize the new drive and move the games as described. If you are cloning your boot drive, use a disk cloning tool that supports GPT to GPT cloning, set the new SSD as the boot device in BIOS under Boot > Boot Priority, and verify the boot order before wiping the old drive.
Will my save games transfer automatically or do I need to move them separately?
For most modern launchers with cloud saves enabled, saves sync automatically after you launch from the new location and connect online. Local-only saves do not move with the game folder. Check C:\Users\[YourUsername]\Documents\My Games, %APPDATA%, and %LOCALAPPDATA% for folders named after the game or publisher. Copy those to backup. If you replace your Windows drive, back them up externally first, then restore them to the exact same path on the new installation.
The launcher still wants to download the whole game after I moved it. How do I fix it?
This happens when the folder name or structure does not match what the launcher expects. Cancel the download immediately to avoid overwriting. Verify the folder on D: matches the expected name exactly, including spaces and capitalization, for example Fortnite not fortnite. For Epic, ensure you selected D:\Epic Games as the install location and not D:\Epic Games\Fortnite. For Steam, ensure you moved via Storage > Move so the appmanifest_*.acf file was updated. Then restart the launcher as administrator by right-clicking its icon > Run as administrator and trigger Verify again.
