If you have a rich collection of titles on Steam, you may have run into problems with free space , especially if you have an SSD . Fortunately, moving Steam games is pretty easy, as a dedicated feature is offered in the newer versions of the client.
Furthermore, in addition to the single game, you can move the entire Steam library , so as to make, for example, an external disk the default destination for your downloads. So let’s see how to move the Steam installation folder , without having to re- download the various games already present on our PC or Mac from scratch.
Move individual Steam games to Windows and Mac, even to external hard drives
Let’s start with the simplest method and linked to the certainly most common scenario, that is to move games already installed on a Windows PC or Mac. The procedure is valid both for internal disks (SSD or magnetic disks) and for external ones, even if obviously the advice is to resort to the fastest solution.
To move a single game, without having to re-download it, you’ll need to make sure you have a relatively recent version (at least mid-January 2017). The advice is therefore to make sure that Steam is updated by clicking on the “Steam” menu item and then “Check for updates”.
Creation of a new Steam library
The first thing we will need to do is create a new folder dedicated to Steam on the disk where we want to move the games. To do this, open Steam, go to settings and then go to the “Downloads” tab.
Here click on the “Steam Library Folders” button at the top. A new window will open, where you find the “Add folder” button. Press it and then using the program interface select or create the folder on the disk where you want to move the games.
Move games
Well, you have created your secondary installation folder and are ready to move the games. Doing so is quite simple, you just need to reach your library (the list of games) right-click on an installed one and then from the menu choose “Properties”.
In the window that opens go to the “Local files” tab and then click on “Move installation folder”. At this point you can choose where to move the game and confirming the procedure will start. You can repeat these steps for all the games you want to move to a disk other than the one you have Steam on.
Move Steam Default Library
Another way to move games to another disc is to transfer the entire Steam library , rather than the single title. This will cause games downloaded in the future to end up in the new destination.
If you have not yet created an alternative folder, refer to the procedure illustrated in the previous paragraph. Once you have created an alternative library, just right-click on it in the library folder window and set it as default.
The games that you have already installed you will still have to move them manually , referring to when we explained to you in the first part of the guide.
