How to Transfer Your Skyrim Special Edition Save to a New PC
Last verified: 2026-09-07
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition\Saves
Copy every .ess and .skse file from the Saves folder — those are your Skyrim SE saves.
Before you move anything, make a full backup of every Skyrim Special Edition save on the OLD PC in one command. Press Win+R (or open Command Prompt), paste this, and hit Enter:
robocopy "%USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition\Saves" "%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\SkyrimSpecialEdition-save-backup" /E /COPY:DAT /R:1 /W:1
/E mirrors the whole save tree (every profile sub-folder and slot) to a backup folder on your Desktop without touching the originals. Copy that folder to the new PC, then restore by swapping the source and destination paths.
Switching computers? Here's exactly which Skyrim Special Edition save files to copy, where they live, and how to make sure your progress loads on the new PC.
Where the files live: see the full Skyrim Special Edition save file location guide for every platform path (PS5, Xbox, Steam Cloud).
How to transfer your Skyrim Special Edition save to a new PC
- On the old PC, press Win+R, paste %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition\Saves, and press Enter to open the save folder.
- Select everything in that folder and copy it to a USB drive, cloud folder (OneDrive/Google Drive), or network share.
- Install Skyrim Special Edition on the new PC and launch it once, then close it — this creates the empty save folder.
- If you use mods, install the same mods (and SKSE) on the new PC first — save files that reference missing mods can fail to load or crash.
- On the new PC, open the same path (%USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition\Saves) and paste the copied files in, overwriting if asked.
- Launch the game and confirm your progress loaded before deleting the backup copy.
Does cloud sync move it for you?
Yes on Steam, if Steam Cloud is enabled. The Game Pass / Microsoft Store version stores saves under a different Packages\...\wgs path and syncs through Xbox cloud instead.
Common mistakes
- Forgetting to reinstall mods and SKSE, which corrupts modded saves.
- Mixing Steam and Game Pass save paths — they are not interchangeable.
FAQ
How do I move my Skyrim Special Edition save to a new PC?
Copy the save folder at %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition\Saves from the old PC to the exact same path on the new PC, then launch the game. Use a USB drive, cloud storage, or a network share to move the files.
Will Skyrim Special Edition cloud saves transfer automatically?
Yes on Steam, if Steam Cloud is enabled. The Game Pass / Microsoft Store version stores saves under a different Packages\...\wgs path and syncs through Xbox cloud instead.
Where is the Skyrim Special Edition save folder on the old PC?
It's at %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition\Saves. Paste that into the File Explorer address bar (or Win+R) to open it. See our full location guide for every platform.
Do I need to copy any other files?
Copy the whole save folder, not just one file — some games store settings, backups, or profile subfolders alongside the main save. Copying the entire folder avoids missing anything.
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Need another game or a quick backup? Use the Save Location Finder — pick any game to get its exact save path plus a ready-to-run backup command.