How to Find the Steam Library Folder

When installing a game, the default folder location will pop up by itself

by Tashreef Shareef
Tashreef Shareef
Tashreef Shareef
Windows & Software Expert
Tashreef Shareef is a software developer turned tech writer. He discovered his interest in technology after reading a tech magazine accidentally. Now he writes about everything tech from... read more
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  • If you can't find the Steam folder, you won't be able to mod your games.
  • Thankfully, the client has integrated an easy and fast way to find the game folder.
  • Going into the settings will also help in finding the Steam folder location.
Can't find certain Steam folder [Fixes for Windows 10/11]

Steam is a popular game distribution and management platform. Now, if something goes wrong with a game or the app, you may need to access the Steam folder. However, it seems like users can’t sometimes find a certain Steam folder and it can be pretty annoying.

By default, Windows 10/11 installs all the apps in the Windows installation folder. So, if your Windows installation is in the C drive, the OS will install the apps in the same drive as well.

However, if you can’t find the Steam folder, there are several solutions you can try. In this article, we explore a few ways to help you find the Steam folder in Windows 10 and 11.

Where should my Steam folder be?

In case you don’t know where your Steam folders should be, well, to discover it, you’ll only have to right-click on the Steam desktop shortcut, then choose to Open file location.

The app should be located on the folder it opens (usually PC > (C:) > Program Files (x86)).

Keep in mind that this is more reliable than the library-based method because the library folder might be located somewhere other than steam’s folder.

Now, let’s see what you can do if you can’t find Steam folders.

What can I do if I can’t find my Steam folders?

1. Use the Steam client

  1. Hit the Windows key, type Steam, then open the app.
  2. In the main menu, select LIBRARY.
  3. Right-click on any of the installed games, then navigate to its Properties.
  4. In the Properties window, open the Local Files tab.
  5. Click the Browse Local Files button.
  6. File Explorer will open the selected game’s installation folder.
  7. In the File Explorer click the Up-arrow icon until you see the Steam folder.
Note icon NOTE
This method applies if you have a game installed in your Steam client. If you don’t, follow the steps described below instead.

2. Locate Steam folder from Settings

  1. In your Windows search bar, type Steam, then open the app.
  2. Make sure you are not in Family View.
  3. Now, from the top-left corner of the window, click on Steam.
  4. Navigate to Settings.
  5. From the Settings window, open the Downloads tab.
  6. Under Content Libraries, click the Steam Library Folders.
  7. Note down the path under Folders. It should look something like this: C:\Program Files(x86)\Steam
  8. Open File Explorer and navigate to the same to find your Steam folder.

Alternatively, you can also find the same by accessing the Steam Music tab. To do that, follow the steps below:

  1. Hit the Windows key, type Steam, then open the app.
  2. Look at the top-left corner of the window, and choose Steam.
  3. Now, got to Settings.
  4. From the left window pane, select the Music tab.
  5. The file path under Music Library that includes the Steam folder opens the same folder in File Explorer.

3. Install a game

  1. Hit the Windows key, type Steam, and open the desktop client.
  2. From the main menu, go to Store.
  3. Select any game that is free to install.
  4. Click on Play Game.
  5. Under Choose location for install, note down the default installation path for Steam, then click on Next and proceed with the installation.
  6. Navigate to the same installation path using File Explorer to find the Steam folder.

If you are still looking for a way to find the Steam folder, try installing a game.

When installing a game on Steam, you can find where the Steam is located as the game will prompt you to select an installation path.

We can admit that not being able to find Steam folders can be a pretty annoying problem, but you should know that it is not the only folder-related error you can encounter while using this app.

Some users also reported that the library folder is not writable on Steam. In this case, keep in mind that this can occur after manually changing the library location for Steam games.

Fortunately, if you ever face this error, you can always check some useful solutions to easily get rid of it.

If you’re an online games fan, you probably know how important it is to be able to take a screenshot of certain actions while running Steam. That’s why we’ve created a guide that presents how to effortlessly use Steam Screenshot Manager.

Finding your Steam folder can be an annoying task if you have changed the default installation folder during installation. In this article, we have listed all the ways that you can find the Steam folder in the Windows operating system.

Lastly for seamless access to all Steam files, create a new Windows library, and add all the game folders to it.

For any additional questions regarding today’s subject, feel free to use the comment section below.

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