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On Steam for Windows, an ARK: Survival Evolved single-player world is commonly stored under ShooterGameSavedSavedArksLocal inside the game installation. The fastest way to reach it is Steam Library → right-click ARK: Survival Evolved → Manage → Browse local files. Copy the complete folder for the map you play, together with ShooterGameSavedConfigWindowsNoEditor, before an update, reinstall, or mod change. Folder names vary by map and platform, so verify the path on your own installation; no official Studio Wildcard support page confirming these locations was found.
The direct answer: where ARK saves are located
For a normal Steam installation on Windows, single-player saves are commonly reported in:
C:Program Files (x86)SteamsteamappscommonARKShooterGameSavedSavedArksLocal
The beginning of that path changes if ARK is installed in another Steam library. Use Steam’s file browser rather than assuming the default drive. The map’s world data is held in an .ark file, while the local single-player survivor is commonly stored as LocalPlayer.arkprofile.
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Map folders do not all have the same name. Commonly reported examples are:
| Map or setup | Common folder under ShooterGameSaved |
What to check |
|---|---|---|
| The Island and many Workshop mod maps | SavedArksLocal |
Confirm that the folder contains the map’s current .ark world file. |
| Ragnarok | RagnarokSavedArksLocal |
Back up this folder if Ragnarok is the map you play; do not substitute the Island folder. |
| Extinction | ExtinctionSavedArksLocal |
Verify the prefix on the installed version before copying. |
| Dedicated server | SavedArks (commonly reported) |
Server layouts differ, especially on Linux and in multi-server installations. |
These names are community-reported rather than officially documented. Additional maps can use different prefixes. If a folder appears empty, do not delete it or replace it with a guessed path; browse the installation and look for the folder whose modified files match the map and play session you are trying to protect.
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Steam may install ARK on a secondary library, external drive, or a custom directory. The reliable route is the library entry:
- Open Steam and select Library.
- Right-click ARK: Survival Evolved.
- Choose Manage, then Browse local files.
- In the File Explorer window, open
ShooterGame, thenSaved. - Look for
SavedArksLocalor a map-specific variant such asRagnarokSavedArksLocalorExtinctionSavedArksLocal.
This method avoids mistakes caused by having several Steam libraries or more than one ARK installation. The folder opened by Steam is the installation currently associated with that library entry; it is the one to inspect before making a backup.
How ARK’s save folders and files fit together
The map folder is the unit you should protect
The world is not guaranteed to be recoverable from a single file. A community report describes losing a Ragnarok world after copying only the Island folder. Back up the entire map save folder, including every file and subfolder it contains, instead of selecting only the largest .ark file.
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The .ark file represents the world state for that map. Names and companion files can differ by map and installation, so preserve their original names and relative locations. Do not rename files inside the save while trying to make a backup.
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LocalPlayer.arkprofile is commonly reported as the single-player character profile. It belongs with the map folder in a backup. A world-only copy may not preserve the survivor associated with that world, and a profile-only copy cannot recreate the structures, creatures, and terrain state held by the world save.
Settings in WindowsNoEditor
Also copy:
ShooterGameSavedConfigWindowsNoEditor
This directory commonly contains GameUserSettings.ini. A forum report notes that backing up only the world folder can lose difficulty, taming, and food-rate settings. Those settings can materially change how a restored world behaves, so include the whole WindowsNoEditor directory rather than extracting one line or one file.
Optional profile and painting data
Some players also retain MyPaintings and LocalProfiles from the Saved directory. Their usefulness depends on how the installation is used. One community reply describes LocalProfiles as profile data from every server joined and says it may be unnecessary for a purely single-player setup. Treat both directories as optional additions: include them when you want the broadest local snapshot, but do not assume they are required for every single-player restore.
Manual backup: a safe, repeatable procedure
Use a separate location such as another internal drive, an external drive, or a trusted backup service. A second folder on the same disk protects against a bad update less effectively than a copy on different storage.
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- Exit the current ARK session and close the game before copying. Avoid changing settings or launching another map while the copy is in progress.
- Open the installation with Steam’s Browse local files command and navigate to
ShooterGameSaved. - Identify the map folder that matches the map you play. For example, use
RagnarokSavedArksLocalfor Ragnarok when that is the folder present on your installation. - Copy the complete map folder. Keep its contents and folder name unchanged.
- Copy
ConfigWindowsNoEditorfrom the sameSaveddirectory. - If you want a broader snapshot, copy
MyPaintingsandLocalProfilesas well. - Create a dated destination folder such as
ARK-backup-2026-10-14-Ragnarok. Put the map folder and configuration folder inside it so their relationship is obvious. - Wait for the copy to finish, then compare the source and destination folder sizes and file lists. A backup that contains only an empty directory or a single
.arkfile is incomplete. - Keep at least one older backup until you have started the game successfully from the newest copy. If a new save is damaged, an earlier dated copy is the recovery point.
Make this copy before game updates, reinstalls, major configuration changes, or mod changes. ARK can overwrite the current save during normal operation, so a backup made after a problem may already contain the damaged state.
Optional Windows command-line copy
File Explorer is easiest for one-off backups, but a command can make a repeatable copy. Replace the source and destination with the paths on your computer and keep the quotation marks if a path contains spaces:
robocopy "C:Program Files (x86)SteamsteamappscommonARKShooterGameSavedSavedArksLocal" "D:ARK-backups2026-10-14-SavedArksLocal" /E /COPY:DAT /R:2 /W:2
robocopy "C:Program Files (x86)SteamsteamappscommonARKShooterGameSavedConfigWindowsNoEditor" "D:ARK-backups2026-10-14-WindowsNoEditor" /E /COPY:DAT /R:2 /W:2/E includes subfolders, while the retry and wait switches prevent a transient copy error from looping indefinitely. The command does not discover your Steam library automatically; first use Steam’s browser to confirm the source path. Afterward, check the destination manually and retain the command with the backup date in your notes.
Verify that a backup is usable
- Confirm the map folder: the destination should contain the same map-specific folder name and its files, not just a shortcut.
- Confirm the world file: an
.arkfile should be present in the copied map folder. - Confirm the profile: look for
LocalPlayer.arkprofilewhen it exists in the source. - Confirm settings: the backup should contain
ConfigWindowsNoEditorGameUserSettings.iniwhen that file exists on the installation. - Confirm dates and sizes: file timestamps and sizes should correspond to the session you intended to save, rather than an older empty folder.
- Keep copies separate: do not overwrite the only backup with a later copy until you have checked that the newer one is complete.
A full test restore is the strongest verification, but it changes files in the game installation and can overwrite a newer world. If you test, first preserve the current Saved directory as another dated backup, then restore to the intended location and launch the matching map. Never experiment on the only copy.
Restore a single-player world from a backup
Restoration is the reverse of the backup, with one important precaution: preserve the current state before replacing anything.
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- Exit ARK and Steam’s game process completely.
- Use Steam → Library → right-click ARK → Manage → Browse local files, then open
ShooterGameSaved. - Copy the current map folder and
ConfigWindowsNoEditorto a separate emergency folder. This gives you a way back if the chosen backup is older or incompatible. - From the backup, copy the complete map-specific folder back into
ShooterGameSaved, preserving its original name. - Copy the backed-up
ConfigWindowsNoEditordirectory intoShooterGameSavedConfig. Allow the restored files to replace the damaged or changed versions only after confirming that your emergency copy exists. - Restore optional
MyPaintingsandLocalProfilesdata only if you included it and need it. - Start ARK and select the same map. Check the survivor, structures, creatures, world progress, and gameplay settings before deleting any older backup.
If the map does not appear, stop and recheck the folder prefix, installation opened by Steam, and backup date. Copying an Island folder into a Ragnarok location, or restoring into a different ARK installation, can make a valid backup appear to be missing.
Dedicated-server save locations
Dedicated servers commonly use ShooterGameSavedSavedArks rather than the single-player SavedArksLocal folder. On Linux, a commonly reported form is ../ShooterGame/Saved/SavedArks; confidence in that exact relative path is lower because it comes from a limited guide report. Confirm the server’s actual working directory and inspect the files it updates when the server shuts down.
A multi-server installation can direct a server to a separate directory with the launch parameter:
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../ShooterGame/Saved/Server1Back up the directory selected by the server’s launch configuration, not an unrelated SavedArksLocal folder. For a server, stop the server cleanly before copying so no save is being written during the backup. Preserve the complete server save directory and keep each server’s backup under its own date and server name.
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Multiplayer, cloud storage, and other platforms
Reports about multiplayer character and tribe data conflict. One guide claims multiplayer saves are cloud-stored, while forum posts describe local character and tribe data. That disagreement means you should not assume Steam Cloud alone is a complete backup or promise that a local copy contains every multiplayer record. For a server you control, back up the server’s actual SavedArks or alternate save directory. For a server you do not control, ask its administrator which data is retained and how restoration is handled.
The paths above are for Steam on Windows unless stated otherwise. Console and other PC distributions can use different storage layouts and may not expose the same folders. Do not paste a Windows path into another platform’s file manager. The dependable principle is to locate the installation or server data directory for that platform, identify the map folder that changes when you play, and preserve the complete folder plus its configuration directory where available.
Some websites list paths such as userdata/{Steam3AccountID}/346110/. That location was not confirmed as the default for these saves, so it should not replace the installation-based path unless your own files clearly show that layout.
Manual folder copy versus Steam file management
| Method | What it does | Strength | Limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manual File Explorer copy | Copies the map folder and configuration directly to a destination you choose. | Transparent; you can retain multiple dated versions and include optional folders. | You must identify the correct map folder and repeat the process yourself. |
| Robocopy or another local copy command | Repeats a defined source-to-destination copy and includes subfolders. | Useful for scheduled or documented backups; the command can be reviewed. | The source path is not automatic, and a typo can copy the wrong installation. |
| Steam file management or verification | Steam can manage installation files and reinstall missing program data. | Convenient for game files. | It is not a substitute for a dated copy of your personal map folder and settings; use the same Saved directories for an actual save backup. |
Whichever method you use, the important distinction is between managing the game installation and preserving your save data. A repair or reinstall can change program files without giving you a recoverable historical copy of your world.
Troubleshooting common backup problems
You cannot find SavedArksLocal
- Open the location through Steam rather than browsing a guessed default drive.
- Check
ShooterGameSavedfor map-specific names such asRagnarokSavedArksLocalandExtinctionSavedArksLocal. - Make sure you are examining the Windows installation in which you actually play, not a server directory or a second library.
- Launch the map once, exit normally, and inspect which folder receives newly modified files. Treat that observation as confirmation for your installation, not as a universal naming rule.
The restored world is the wrong map or appears empty
- Compare the map name and folder prefix in the backup with the map selected in ARK.
- Check that the entire folder was copied, rather than only an
.arkfile or a different map’s directory. - Confirm that the restore went into the
ShooterGameSaveddirectory opened by Steam. - Restore the matching
ConfigWindowsNoEditorbackup if settings or difficulty are unexpectedly different.
Difficulty, taming, or food rates changed
Those settings are commonly held in GameUserSettings.ini under ConfigWindowsNoEditor. Restore the complete configuration directory from the same backup date as the world. Do not mix a world from one snapshot with settings from an unrelated snapshot unless you deliberately want that combination.
A server uses a different directory than expected
Inspect the launch command for ?AltSaveDirectoryName=... and check the resulting directory under ShooterGameSaved. If several servers run from one installation, each alternate directory must be backed up separately. A generic SavedArks copy may omit a server that has been redirected to a named folder.
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A practical backup schedule
- Before an update: make a dated copy of the active map folder and
WindowsNoEditor. - Before changing mods: preserve the current world and configuration, because mod changes can alter what the game can load.
- After a major milestone: keep a manual snapshot before beginning a risky expedition, large build, or other change you would not want to repeat.
- After verifying a new copy: retain at least one earlier snapshot rather than rotating immediately to a single file set.
- For a dedicated server: stop the server, copy its active save directory, and label the backup with the server name, map, and date.
A useful folder layout is ARK-backups2026-10-14-Ragnarok containing the complete map folder and a ConfigWindowsNoEditor copy. Clear names make it possible to select the correct snapshot months later without opening every file.
What is established—and what is not
The installation-based locations and folder names in this guide are commonly reported by players and guides, not confirmed in an official Studio Wildcard support article. Map prefixes, server layouts, and platform behavior can change. No published statistic on ARK save loss or backup rates was identified, and no quotable statement from Studio Wildcard or a named official establishes a universal path. The safest practice is therefore empirical: use Steam to open your own installation, confirm which folder changes when you play, and back up the complete folder and configuration before making changes.
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