How to move Riot Games to a different drive

You can move Riot Games (League of Legends, Valorant, or other Riot titles) to a different drive without reinstalling the entire game. The process depends on which Riot launcher you're using and takes about 10 to 20 minutes of active work, though the actual file transfer can take longer depending on your drive speed and game size.

The cleanest method is to uninstall the game from your current drive, then reinstall it to your new drive and select your target location during setup. If you want to preserve your existing installation and just move the files, you can do that too—it's riskier but faster if it works. Either way, you'll need the Riot Client running and enough free space on your destination drive before you start.

Key Takeaways

  • The safest method is to uninstall from your current drive, then reinstall to your new drive by choosing a custom installation path in the Riot Client.
  • Moving files manually without reinstalling is faster but requires you to update the game location in the Riot Client settings afterward, and it can fail if file permissions are wrong.
  • You need enough free space on your destination drive for the full game size—League of Legends is roughly 13 to 16 GB, Valorant is about 20 to 25 GB depending on your region.
  • Close the Riot Client and any running games completely before moving or uninstalling, or the transfer will fail or corrupt files.
  • If the game won't launch after moving, verify the file location in the Riot Client settings or reinstall to fix permission issues.

The uninstall-and-reinstall method (safest)

Open the Riot Client and go to Settings (the gear icon in the top right). Under the game you want to move, you'll see the current installation path. Write down the game name and note how much space it uses—this tells you how much free space you need on your destination drive.

Close the Riot Client completely. Go to your system settings and uninstall the game through Add or Remove Programs (Windows) or Applications (Mac). This removes the game files but leaves your account and progress untouched—those are stored on Riot's servers, not on your drive.

Restart the Riot Client. Find the game in your library and click Install. Before you click the final install button, look for an option to choose the installation path or folder. Click that and navigate to your new drive. Select the drive letter or volume name, create a folder for the game if you want, and confirm. The client will read and install the game to that location.

The manual file-move method (faster but requires extra steps)

If you want to keep your existing installation and just move the folder, close the Riot Client and any running games first. Open File Explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac) and navigate to your current game location. The default paths are usually C:\Riot Games (Windows) or Applications/Riot Games (Mac), but check the Riot Client settings to confirm where yours actually is.

Right-click the game folder (for example, "League of Legends" or "VALORANT") and select Cut. Navigate to your destination drive, right-click in an empty area, and select Paste. Depending on the game size and your drive speed, this can take 5 to 30 minutes. Do not interrupt the transfer or close File Explorer while it's running.

Once the transfer finishes, open the Riot Client and go to Settings. Find the game you moved and look for an option to change the installation path or folder location. Click that, navigate to the new location on your destination drive, and select the game folder. The client will verify the files are there and update its records. If the client can't find the folder, you may need to reinstall instead—this usually means file permissions got changed during the move.

Checking drive space before you move

Open File Explorer or Finder and right-click your destination drive. Select Properties (Windows) or Get Info (Mac) to see how much free space is available. You need at least as much free space as the game takes up, plus a small buffer—aim for 5 to 10 GB extra to be safe.

If your destination drive doesn't have enough space, you have two options: delete files you no longer need on that drive to free up space, or choose a different drive. External drives and USB drives work fine for game storage, but they're slower than internal drives, so load times will be longer. Solid-state drives (SSDs) are much faster than older hard disk drives (HDDs) for gaming.

What to do if the game won't launch after moving

If you moved the files manually and the game won't start, the most common cause is that the Riot Client can't find the installation folder or file permissions are wrong. Open the Riot Client, go to Settings, and double-check that the path shown matches where you actually moved the files. If the path is wrong, click the folder icon next to it and navigate to the correct location.

If the path is correct but the game still won't launch, try repairing the installation. In the Riot Client, click the three-dot menu next to the game name and select Repair. This checks all the game files and fixes any that are corrupted or have permission problems. Repair usually takes 10 to 20 minutes and requires an internet connection.

If repair doesn't work, uninstall and reinstall the game to your new drive using the method described earlier. This is slower but guarantees the files are in the right place with the correct permissions.

Moving between internal drives versus external drives

Moving a game to a different internal drive (for example, from your C: drive to a D: drive) is straightforward and doesn't affect performance. Both methods—uninstall-and-reinstall or manual file move—work equally well.

Moving to an external drive (USB, external SSD, or external HDD) works the same way, but your game will load and run slower because external drives have higher latency than internal ones. If you're moving because you're out of space on your main drive, an external SSD is faster than an external HDD, though both are slower than an internal drive. Keep the external drive plugged in whenever you play—if you unplug it, the game won't launch.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will moving the game delete my account or progress?

No. Your account, rank, skins, and progress are stored on Riot's servers, not on your computer. Moving or reinstalling the game only moves the files you read—your account stays exactly the same.

Can I move the game while the Riot Client is running?

No. Close the Riot Client and any running games completely before you move or uninstall. If the client is running, it locks the game files and the transfer will fail or corrupt them.

How long does it take to move a game?

Manual file moving usually takes 5 to 30 minutes depending on game size and drive speed. Uninstall-and-reinstall takes longer because it has to read the game again, which can take 30 minutes to several hours depending on your internet speed.

What if I run out of space during the transfer?

Stop the transfer when ready and delete files from your destination drive to free up space. If you were doing a manual move, delete the partially copied folder from the destination drive and try again once you have enough space. If you were reinstalling, the Riot Client will pause and let you free up space before continuing.

Can I move the game to a network drive or cloud storage?

Technically yes, but it's not recommended. Network drives and cloud storage are much slower than local drives, so the game will have long load times and may stutter during play. Stick to an internal drive or external SSD if you need external storage.