SyncCrate
  1. SyncCrate
  2. Share mods with friends

// Guide · Updated

How to share mods with friends.

Modded co-op only works when every PC runs the same mods, the same versions and the same configs. Here is how to get your setup onto your friends' PCs, and keep it that way when the mods change.

Download free Show me how

// 01 Why

Why “same mods” is harder than it sounds

A modded co-op session needs every player on the same set. One friend on an older version of a mod, or missing a config file, and you get a "version mismatch" screen, a failed join, or a desync an hour in.

The first copy is the easy part. It's every copy after that:

  • Mods update, and every friend has to update the same ones, to the same version.
  • Configs matter as much as the mods. When the host changes a setting, everyone needs the new file.
  • Big setups are gigabytes. Sending everything again for a one-file change wastes the evening.
  • Friends end up with leftovers: mods the host removed weeks ago that still load on their PC.

// 02 Your options

Four ways to share a mod setup

  • Zip the folder and send it

    Zip your mods folder, share it through Discord, Google Drive or a USB stick, and every friend unzips it over their own. Works for any game, nothing to install.

    Catch: every change means a new zip for everyone, mods you removed stay on their PCs, and chat apps' upload limits rule it out for big setups.

  • Steam Workshop

    If every mod is on the Workshop, everyone subscribes to the same items (or one collection) and Steam downloads them.

    Catch: only Workshop mods. Anything from Nexus, Thunderstore, CurseForge or a creator's own site isn't included, and each friend's copy updates on its own schedule.

  • A mod manager's profile code

    Managers like r2modman (Thunderstore games) or the CurseForge app (Minecraft) export a profile as a code or file that friends import.

    Catch: every friend needs the same manager, and it only covers that manager's games and the mods it can download. Manual installs usually don't come along.

  • Sync the folder PC to PC

    A sync tool compares your folder with each friend's and copies only what differs: mods from any site, manual installs, configs and, for many games, saves.

    Best for: a group that plays the same modded game every week. This is what SyncCrate does, for 124 games.

// 03 With SyncCrate

Share your mods in three steps

  1. Install on every PC

    Install SyncCrate (free, Windows, macOS and Linux) on your PC and each friend's, and add the game in the Game Browser. Its mod folder is found automatically.

  2. You host, friends join

    Click Start Hosting. Friends on the same network pick you under Scan for Hosts; friends anywhere else paste your join code or click your invite link.

  3. Compare and sync

    Each friend checks the plan (new, changed and conflicting files) and clicks Sync Now. Only the files that differ are sent, straight from your PC.

TipAdded or updated a mod later? Friends sync again and get only the changes. Or they turn on Stay in sync and your new mods arrive by themselves while they're connected.

// 04 Good to know

Worth knowing before you sync

  • Only sync with people you trust. Script mods (.dll, .jar, .ts4script, .lua) run code on your PC. SyncCrate flags them before they arrive.
  • Steam Workshop mods aren't copied. Steam keeps them outside the game folder, so friends subscribe to the same items and SyncCrate syncs everything else.
  • Mods you mustn't re-upload. Some creators don't allow re-sharing (Patreon early access, "no reupload" rules). With Share as a link, friends get the creator's page instead of a copy.
  • Mistakes can be undone. Nothing changes until a friend approves the plan, and Undo last sync puts their files back exactly as they were.
  • Friend can't connect? It's almost always Windows Firewall. On the host PC, click Fix Windows Firewall.

// 05 Guides for popular co-op games

Lethal CompanyValheimMinecraft JavaThe Sims 4Stardew ValleyR.E.P.O.Project Zomboid7 Days to DieBaldur's Gate 3Terraria

What syncs, where the folders are and common fixes, game by game. All 124 games

// FAQ

Questions

Can I share mods with friends who live far away?

Yes. Friends paste your join code or click your invite link, and SyncCrate connects your PCs directly over the internet. When a direct connection isn't possible, an encrypted relay forwards data it can't read. No VPN, no port forwarding.

Do my friends need to download the mods themselves?

No. They get the files from your PC. The exception is mods you've marked with Share as a link: for those, friends get the creator's link and download them there.

Will syncing mess up a friend's own mods?

Nothing changes until they review and approve the sync plan, which lists every file it would add or replace. Files both of you changed show up as conflicts they decide on, and Undo last sync reverses the whole sync in one click.

How big a mod folder can I share?

There's no limit on the total size; single files can be up to 2 GB. On the same network it copies at 100–900 MB/s, and after the first sync only changed files are sent.

Is it free?

Yes. SyncCrate is free and open source, with no accounts and no ads. Files go from PC to PC and are never uploaded to a SyncCrate server.

// Free · Open source · Windows, macOS, Linux

Same modded setup on every PC.

Install SyncCrate on each PC, one of you hosts, everyone else joins. No accounts, no cloud, nothing uploaded anywhere.

Download SyncCrate How SyncCrate works