SyncCrate
Cities: Skylines guide · Updated
Your Cities: Skylines city on another PC.
Move a city and the local assets it's built with to a laptop, or give a friend your save to explore. SyncCrate copies Cities: Skylines saves, assets, maps and local mods between PCs, and after the first time only what changed.
FreeOpen sourceNo cloudWin · macOS · Linux
// 01 Why
Why a city breaks on another PC
A big Cities: Skylines city depends on much more than its save file. Custom buildings, props and roads are assets, and the city expects every one of them. Open the save on a PC that's missing some and those buildings simply aren't there: empty lots, missing props and roads that look wrong.
On Steam most assets come from the Workshop, where subscribing brings them back. Everything else, like assets you made in the editor, local copies from outside the Workshop and your own maps, sits in the game's data folder in your user profile, and has to be copied by hand.
SyncCrate syncs saves, local assets, maps and mods between PCs. Files are compared by content, only the differences are copied, and you see the list before anything changes.
// 02 What syncs
What SyncCrate syncs for Cities: Skylines
| Folder | Path in the game folder | Files |
|---|---|---|
| Mods | Addons/Mods/Local mods in Addons/Mods: mod folders with their .dll files, not Workshop subscriptions. | .dll .zip |
| Assets | Addons/Assets/Local assets (.crp) in Addons/Assets: your own buildings, props and roads, and assets from outside the Workshop. | .crp |
| Save Files | Saves/City saves (.crp) in Saves. | .crp |
| Maps | Addons/Maps/Custom maps (.crp) in Addons/Maps. | .crp |
// Where it looks
- Windows
%LOCALAPPDATA%\Colossal Order\Cities_Skylines- macOS
~/Library/Application Support/Colossal Order/Cities_Skylines- Linux
~/.local/share/Colossal Order/Cities_Skylines- Anywhere else
- Point SyncCrate at the folder yourself, once
Built in for Cities: Skylines
- Script warnings.
.dllfiles run code on your PC, so they're flagged for you to review before they sync. - Turn mods on and off. Disabled mods move to a
_Disabledfolder the game doesn't load. - Game-running warning. SyncCrate warns you before syncing while Cities: Skylines is still open.
- Undo and history. Undo the last sync in one click, and put back any single file a sync replaced or deleted.
// 03 How it works
Sync Cities: Skylines in three steps
Install and add the game
Install SyncCrate on every PC and add Cities: Skylines in the Game Browser. Its folder is found automatically.
One PC hosts
The PC with the setup everyone should have clicks Start Hosting. The others pick it under Scan for Hosts on the same network, or paste its join code from anywhere.
Compare and sync
Check the list of new, changed and conflicting files, then Sync Now. Only the files that differ are copied, PC to PC.
TipClose Cities: Skylines before syncing. SyncCrate warns you if the game is still running.
// 04 Common problems
When Cities: Skylines mods don't match
Missing assets after moving a save
A city built with custom assets loads without the ones the other PC doesn't have, and those buildings don't appear.
Local assets sync with the save. For Workshop assets, subscribe to the same items on the other PC.
Your own creations on one PC only
Buildings and maps you made in the editor are saved locally and never reach another PC by themselves.
The Assets and Maps folders sync from the host, so your creations are on every PC.
Handing a city to a friend
A friend who wants to explore or continue your city needs the save and everything it was built with.
Host with saves, assets and maps allowed. Your friend syncs, subscribes to the same Workshop items, and loads the city.
Mods with code
Local mods are
.dllfiles that run in the game..dllfiles are flagged before they sync, and nothing changes until you approve the list. Only sync with people you trust.
// 05 Cities: Skylines
Good to know
- Workshop items aren't synced. Steam keeps subscribed assets and mods in its own folder, outside the game's data folder, so SyncCrate can't sync them; the Content page says how many you have. Friends subscribe to the same items.
- DLC isn't copied. Cities that use expansion or content pack features need the same DLC on the other PC.
- Cities: Skylines II is a different game with its own folders; this page is about the first game.
// FAQ
Cities: Skylines questions
Where are Cities: Skylines saves and assets stored?
In the game's data folder in your user profile: %LOCALAPPDATA%/Colossal Order/Cities_Skylines on Windows, with Saves and Addons/Assets, Addons/Maps and Addons/Mods inside. SyncCrate finds it on Windows, Mac and Linux.
How do I move my Cities: Skylines city to a new PC?
Install SyncCrate on both, host on the old PC and sync from the new one. Saves, local assets, maps and mods come along. Log in to Steam on the new PC and subscribe to the same Workshop items.
Does SyncCrate sync Workshop assets and mods?
No. Workshop items are downloaded and kept by Steam, outside the game's data folder. SyncCrate syncs everything local: saves, assets, maps and mods.
Is there multiplayer in Cities: Skylines?
Not in the base game. SyncCrate doesn't add any: it makes sure another PC has the same save and local content, so a friend can continue the same city on their own.
// Related game guides
All games · SyncCrate supports 100 games.
// Free · Open source · Windows, macOS, Linux
Same Cities: Skylines setup on every PC.
Install SyncCrate on each PC, one of you hosts, everyone else joins. No accounts, no cloud, nothing uploaded anywhere.