Where Does SameBoy Store Saves?
SameBoy writes battery saves and states next to the ROM. The extensions and what the libretro core does instead.
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SameBoy writes battery saves as .sav files next to the ROM. Super Mario Land 2.gb yields Super Mario Land 2.sav in the same folder, which other Game Boy emulators generally accept. Save states land beside it as .s1, .s2, and so on.
No setup step exists; the files appear on first save. The libretro core behaves differently, writing .srm and .rtc into RetroArch save dirs instead. For the standalone builds, copying the ROM folder copies everything worth keeping.
Where SameBoy stores this, by platform
.\MyGame.sav
Beside the ROM with states as .sN alongside. No config needed. Back up the folder and both save kinds travel together.
./MyGame.sav
Same ROM side files on Linux and macOS builds. The libretro core instead uses the frontend save and state directories with .srm and .state naming.
./MyGame.sav
Same ROM side layout in the Cocoa build. Battery saves transfer across emulators; states stay inside SameBoy.
Frequently asked questions
can i use a sameboy sav in another game boy emulator
Usually yes. The .sav is raw cart RAM with no wrapper, so renaming to match the ROM name in the other emulator works. States never transfer since each emulator snapshots differently.
sameboy libretro vs standalone save spots
Standalone writes next to the ROM. The core writes .srm into RetroArch saves and .state files into its states dir. Mixing the two without copying explains most missing save reports.
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