Where Does Stream Deck Store Profiles and Backups?
Stream Deck keeps profiles, backups and plugins in Elgato folders in Roaming and Application Support. Backup and migration paths.
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Stream Deck software keeps its world in an Elgato folder: ProfilesV2 with your button layouts and images, a Backup folder with automatic update-time copies, plugin data and device state. On Windows that root is Roaming\Elgato\StreamDeck; on macOS it is the com.elgato.StreamDeck application-support folder. Same shape, both platforms.
Backups are a first-class feature rather than folk wisdom. The Profiles tab exports everything to a portable backup file, and since 5.3 the app snapshots automatically on every update. Power users can also redirect default profiles through registry or defaults keys for fleet deployment. Close the app before any hand surgery on the folders.
Where Stream Deck stores this, by platform
%APPDATA%\Elgato\StreamDeck
ProfilesV2 holds layouts and button images; Backup holds automatic update-time copies plus manual exports. Back up via Settings, Profiles, Backup All to a portable file. Migrate by importing that file on the new machine and reinstalling plugins. Close the app before copying folders by hand.
~/Library/Application Support/com.elgato.StreamDeck
Same layout as Windows: ProfilesV2, Backup, plugin data. Automatic backups land here on every app update. The defaults key custom_default_profiles redirects fleet profile sources. Import and export work identically across platforms, so mixed-OS migrations just work.
Frequently asked questions
how do i move stream deck to a new computer
Use Settings, Profiles tab, Backup All to export a .StreamDeckProfilesBackup file, or copy the whole Elgato\StreamDeck folder with the app closed. On the new machine install the software, import the backup, and reinstall plugins from the store. Device firmware is separate and needs no backup.
how do i restore a deleted stream deck profile
Since version 5.3 the app writes automatic backups into the Backup subfolder on every update. Open Settings, Profiles and import the newest one. Manual exports from before the mishap work the same way. Importing overwrites current profiles, so export the broken state first if it holds anything salvageable.
can i edit stream deck profiles by hand
Edit the Manifest.json inside the profile's page folder under ProfilesV2, or copy the images subfolder contents to learn the layout. Each profile ID folder holds page folders with their button images. Close the app before hand-editing; it overwrites open files on quit. Prefer export and reimport for anything routine.
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