A beginner's guide to installing Stardew Valley mods: SMAPI, Stardrop, and more

How to install Stardew Valley mods | PC Gamer Skip to main content Open menu Close main menu PC Gamer THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON PC GAMES US Edition UK US Canada Australia Subscribe Sign in View Profile Sign out Search Search PC Gamer Games Hardware News Reviews Guides Video Forum More PC Gaming Show PC Gamer Clips Software Codes Coupons Movies & TV Magazine Newsletter Affiliate links Meet the team Community guidelines About PC Gamer PC Gamer Magazine SubscriptionWhy subscribe?Subscribe to the world’s #1 PC gaming magTry a single issue or save on a subscriptionIssues delivered straight to your door or device From$1Subscribe now Jump to: Getting started Mod folder Install SMAPI Install Stardrop Recommended Don’t miss these Life Sim Stardew Valley fan left their Switch running for ‘over 3 weeks straight’ to sleep for 1,000 years, waking up to immortal villagers, giant mushrooms and debris everywhere Linux My favourite thing about Linux gaming will now automagically apply crucial fan patches to your Metal Gear installs, making it even easier than on Windows Life Sim Stardew Valley 1.7: The farmer’s almanac for key details and news on the next big update Games The best sex games on PC that aren’t garbage Strategy Get rich quick with these Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord cheats Games The 20 best cozy games on PC that aren’t farm sims Games The best free games on Steam Life Sim Starsand Island is the first can’t-miss cozy game of 2026 and it’s already taken over 20 hours from me The Sims The Sims 4’s most notorious sex mod gets launched 400,000 times a day, which is more people than I realized were even playing The Sims every day Survival & Crafting Hytale’s unfinished sandbox has finally given me hope for a voxel RPG, after Cube World broke my heart twice RPG The best Skyrim Special Edition mods Survival & Crafting Terraria’s biggest mod manager will require months before it’s fully compatible with the 1.4.5 patch: ‘Updating tModLoader to major Terraria releases is a huge undertaking’ Games The best laptop games Handheld Gaming PCs The best Steam Deck games Life Sim Is the new farm sim Starsand Island worth playing in early access? PopularNEW: PC Gamer Clips!Arc RaidersBest PC gearFalloutGame Quizzes Games Life Sim Stardew Valley A beginner’s guide to installing Stardew Valley mods: SMAPI, Stardrop, and more Guides By Andrea Shearon published 21 February 2026 Set up SMAPI, find your mod folder, and use the Stardrop mod manager. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: ConcernedApe) Jump to: Getting started Mod folder Install SMAPI Install Stardrop Recommended Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter PC Gamer Get the PC Gamer Newsletter Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team. 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With so much community support, it’s an easy game for first-time modders to dive into, but modding can still be an intimidating task.The modding scene for ConcernedApe’s farming sim is easily one of my favorites, and with a good primer on the basics maybe it can be one of yours, too. To help you get there, I’ll walk you through how to install Stardew Valley mods with a breakdown of SMAPI (a required framework for loading mods), popular download resources, and getting started with a mod manager.How to install Stardew Valley mods (Image credit: ConcernedApe)This guide is organized into three parts. We’ll start by downloading basic Stardew Valley mod tools, then go on to installing SMAPI and the Stardrop mod manager. Players familiar with the first steps can use the navigation on the left to skip ahead, or keep on scrollin’ to start from square one. Related articles The best Stardew Valley mods The best Hytale mods and how to install them The best Baldur’s Gate 3 mods Download basics like SMAPI and Stardrop firstYou’ll need a few basic tools to install Stardew Valley mods and get them running smoothly. I strongly recommend downloading Stardrop and Content Patcher, but the Stardew Modding API (SMAPI) is the only absolute must.To follow along with the guide, download SMAPI, Stardrop, and Content Patcher. Extract all three to a central folder for easy access.Swipe to scroll horizontally⚙️ Recommended downloads to start moddingToolUtilityRequiredDescriptionSMAPIMod loader ✅Popular framework for launching Stardew Valley with modsStardropMod manager⚠️Keeps files organized with options for updates or multiple profiles to enable or disable certain modsContent PatcherMod tool⚠️Dynamic mod loader, allows mods to load without replacing game files. Technically not required, but strongly recommendedAlternative Textures Mod tool❌Similar purpose to Content Patcher, but less commonWhere to find Stardew Valley modsYou can download individual mods from popular hubs listed below, but get the basics above up and running before amassing