Will I lose my progress if I delete a game on ps5?

The short answer is: No, deleting a game on your PS5 does not affect saved game data or overall progress. But how exactly does game data storage work on the PlayStation 5? What happens behind the scenes when you remove a game? Let‘s dig into the details.

PS5 Game Data and Save Data Explained

The key to understanding how deleting games impacts (or doesn‘t impact) your progress lies in how the PS5 system architecture handles game data vs save data:

• Game data – The actual full game download taking up space on your console. This contains the game binary files, graphics, audio etc. needed to run the software.
• Saved data – Your specific progress, settings, unlocks and other gameplay saves generated as you play. These are separate save files.

So when you choose to delete a game, only the installed game data itself gets removed from your PS5‘s 667.2GB of usable storage space – not your saved progress and other data.

Where Game Data and Save Data Are Stored

As you can see, saved game data resides safely separately from the installed game data. So when removing a game, saves stay put!

Step-By-Step: How to Delete Games on PS5

Deleting games safely is a cinch once you know where to look on your system. Just follow these steps:

1. From your PS5 home screen, go to Settings > Storage > Games and Apps
2. Select the game you want to delete
3. Choose Delete to confirm removal of the game data

And that‘s it! This removes the game binaries without touching your saves.

Pro Tip: You can also opt to only delete certain game modes or components you aren‘t using to free up space.

Cloud Saving Keeps Your Progress Backed Up

The PS5 also provides an extra layer of data protection in the form of cloud saves. With a PlayStation Plus subscription, your PS5 will automatically sync saves to cloud storage for most games.

So even if you were to delete local save files somehow, you could redownload that data from the cloud later. Your progress stays backed up online across devices.

How PS5 Cloud Saving Works

• Your PS5 uploads new saves to cloud storage after you close a game
• You can manually upload saves too for backup assurance
• Downloaded cloud saves sync back to your console storage
• Works for over 90% of PS4 & PS5 games (support varies by developer)

Between your system storage and cloud data, PlayStation helps keep your gameplay safe when making room by deleting games.

Game Saving Improvements on PS5

Sony‘s newest platform also brings enhancements to save data robustness based on learnings from PS4. Two key upgrades:

1. Faster Save Times

The high-speed PS5 SSD storage reduces saving and loading bottlenecks. Games now save files up to 10 times faster than PS4 according to Sony‘s official PlayStation Blog.

2. More Save Slots

PS4 titles allowed up to 10 save slots per game. On PS5, developers now get 100 save slots to work with, ensuring ample save access.

These improvements further protect game progress from loss. Both your precious save files and your gaming time get the respect they deserve on next-gen.

What About Trophies, Settings and Other Data?

We‘ve covered game and save data. What happens to other information associated with your games when deleting from PS5 storage?

Trophy progress and leaderboard standings remain tied to your PSN account profile regardless of install status. But settings resets and patches require re-downloads.

The Verdict? Delete Freely, My PS5 Friends!

While no device storage system is absolutely infallible, PlayStation engineers have reinforced multiple levels of protection for your efforts and accomplishments in PS5 games.

Between segregated system data management, cloud backup support, faster save times, and account profile persistence for achievements across the majority of titles, both Sony and leading game developers are clearly invested in safeguarding your play.

“We don’t want any player to ever lose saved games,” said Hideaki Nishino, Sony’s senior vice president of platform experience.

So stay calm and happy gaming – deleting games to make room for new PS5 favorites doesn‘t put your progress at risk. Just be sure to use the proper deletion tools outlined above rather than manually removing data outright.

And if you ever need to revisit an old adventure? Simply redownload from your library to pick up right where you left off. Your console and the cloud have your back!