Stardew Valley is one of the best RPGs on the Play Store, but don't despair if you feel like you've explored every nook and cranny of the farming game. Mods can inject new life into the game, introducing new characters, events, areas and introducing quality of life features.

Unfortunately, modding Stardew Valley on Android isn't an intuitive process. This guide will walk you through the process step-by-step so you can install mods without a problem. We also recommend you play Stardew Valley on Android with one of the top Android-compatible controllers, as they are much easier to use than the game's touch-screen controls.

How to prepare Stardew Valley for mods

Start a game in Stardew Valley, play through a few days, then close it. While installing mods will prompt a restart, it's essential to ensure the game is working correctly from the start.

  1. Install Stardew Valley
  2. Open the game, check it's running fine, and close it.
  3. Press and hold on to the app icon to open the App Info page.
  4. Tap the Force Stop button.

Install and run SMAPI

Once you've checked your Stardew Valley game is working, you'll need to install a tool called SMAPI. This tool provides a platform to install and run mods, but it won't affect your gameplay by itself.

SMAPI only works with the latest version of Stardew Valley, so game updates can render your current version of SMAPI unusable. You can't use an APK to work around this issue, so we recommend not updating Stardew Valley once you've successfully installed a mod.

Depending on what version of SMAPI you install, you'll need to follow slightly different instructions. We've listed two methods ago, the standard method and the method for installing alpha versions of SMAPI

Regardless of the method, tap the arrow at the bottom of the app's home screen to start Stardew Valley when you're done. If SMAPI is working, the game should run as usual. If you encounter an issue with your game, try reinstalling SMAPI.

Method 1: For stable versions of SMAPI

  1. Head to the Android SMAPI page and download the APK file.
  2. Find the downloaded APK file in your phone's Download folder.
  3. Tap the file to run it.
  4. Confirm the file permissions and tap the Install button.
  5. After the installation is complete, tap Update to complete the installation.

Method 2: For unstable versions of SMAPI (e.g., alpha builds)

For alpha builds of SMAPI, you need to perform the installation process manually. We recommend exploring the Issues tab on SMAPI's Github page if you run into errors during this process.

Before you begin, you'll need:

  1. Unpack the SMAPI installer archive in Android/data.
  2. Install the alpha assembly of SMAPI.
  3. Open the SMAPI installer.
  4. Tap the three-dot button in the top-right corner of your screen
  5. Change the Set Mods Path text to read: "Android/data/com.zane.stardewvalley/files/Mods."

Now you're ready to install mods. However, if you've followed the alpha instructions, read the following instructions carefully, as they differ slightly from the stable guide.

How to install mods for Stardew Valley

You'll download mods directly to SMAPI, and the tool has built-in functionality to make this process seamless. While you can acquire Stardew Valley mods from numerous places, the best place to download Stardew Valley mods is Nexus Mods.

  1. Open SMAPI.
  2. Open the Help tab.
  3. Tap the Nexus button.
    • Tapping this button will open Nexus Mods in your phone's browser. Here, you can search, filter, and sort all the mods available for Stardew Valley. You will need to create an account to download mods.
  4. Find the mod you wish to download and tap MANUAL DOWNLOAD.
    • Many mods have different downloads for each platform. Check you have the Android download link to avoid errors.
  5. Move the downloaded mod to your newly created Mods Folder
    • Stable version: Internal Storage/Stardew Valley/Mods
    • Unstable/Alpha version: Internal Storage/Android/data/com.zane.stardewvalley/files/Mods ​​​
  6. Extract the zipped mod into the Mods folder.
  7. Restart SMAPI.
    • Check that the mod appears in the Config tab to confirm the installation.

You can now use your mod by tapping the green arrow in SMAPI. Do not run the regular Stardew Valley app; always use the SMAPI launcher to play the game with mods.

Explore the world of Stardew Valley mods

If you choose to update Stardew Valley, you must go through all these steps again to use your mods. But if modding Stardew Valley piqued your interest in modding Android games, try installing one of our favorite Android game mods.