{"id":15143,"date":"2026-10-01T03:37:07","date_gmt":"2026-10-01T03:37:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/playgama.com\/blog\/?p=15143"},"modified":"2026-10-01T03:37:07","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T03:37:07","slug":"how-to-save-browser-game-data-locally-using-localstorage-and","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/playgama.com\/blog\/business-faqs\/how-to-save-browser-game-data-locally-using-localstorage-and\/","title":{"rendered":"How to save browser game data locally using localStorage and IndexedDB?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Use localStorage for small saves (settings, level number, simple JSON under a few hundred KB) and IndexedDB for larger or structured data (inventories, replay data, many records). Both are per-origin, live in the browser, and can be cleared by the user or the browser itself – they are not backup or cross-device storage.<\/strong><\/p>\n

At a glance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Fact<\/th>\nValue<\/th>\nSource<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
localStorage persists across sessions<\/td>\nuntil user clears it<\/td>\ndeveloper.mozilla.org<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Web Storage total browser quota<\/td>\ntypically around 10 MiB<\/td>\ndeveloper.mozilla.org<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Web Storage API operations run<\/td>\nsynchronously, blocking JS<\/td>\ndeveloper.mozilla.org<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

For a small save (settings, current level, a JSON blob of a few dozen KB), use window.localStorage<\/code>: localStorage.setItem('save', JSON.stringify(state))<\/code> and JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem('save'))<\/code> on load. It is per-origin and “the stored data is saved across browser sessions”<\/a>, unlike sessionStorage which clears when the tab closes. For larger or structured data – many records, inventories, level editors, replay logs – use IndexedDB<\/a>, a low-level async API built for significant amounts of structured data with indexed lookup; Unity WebGL builds already store PlayerPrefs in IndexedDB under the hood.<\/p>\n

Playgama Bridge’s Storage module<\/a> replaces direct localStorage calls with one API that picks cloud saves when a platform supports them, or local storage otherwise – no per-platform save code.<\/p>\n

Two things trip up most browser game developers. First, Web Storage calls are synchronous and block JS execution, so don’t call localStorage on every frame – save on meaningful events (level complete, checkpoint, settings change). Second, both localStorage and IndexedDB are local to one browser on one device: a user can clear site data, switch browsers, or move devices and lose everything, and total Web Storage is capped around 10 MiB per browser. <\/p>\n

Next step: implement local save\/load first, test what survives a private-browsing session and a manual site-data clear, then decide whether you need a portal’s sync system or your own back-end for real cross-device saves.<\/p>\n

Sources<\/h2>\n