Skyrim Still Eating 20 GB After You “Uninstalled”? Here’s How to Erase It Completely

I recently decided to wipe The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim from my SSD to make room for Starfield. After clicking “Uninstall” in Steam, 18 GB of mods, INI files, and hidden cache folders refused to budge. Below, I’ll explain why Skyrim lingers, walk through the exact cleanup I used, and finish with Perfect Uninstaller for the final sweep.

Why Skyrim refuses to disappear

• Mod managers (Mod Organizer, Vortex) install outside the game folder.
• Save files & INIs live under Documents and AppData.
• Steam Workshop & cache leave behind numbered depot folders.
• Registry keys keep the launcher entry alive even when the EXE is gone.

Step-by-step removal (tested on Windows 11)

1. Back up your saves
   Copy %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Skyrim Special Edition\Saves to an external drive.
2. Native uninstall

• Steam: Library → right-click Skyrim → Manage → Uninstall.
• Xbox/Game Pass: Settings → Apps → Skyrim → Uninstall.
  This removes the base 12–14 GB.

1. Manual sweep
   Delete these folders if they exist:

• %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Skyrim* (INI files, saves)
• %PROGRAMFILES(X86)%\Steam\steamapps\common\Skyrim*
• %APPDATA%\Vortex\mods\skyrimse or %APPDATA%\ModOrganizer\SkyrimSE
• %LOCALAPPDATA%\Skyrim Special Edition (shader cache) Registry keys:
• HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Bethesda Softworks\Skyrim Special Edition
• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\Bethesda Softworks\Skyrim Special Edition After this, I dropped from 18 GB to 230 MB of orphaned mod metadata.

1. Perfect Uninstaller – the final blow

• Launch Perfect Uninstaller → scan → select The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
• Choose Force Uninstall + Deep Registry Scan.
• It located leftover Vortex deployment files, two empty registry branches, and a hidden Xbox package stub.
• Click Delete, reboot—0 bytes left, no launcher ghosts.

Summary

Skyrim’s mod-heavy nature means a simple “Uninstall” only removes the base game. Nuke the documents, mod-manager folders, and registry keys manually, then let Perfect Uninstaller finish the job. Follow the checklist above and you’ll reclaim every gigabyte without breaking other Bethesda titles.