Grand Theft Auto 5 and Online: Ultimate Savings Guide

This guide details how to save your progress in Grand Theft Auto 5 (GTA 5) and GTA Online. Both games feature autosaves, but manual saves offer extra security.

GTA 5 Story Mode Saving:

There are two primary methods for saving in GTA 5's Story Mode:

• Safehouse Sleep: The most reliable method is sleeping in a bed at one of your Safehouses (marked with a white house icon on the map). Approach the bed and press:
  • Keyboard: E
  • Controller: Right on the D-pad

This will trigger a save.

• Cell Phone Save: For a quicker save, use your in-game cell phone:
  • Open the phone (Keyboard: Up arrow; Controller: Up on D-pad).
  • Select the cloud icon.
  • Confirm the save.

GTA Online Saving:

GTA Online doesn't have a dedicated manual save menu. Instead, you force autosaves using these methods. Look for a spinning orange circle in the bottom-right corner to confirm a successful save. If you don't see it, repeat the process.

• Outfit/Accessory Change: Changing even a single accessory forces an autosave.

  • Open the Interaction Menu (Keyboard: M; Controller: Touchpad).
  • Select Appearance, then Accessories. Swap an accessory or change your Outfit.
  • Exit the menu.

• Swap Character Menu: Navigating to the Swap Character menu (even without switching) also triggers an autosave.

  • Open the Pause Menu (Keyboard: Esc; Controller: Start).
  • Go to the Online tab.
  • Select Swap Character.

Remember, an autosave is in progress when you see a rotating orange circle in the bottom-right corner of the screen. While autosaves happen frequently, using these manual save techniques provides an extra layer of protection against losing progress.