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CouchCoopDesk

Getting started

Stardew Valley: Setting up co-op

One player hosts the farm, every extra player gets a cabin, and couch players join through Start Local Co-op.

  • 4 parts · 14 steps

Compiled from 1 playthrough video and 6 guides · checked Oct 19, 2026

0 of 4 done
Video: MistaWigglez on YouTube. Loads from youtube-nocookie.com only when you press play.

What each player can do here

P1 · Host
  • Keeps the save: the farm lives on the host's system, so farmhands can only play while the host has it open.
P2 · Farmhand
  • Joins into one of the farm's cabins with a character of their own.

If your skill levels differ: The host sets the cabins, the profit margin and shared or separate money when creating the farm, and each farmhand levels their own skills.Our suggestionThe player who knows the game better hosts and makes those choices. How to split the roles

Hosting a new co-op farm

Part 1 of 4. Create the farm from the Co-op menu with a cabin ready for each extra player.

  1. HostFrom the title screen pick Co-op (not New), then the Host tab and Host New Farm.
  2. HostSet the number of starting cabins to the number of extra players. Cabins can still be built or knocked down later in the game.
  3. HostDecide whether to lower the profit margin: a lower margin makes most items sell for less, to balance the extra pair of hands.
  4. BothDecide between one shared wallet and separate wallets. The choice can be changed later with the green ledger book in Mayor Lewis's house.

Good to know

  • The profit margin (25, 50, 75 or the default 100 percent) cannot be changed once the farm exists without editing the save.

Starting split-screen

Part 2 of 4. Bring a couch player into a farm that is already running.

  1. BothEach extra player needs a controller and a free cabin on the farm before they can join.
  2. FarmhandOn PC the keyboard always belongs to the first player, so the second couch player plays on a controller.
  3. HostIn game, open the menu, go to the Options tab and choose Start Local Co-op in the Multiplayer section.
  4. FarmhandThe new player presses Start on their controller to join, then creates a character or plays the one they already have.

Good to know

  • On consoles you cannot mix split-screen players and online players in the same session.

Player limits by system

Part 3 of 4. Check how many people your system seats on one screen.

  1. BothSplit-screen takes up to four players on PlayStation and Xbox, and on PC as well.
  2. BothOn the original Switch split-screen is limited to two players.
  3. BothPlaying online on a console needs that console's paid online service; local split-screen does not.
  4. BothThere is no crossplay between consoles and PC: everyone plays on the same platform (PC players on Windows, Mac and Linux can mix).

Good to know

  • Switch and Switch 2 want a full controller or a pair of Joy-Con for every player; on Switch 2 split-screen goes up to four.

Adding a farmhand to a solo farm

Part 4 of 4. Turn a farm that started as single-player into a co-op farm.

  1. HostAsk Robin at the Carpenter's Shop to build a cabin. In version 1.6 it costs 100g and goes up at once, so the new player can join the same day.
  2. HostFor online friends, save, go back to the title screen and open the farm through Co-op instead of Load. For a couch player, Start Local Co-op from the in-game options is enough.

Good to know

  • Want separate wallets on an old solo farm? Turn money separation on before the first farmhand logs in; switching it on later splits the host's gold evenly between players.
Sources (7)

Steps compiled from 1 playthrough video and 6 text guides, checked Oct 19, 2026, and written in our own words. We did not play the game for this guide. A step marked “single source” rests on one guide so far.