How to Drag Sprites and Images Into Unity or Unreal

To get a sprite or image into Unity, drag the image file from File Explorer into the Project window; Unity copies it into your project's Assets folder and imports it. In Unreal Engine, open the Content Browser, select a folder, and drag the files in from File Explorer, or use Import. Neither engine's import documentation describes pasting an image from the clipboard, so if what you have is a copied screenshot, save it as a PNG file first.

Unity: drag files into the Project window

1. In File Explorer, find the PNG, PSD or other image file.
2. In the Unity Editor, open the folder you want in the Project window.
3. Drag the file from Explorer onto that folder. Unity makes a copy, places it in Assets, and imports it.

You can also save or copy a file straight into the Assets folder on disk. Unity notices the new file and imports it. Once a file is imported, move or rename it inside the Project window rather than in Explorer.

Make the image a sprite

Select the imported image in the Project window to see its import settings in the Inspector.

• Texture Type: set it to Sprite (2D and UI) for 2D games and UI.
• Sprite Mode: Single for one image, Multiple for a sprite sheet you'll slice in the Sprite Editor, Polygon to clip the sprite to a custom outline.
• Pixels Per Unit: how many pixels of the image equal one unit in world space. Keep it the same across sprites that should share a scale.
• Filter Mode: Point (no filter) keeps pixel art crisp; Bilinear smooths it.

If your project's Default Behavior Mode is 2D (Edit > Project Settings > Editor), Unity treats imported images as sprites automatically.

Unreal Engine: drag files into the Content Browser

1. Open the Content Drawer or Content Browser with the Content Drawer button in the lower-left corner of the editor.
2. In the Sources panel, select the destination folder. You can't import into the top-level All folder.
3. In File Explorer, select your image files and drag them into the Content Browser.

The alternative is Add > Import to [folder] or the Import button, then browse to the files. Unreal detects some texture types by itself, such as normal maps, and imports them as the right asset type.

Turn a copied screenshot into a file first

Snipping Tool, Win+Shift+S and a browser's Copy image all put a bitmap on the clipboard, not a file. Neither engine documents importing that bitmap directly. Turn it into a file:

• Paste into Paint and save as PNG. Slow but always available.
• PowerToys Advanced Paste. Open your Assets folder (or any folder) in File Explorer and use Paste as .png file. Advanced Paste writes the clipboard image as a PNG with an auto-generated name, which you can then rename and drag into the engine.
• Save from the capture tool. If Snipping Tool already saved the screenshot to your Screenshots folder, drag that file instead.

A pasted bitmap can also lose transparency on the way. How to keep transparent PNGs transparent through paste explains why, and how to copy an image so Explorer gets a file covers more ways to get a file instead of pixels.

Files vs file contents explains the difference between copying a file and copying what's inside it.

Keep reference images out of the build

Concept art, mood shots and screenshots from art direction are for looking at, not importing. Anything in Unity's Assets folder or Unreal's Content folder becomes part of the project, so keep references in a separate folder or in a viewer beside the editor. How to keep reference images beside Blender covers viewers such as PureRef that work the same way next to a game engine.

For HUD icons and UI sprites you reuse across tasks, where game UI artists keep HUD icons compares folders, source control and clipboard tools.

If dragging into the editor does nothing

• The editor is running as administrator. Windows blocks drag and drop from a normal app into an elevated one. Run the editor normally, or copy the file into the project folder instead. Why you can't drag into an elevated window explains the rule.
• Unreal's All folder is selected. Pick a real folder in the Sources panel first.
• You dragged a link or a browser thumbnail. A drag from a web page can produce a URL or shortcut instead of an image file. Save the image, then drag the saved file.

Keeping this hour's sprites within reach

If you move the same handful of PNGs and screenshots between Explorer, an image editor and the engine all day, a clipboard manager that keeps files can save trips back to Explorer. Edge Drop, the free clipboard shelf made by the team behind this site, records files you copy in Explorer and images you capture, and you can drag either back out as a file with a normal Windows file drag. Image cards are written to a temporary PNG for the drag. Try it with one file first, since each editor decides what it accepts. How to drag an item out of Edge Drop into any app shows the steps.

FAQ

Can I paste a screenshot directly into Unity as a sprite?

Unity's import documentation covers files saved in or dragged into the project, not clipboard images. Save the screenshot as a PNG, then import it.

Where does Unity put a file I drag in from Explorer?

Unity copies it into the Assets folder (into the folder you dropped it on in the Project window). The original stays where it was.

Why can't I import into a folder in Unreal?

If All is selected in the Sources panel, there's no destination folder. Select a folder under your project's Content and import again.

Does Windows clipboard history keep image files I copied in Explorer?

No. Win+V stores text, HTML and bitmap images only, so a PNG copied in Explorer never becomes a history item.

Related reading

• Game UI Icon Workflow: From Figma to Unity and Unreal
• How to Save a Clipboard Image as a File in Windows
• How to Add Reference Images in Blender (and Keep Them)
• How to Keep Transparent PNGs Transparent Through Paste

Sources

• Importing assets (Unity Manual) — dragging files into the Project window and saving into the Assets folder.
• Sprite (2D and UI) texture Import Settings reference (Unity Manual) — Sprite Mode, Pixels Per Unit and Filter Mode.
• Set your project to 2D or 3D mode (Unity Manual) — Default Behavior Mode and images imported as sprites.
• Importing assets directly into Unreal Engine (Epic Games) — Content Browser import, drag and drop from Explorer, the All folder restriction.
• Advanced Paste (Microsoft Learn) — Paste as .png file.
• Using the clipboard (Microsoft Support) — clipboard history formats.

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