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CreditsPATCH 2026.10.18

ME2 to ME3 Save Import: What Actually Carries Over?

By VGSources Team 7 min read

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Short answer: Do not count on Mass Effect 2 credits or resources transferring into Mass Effect 3. The official PlayStation 3 manual documents that an imported Shepard keeps the previous character’s level and decisions that affect ME3, but it does not list credits, resources, inventory, or a currency balance as imported data. That makes money carryover undocumented rather than confirmed.

If by “money” you mean real-world money, of course it does not transfer between games. This article uses the term in the usual Mass Effect sense: in-game credits and resource totals.

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What the official documentation actually confirms

The clearest evidence is the official Mass Effect 3 manual for PlayStation 3. Its import instructions say that, after you finish a Mass Effect 2 career, you can begin a new ME3 career and choose IMPORT ME2 CHARACTER. The imported Commander Shepard retains the previous character’s level and decisions that affect Mass Effect 3.

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That wording is important because it names the data the manual promises. It does not provide a complete inventory of every value in an ME2 save, and it does not identify credits or resource stockpiles as preserved fields. The safest reading is therefore narrow: level and consequential story decisions are documented carryovers; currency and resources are not established by this manual.

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ME2 data category What the cited PS3 manual says How to treat it when planning your import
Shepard’s level Maintained on import Documented carryover
Decisions that affect ME3 Maintained on import Documented carryover
Credits Not stated in the cited PS3 manual Do not assume a balance will be transferred
Resources Not stated in the cited PS3 manual Do not treat ME2 stockpiles as guaranteed ME3 funds
Inventory and every other character statistic Not enumerated Verify your specific edition rather than relying on a general assumption

This is not the same as proof that every player will see a zero balance. It is a documentation limit: the cited source does not promise that credits or resources move across the games. A guide that states an exact transfer amount, percentage, or guaranteed starting balance would be going beyond the evidence available here.

How the documented ME2-to-ME3 import works

The following sequence is the procedure described for the PlayStation 3 edition. It is a menu path, not a universal instruction for every platform or release.

  1. Finish an ME2 career. The manual describes a completed career as the one that becomes available for import.
  2. Start a new Mass Effect 3 career. Begin the new-game process in the ME3 installation that contains the import feature.
  3. Select IMPORT ME2 CHARACTER. Choose the import option rather than creating a completely new Shepard.
  4. Choose the completed ME2 career shown by the game. The manual’s wording concerns an available completed career; it does not define a cross-platform file-transfer procedure.
  5. Continue with the imported character. The documented result is preservation of the old Shepard’s level and ME2 decisions that have consequences in ME3.

Nothing in that documented flow asks you to type a credit amount, convert resources, or select a currency-transfer option. If you are looking for a separate “transfer money” command, the manual does not describe one. The import is presented as a character-and-story continuation, with level and relevant decisions specifically identified.

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Why the ME1-to-ME2 information causes confusion

Some Mass Effect documentation discusses importing an original Mass Effect character into Mass Effect 2 and mentions bonus experience and resources for that earlier transition. That is a different handoff. Evidence that ME1 can award a bonus when imported into ME2 does not establish that ME2 credits or resources transfer into ME3.

There are three separate transitions to keep straight:

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  • ME1 to ME2: The ME2 PC manual discusses an import and mentions bonus experience and resources for that transition.
  • ME2 to ME3: The cited ME3 PS3 manual identifies retained level and decisions affecting ME3, without listing credits or resources.
  • Within one game: Spending or earning currency during an individual ME2 or ME3 career is not a save import between games.

Search results and forum answers often compress these transitions into one general statement about “save bonuses.” Checking which game is the source and which game is the destination prevents the earlier ME1-to-ME2 rule from being misapplied to ME2-to-ME3 money.

Credits and resources are not the same question as story continuity

Mass Effect’s import system is valuable even without a documented currency transfer because its explicitly named purpose is continuity. Your imported Shepard’s level carries forward, and decisions made in ME2 that affect ME3 are preserved according to the manual. Those are different kinds of data from a numerical credit balance.

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What you can plan around

You can plan an imported playthrough around the documented level and decision carryovers. If a previous choice changes how ME3 begins or which consequences appear, that is the type of continuity the manual specifically promises.

What you should not budget around

Do not make an ME3 purchasing plan that depends on an ME2 credit total, and do not treat a large ME2 resource stockpile as guaranteed starting capital. The source does not give a conversion rule or a preserved amount for either category.

Why an exact number would be misleading

An exact figure would need to identify the edition, platform, save state, and the game’s own import rules. The available manual supplies none of those currency details. Presenting a universal number would turn an undocumented behavior into a promise.

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Platform and edition limits matter

The principal mechanics source here is specifically the PlayStation 3 manual. Its menu label and sequence are useful for a PS3 player, but they should not be presented as a guaranteed, word-for-word path on PC, Xbox, or another release. Different editions can expose different menus, save locations, or compatibility rules.

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Use this practical rule:

  • If you are playing the documented PS3 edition, follow the manual’s completed-career import flow and look for IMPORT ME2 CHARACTER.
  • If you are on another platform or edition, confirm that version’s official instructions before moving or troubleshooting saves.
  • Do not infer that a successful character import proves that every ME2 statistic, including currency, was copied.

This platform qualification also applies to technical help. The cited source does not provide a current all-platform compatibility matrix, a universal save-file location, or a list of every supported edition. Those details must come from the documentation for the version you actually own.

What Mass Effect Legendary Edition changes—and what it does not

BioWare describes Mass Effect Legendary Edition as containing Mass Effect, Mass Effect 2, and Mass Effect 3 content. That makes it a destination that includes all three games, but the collection description alone is not a save-transfer guarantee. Owning a collection does not, by itself, document a currency conversion from one game to the next.

Before following any import guide for the Legendary Edition, identify the edition and platform-specific instructions that apply to your installation. Treat the collection’s inclusion of ME3 as a way to access the destination game, not as evidence that an ME2 credit balance is retained.

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If the import option or expected data is missing

The import option is not visible

First check the edition and platform. The documented label comes from the PS3 manual, so another release may use a different presentation. Then verify that the ME2 career you intend to use is complete in the way your version recognizes. If the game still does not expose an import option, use that edition’s official support instructions rather than applying PS3 menu steps to it.

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The wrong career appears

Stop before confirming the selection and identify the save or career shown by the game. The manual describes importing an available completed career; it does not authorize a generic file-copy method for every platform. Selecting a different career can change the level and decisions that are carried into your new ME3 run.

The imported character has no clearly documented credit total

That ambiguity is consistent with the source: credits are not listed among the maintained values in the cited manual. Record your ME2 balance if you want a personal comparison, but do not treat the comparison as an official transfer rule or use it to claim that every platform behaves identically.

You are following an ME1-to-ME2 guide

Return to the destination game in the instructions. Bonus experience and resources described for the earlier ME1-to-ME2 import are not evidence for the later ME2-to-ME3 transition. A guide must match both the source game and the destination game before its currency advice is relevant.

A conservative pre-import checklist

  • Write down the platform and edition you are playing.
  • Confirm that the ME2 career you want to continue is completed.
  • Note the Shepard level and major decisions you expect to matter in ME3.
  • Record your ME2 credit and resource totals only as a personal baseline, not as a promised starting balance.
  • Use the destination edition’s official import instructions and menu labels.
  • After import, verify the character and career you selected before committing to the new ME3 run.

This checklist separates information the manual explicitly identifies from information it leaves unlisted. It also gives you a way to notice a mistaken career selection without assuming that an undocumented currency behavior is a software failure.

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The practical answer for planning your playthrough

Plan for continuity of Shepard’s level and consequential ME2 decisions because those are the values the cited ME3 manual names. Plan your ME3 economy independently, because the same manual does not establish that ME2 credits or resources are transferred. If your edition displays a different result, treat that as edition-specific behavior until its own official documentation confirms the rule.

In other words, an ME2 save import is documented as a way to carry a character and the story choices that shape ME3—not as a documented bank-to-bank transfer of in-game money.

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