How to Install Addons in WoW Forever: CurseForge, WowUp and Manual Steps

Installing addons on WoW Forever is the same craft as on any modern WoW client, with two traps: the game has its own folder, and many addons ship a separate Forever file that you must pick on purpose. This guide shows how to install addons in WoW Forever with the CurseForge app, with WowUp and by hand, then how to switch them on at character select, read Lua errors, find the addon that breaks your interface, move settings from the beta and back everything up. Checked on 8 November 2026 for WoW Forever 1.60.1. If you are still choosing what to install, the list of the best Forever addons gives one pick per job.

Short answer

• Forever addons go in World of Warcraft\_forever_\Interface\AddOns, not in _retail_ or _classic_era_.
• The easiest route is the CurseForge app with the Forever installation selected; WowUp supports Forever from version 2.24.0.
• For a manual install, unzip so that the folder holding the .toc file sits directly inside AddOns.
• Fully restart the game after adding a new addon, then tick it under AddOns at character select.
• Show hidden Lua errors with /console scriptErrors 1, and find a broken addon by enabling them one by one.
• Your settings live in _forever_\WTF; copy that folder before any big change.

Find the Forever addon folder

Forever sits next to your other WoW versions inside one World of Warcraft folder. The quickest way to open it:

1. Open the Battle.net app and select WoW Forever in the game list.
2. Click the gear icon next to the Play button and choose Show in Explorer (Show in Finder on a Mac).
3. Open _forever_, then Interface, then AddOns. If Interface or AddOns does not exist yet, create them with exactly those names.

Typical paths:

What	Windows	Mac
Addons	C:\Program Files (x86)\World of Warcraft\_forever_\Interface\AddOns	/Applications/World of Warcraft/_forever_/Interface/AddOns
Settings	_forever_\WTF\Account\<your account>\SavedVariables	the same, under _forever_/WTF
Beta leftovers	_classic_beta_	_classic_beta_

Per-character addon settings sit in further folders inside WTF\Account, next to the account-wide SavedVariables.

Install with an addon manager

Managers download the right file and keep it updated, which matters in launch week when addons update daily.

CurseForge app

1. Install the CurseForge app and choose World of Warcraft.
2. Open the installation selector at the top and pick the Forever installation. If it is missing, add it and point the app at your World of Warcraft folder.
3. Search for an addon and press Install. Required companions, such as Syndicator for Baganator, are installed with it.
4. Use Update All before each play session during the first weeks.

WowUp

WowUp added Forever support in version 2.24.0 (the newest release in early November was 2.25.4). Open its settings, check that a Forever installation is listed, and if not, add a new installation that points at the World of Warcraft folder containing _forever_. Select Forever in the switcher before you search.

Other sources

Some addons live outside CurseForge. ElvUI, for example, is downloaded from tukui.org. Several community guides report that the Wago app also recognises Forever with its own tab, but we found no announcement from Wago itself, so check that a Forever tab appears before relying on it.

Install by hand

1. Download the file tagged WoW Forever from the addon's page; on CurseForge, look for the Forever flavour in the Files tab.
2. Close the game completely.
3. Open the zip. Inside you will find one or more folders, each with a .toc file.
4. Drag those folders into _forever_\Interface\AddOns. The result must be AddOns\Questie\Questie.toc, not AddOns\Questie\Questie\Questie.toc.
5. To update later, delete the old folders first, then copy in the new ones.
6. Start the game. A /reload does not pick up an addon that was not there when the client started.

Turn addons on and find a broken one

At character select, press the AddOns button at the bottom left. Every installed addon is listed with a tick box. Untick what you do not want, and check that dependencies such as Syndicator are ticked too.

"Load out of date AddOns" lets an addon with an older interface number load anyway. It is a temporary bypass for small addons that never touch combat code; it cannot add functions that Forever removed, and changing the number inside a .toc file by hand does not help either.

When the interface breaks:

1. Type /console scriptErrors 1 to show Lua errors on screen; /console scriptErrors 0 hides them again.
2. Read the first line of the error: it usually names the addon folder.
3. If it does not, disable every addon, log in, then enable them a few at a time until the error returns.
4. Update or remove the culprit. An "incompatible" label almost always means you installed the Retail or Classic Era file.

Moving beta settings. Close the game and your manager, copy _forever_\WTF somewhere safe, then copy the Interface and WTF folders from _classic_beta_ into _forever_. In WTF\Account, rename the beta account folder to your live one if they differ, then let your manager update everything. A common forum tip is to leave out Config.wtf, because it may still point at the beta servers. Expect a few per-character settings to need redoing.

Common problems

Problem	What helps
Addon not in the AddOns list	Wrong folder, a nested folder, or the game was not fully restarted
Addon shows as incompatible	Replace it with the file tagged WoW Forever
CurseForge installed it but the game cannot see it	The app was on another installation; switch to Forever and install again
Errors right after login	Old beta addons are loading; update them or remove them
Settings vanished after an update	Restore SavedVariables from your backup copy of WTF
Addon works until you enter a dungeon	Forever limits what addons may do in instances; check the addon's Forever notes

Tips

• Install from the addon's official page or a manager, never from a reupload site or a link in a chat.
• Prefer projects with a long version history, a known author and a link to the source code, because many copycats appeared after the beta.
• Keep a dated copy of the WTF folder before every big change.
• Add new addons one at a time so you know which one caused a problem.
• Remove the _classic_beta_ folder once your settings are safely moved.
• Read our UI setup guide before installing a full interface replacement.

ForeverBot and this setup

ForeverBot is easiest to set up on a clean, default-scaled interface with plenty of bag space, so install your few must-have addons first and leave interface replacements for later. Back up WTF before mixing tools. The ForeverBot first-run setup covers the rest. Any automation breaks Blizzard's rules, and Blizzard bans accounts for it. More addon pages are in the addons topic.

FAQ

Where is the addon folder for WoW Forever?

Inside your World of Warcraft folder, under _forever_\Interface\AddOns. On Windows that is usually C:\Program Files (x86)\World of Warcraft\_forever_\Interface\AddOns. The fastest way to find it is the gear icon next to Play in the Battle.net app, then Show in Explorer. Create the Interface and AddOns folders yourself if they are missing.

Why does my addon say incompatible or out of date?

Either you installed a file for another game version, or the addon has not been updated for Forever's interface number yet. Download the file tagged WoW Forever from the addon's page. Ticking "Load out of date AddOns" can make a simple addon load, but it does not fix addons that need functions Forever no longer has.

Do I need to restart the game after installing an addon?

Yes, for a new addon. The client only looks for new addon folders when it starts, so close it completely and open it again. For changes to an addon you already had, a /reload is often enough, though some addon pages recommend a full restart after updates too.

Can I copy my addons from the beta to the live game?

You can copy the Interface and WTF folders from _classic_beta_ into _forever_, but update every addon straight afterwards, because beta builds are often outdated. Back up first, rename the account folder inside WTF\Account if needed, and expect to redo some per-character settings.