Can I get my Steam categories back?

Solution 1:

Copy $STEAM_DIRECTORY/userdata/$YOUR_LONG_NUMBER/7/remote/sharedconfig.vdf between computers or back it up.

Where $STEAM_DIRECTORY is:

• Linux: ~/.steam/steam
• macOS ~/Library/Application Support/Steam
• Windows: wherever you chose to install Steam (usually C:\Program Files\Steam or C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam).

Solution 2:

If your categories didn't sync, then you can't get them back.

Solution 3:

I just experienced the same issue, and found out on this thread that sometimes simply restarting Steam restores the categories; it worked for me.

I understand you probably have tried that already, but other people might benefit from this simple "solution".