How to Import a Deck in MTG Arena: A Complete Guide

Magic: The Gathering Arena makes it easy to bring pre-built or community-shared decklists directly into the game — no manual card-by-card dragging required. Whether you're copying a Pro Tour list, importing a friend's brew, or testing a new format, the import system is one of MTG Arena's most practical features. Here's exactly how it works.

What "Importing a Deck" Actually Means in MTG Arena

MTG Arena uses a plain-text decklist format that the game can read and convert into a playable deck. This format lists each card by quantity and name, and the game matches those names to cards in your collection — or flags the ones you're missing.

A typical decklist looks like this:

4 Lightning Bolt 4 Monastery Swiftspear 2 Mountain ... Sideboard 2 Smash to Smithereens 

The format is universal across most Magic tools — websites like Moxfield, Archidekt, EDHREC, and MTGGoldfish all export in this compatible format.

Step-by-Step: How to Import a Deck in MTG Arena 🃏

Step 1 — Copy the Decklist Text

Go to whatever source has the decklist — a tournament site, a content creator's post, a friend's message. Select all the card lines and copy them to your clipboard. Most sites have a dedicated "Copy to Clipboard" or "Export" button that formats it correctly.

Step 2 — Open the Decks Section

Launch MTG Arena and navigate to the Decks tab from the main home screen. This is where all your constructed decks are stored and managed.

Step 3 — Click "Import"

At the top of the Decks screen, you'll see an Import button (it may appear as a small icon or a labeled button depending on your UI version). Click it.

Step 4 — Paste and Confirm

A text box will appear. Paste your copied decklist into that box, then click Import. The game will process the list and create a new deck in your collection.

Step 5 — Review the Result

MTG Arena will open the deck in the Deck Editor. Cards you own will appear normally. Cards you don't own will show up with a red or orange indicator — typically a lock icon or a "missing" count at the bottom of the screen.

From here you can:

• Substitute missing cards with wildcards
• Swap in legal alternatives manually
• Save the deck as-is and playtest with proxied cards in certain modes

Why Some Imports Don't Work Perfectly

Not every import goes smoothly. Several variables affect how cleanly a list comes in:

Format legality is a key variable. MTG Arena only supports certain formats — Standard, Historic, Explorer, Timeless, Alchemy, and Brawl variants. If you're importing a Legacy or Modern list, many cards simply won't exist in the Arena card pool, and the deck will show heavily as incomplete.

Where to Find Decklists Compatible With MTG Arena

Not all decklist sources are equal. For Arena-specific play, these types of sources tend to produce cleaner imports:

• MTGGoldfish Arena section — filters decklists by Arena-legal formats
• Moxfield — supports Arena export formatting directly
• The MTG Arena client itself — in-game events and tournaments sometimes share importable codes
• Content creators and streamers — often post Arena-formatted lists in video descriptions

When sourcing from general Magic databases, always check that the export option says "Arena" or "MTGO/Arena" rather than a paper-only format, which may include sets unavailable in the game.

What Happens When You're Missing Cards 🎴

Missing cards don't prevent you from saving or even playing with a deck in some modes, but they do affect your options:

• Wildcards are the in-game currency for crafting missing cards. Each rarity (Common, Uncommon, Rare, Mythic Rare) has its own wildcard type.
• Direct Game Challenge (playing against a friend) allows fully proxied decks — you can play any deck regardless of card ownership.
• Ranked and event play requires you to own the cards.

The deck editor will show you a wildcard cost summary — how many rares, mythics, and lower-rarity cards you'd need to complete the deck. This is useful for deciding whether a deck is worth investing in.

Variables That Shape Your Import Experience

How straightforward your import experience is depends on a few factors that are specific to your situation:

• Your existing card collection — a large collection means fewer missing-card issues and fewer wildcards needed
• Which format you're building for — Standard tends to have cleaner imports than Historic or Explorer due to a smaller, more controlled card pool
• The source of your decklist — Arena-specific exports import more cleanly than general paper lists
• Whether you're playing casual or competitive modes — casual modes like Direct Challenge are far more forgiving of incomplete decks

Someone with a deep collection importing a Standard list from a reliable Arena source will have a near-instant, seamless experience. Someone new to the game importing a broad Historic Brawl list from a general Magic database may encounter dozens of missing cards and formatting quirks.

The import tool itself is consistent — what varies is how well the decklist matches the cards you own and the format you're building for.