Unreal Engine Level Instancing guide: Reuse scene groups

What you’ll learn in this guide

Instead of rebuilding a recurring scene layout from scratch each time in Unreal Engine, you can save a group of Actors as a Level Instance and use it in different parts of a project. This approach can be adapted to manage, for example, recurring furniture groups in an interior, façade elements, or static setups reused in a presentation scene. These are example use cases for architectural visualization; the core workflow is to turn selected Actors into a reusable structure.

This guide covers selecting Actors, creating a Level Instance, editing the instance in the context of the main scene, and saving changes. It also explains when to consider Packed Level Blueprint for groups of static meshes and the streaming options available when using World Partition.

Requirements and choosing the right structure

Epic Games’ supplied guides describe Level and Level Instance workflows in Unreal Engine. The sources do not specify a required software version, account type, hardware, or pricing information. So rather than assuming a particular version or licensing requirement, check the setup and organizational requirements of the project you’re working on.

First, identify the Actors that need to move or be edited together, or be repeated in different parts of the scene. If you want to create a group of multiple Actors and reuse it in a scene, consider the Level Instance workflow. Level Instances bring a collection of Actors together as a sublevel; you can continue to see the context of the main world while editing.

If the group is made up mostly of static meshes and is used to create, for example, a static building or a dense visual setup, consider Packed Level Blueprint. This method combines static meshes in a single Blueprint Actor to create a structure optimized for drawing. The two options do not work the same way: Level Instances use collections of Actors as sublevels, while Packed Level Blueprint represents static meshes with a combined Blueprint Actor.

1. Create a Level Instance

1. Select the Actors. In the Viewport or Outliner, select the Actors you want to include in the group. The creation process is based on this selection, so it’s important to group together elements that will be used together.

2. Open the creation command. Right-click one of the selected Actors. In the menu that opens, go to Level and select Create Level Instance.

3. Review the settings. The window that opens includes External Actors and Pivot Type options. External Actors is intended for use with the One File per Actor system. For Pivot Type, you can choose Center Min Z, Center, or Pivot Actor. If you use Pivot Actor, select the Actor that will serve as the pivot from the dropdown list. Review the pivot that will be used to move the group in the scene before completing the creation process.

4. Create and save. Once you’ve selected the options, click Ok and save the new Level Instance. A new Level Instance Actor replaces the Actors you selected in the scene. The original elements appear as children of this Actor in the Outliner and can’t be selected from there.

2. Edit, save changes, and duplicate

You can copy the created Level Instance in the scene and place it in different locations. To edit an instance, select it in the Viewport and right-click; use the Edit command in the Level menu. You can also start editing with the Edit button in the Details panel.

In edit mode, the rest of the scene’s Actors appear dimmed. This makes the boundaries of the group being edited easier to see while letting you assess changes within the main scene. When you’re done, select the Level Instance Actor in the Outliner and save your edits with Commit Changes in the Details panel. Saved updates are applied to the other copies of the same Level Instance.

If you need to exit edit mode without saving changes, press Esc twice. When trying the edit-and-save workflow for the first time, work with a small group of Actors whose results are easy to track. This makes it clear whether the other copies were updated after saving.

3. Use Packed Level Blueprint for static groups

To create a Packed Level Blueprint, select the static mesh Actors and right-click one of the selected items. In the menu, go to Level, then select Create Packed Level Actor. After you set the options in the window that opens and click Ok, you’ll be prompted to save the new Level and Packed Level Blueprint. When the process is complete, a Packed Level Actor associated with the Packed Level Blueprint appears in the scene.

You can start editing this structure in two ways: find an instance in the Outliner and click Edit, or double-click the Blueprint in the Content Browser. Saved changes to the Packed Level Blueprint also propagate to other copies in the scene. So after completing an edit, checking the result in the other instances can help confirm that the expected update has been applied.

You can remove a Level Instance or Packed Level Actor from the scene and restore its original Actors. This operation expands the reusable structure back into separate elements in the scene, but it can’t be undone. The relevant Level Instance or Packed Level Blueprint is not deleted from the Content Browser. Before doing this, consider which elements will return to the scene as separate Actors and remember that the operation can’t be reversed.

Common mistakes and considerations for architectural workflows

The first decision is whether to use Level Instance or Packed Level Blueprint, based on the group’s contents. The Level Instance workflow is suitable for organizing and reusing collections of Actors as sublevels. Packed Level Blueprint is recommended for buildings made of static meshes and dense visual setups. Consider the group’s contents and the editing approach you need before choosing.

Streaming behavior is also part of the project structure. Outside the World Partition main world, Level Instances do not provide streaming management or a streaming strategy on their own. When using World Partition, Level Instances and Packed Level Blueprints support Data Layers. Actors inside them inherit the Data Layer assigned to the Level Instance Actor by default; you can also assign additional Data Layers to Actors.

World Partition settings use Embedded Mode or Level Streaming Mode for runtime behavior. Embedded Mode is the default and recommended method. Level Instances that use One File per Actor are added to the World Partition grid at runtime in this mode; Level Instances remain on the editor side. Some Actors that do not use One File per Actor may not be available at runtime. If you need these elements, consider Level Streaming Mode.

Level Streaming Mode requires the relevant Level to be loaded separately, and this approach increases runtime costs. The guide does not recommend this mode for setups that use a large number of Levels extensively, due to its performance impact. For architecture, interior design, and archviz teams, reusable groups can help manage scene layouts, but this alone does not guarantee faster rendering. World Partition, Data Layers, and streaming mode choices should be considered alongside project requirements.

Next steps

First, save a small group of Actors as a Level Instance; then enter edit mode, use Commit Changes, and check the other copies of the same structure. Next, create a group made up mostly of static meshes as a Packed Level Blueprint and compare the editing workflows. These tests can help you determine which method best suits the scene structure of your project.

If you’re using World Partition, review Data Layer assignments and your choice of Embedded Mode or Level Streaming Mode as well. In particular, keep in mind that Level Streaming Mode can add runtime costs and that extensive use may affect performance. Remember that separating a structure into its original Actors in the scene cannot be undone.

Sources and licensing

This tutorial has been adapted into Turkish from the information in Epic Games’ “Level Instancing in Unreal Engine” and “Levels in Unreal Engine” guides. The supplied source information marks both guides as freely licensed.