If you’re a Sims 4 player, there’s every chance that you’ve used some cheats here and there for a quick leg-up in-game. But every man and his dog knows about motherlode, which is probably the most-used cheat in The Sims 4.
Instead, we’re going to take a look at some of the best less-used Sims 4 cheats, so you can find out the more niche ways of getting an advantage in Maxis’ iconic life-simulator.
How To Enable Sims 4 Cheats
First things first, you have to ensure cheats in The Sims 4 are actually enabled before we go any further. To do this, you first open the in-game console by pressing Ctrl + Shift + C. This is also where you’ll enter the rest of your cheats later on.
When this menu pops up, enter the code “testingCheats true“. That’s it – once this is enabled, you’ll be able to go ahead and use cheat codes for The Sims 4.
bb.moveobjects
©Screenshot from The Sims 4.
Unfortunately, The Sims 4 can be quite restrictive in where you can place objects. If something intersects at all, you may receive the notification blocking you from placing. At times, this can cause a massive amount of frustration for those wanting to build their perfect home. After all, if you’ve got an idea for how your home should look, why shouldn’t you be able to do it?
Enter “bb.moveobjects” into the console to remove this restriction. Now, you can place items wherever you’d like, with the game telling you no. This cheat has a few interesting nuances which can only really be found with experience. The main one is that you can now place as many objects on shelves as you’d like, so you can finally clutter your home in a way that is realistic and not restricted in any way.
bb.showhiddenobjects
©Screenshot from The Sims 4.
In The Sims 4, a lot of the set dressing is made up of smaller items that you technically can’t use in Build Mode. Maxis locks these items away from players, for reasons unknown.
However, by entering “bb.showhiddenobjects” into the console, you’ll instantly gain access to these hidden items, which you can place within your world. They all work as normal, and shouldn’t cause you any problems in-game. It’s perfect if you just want to spice things up a little in your Sims 4 game.
We recommend pairing this cheat with a Sims 4 mod like Better BuildBuy. The cheat adds plenty of new items, and it can be hard to sort through them all without a mod that makes it easier to see as many items as possible.
bb.enablefreebuild
In The Sims 4, you can build on your owned lot, and that’s it. It’s quite restrictive, and certainly a nuisance for anyone who wants even more control in-game. This is what makes “bb.enablefreebuild” one of the most powerful Sims 4 cheat codes.
By enabling the cheat in the console, this lets you build absolutely anywhere in-game. Public spaces are all of a sudden made customizable, so you can truly unlock the potential of your world. It also fixes one of the game’s stranger blind spots, by finally allowing you to customize your Sim’s university room.
bb.ignoregameplayunlocksentitlement
Unfortunately, some build items in The Sims 4 are locked behind certain careers. It makes sense that that’s the way it should be, really. Otherwise, what motivation would players have to head down certain career paths?
Still, if you’re one of The Sims 4‘s natural builders, you just want everything available to craft your perfect masterpiece. That’s where “bb.ignoregameplayunlocksentitlement” comes in. This removes the career restrictions from these items, and allows you to use them no matter what path your Sims is taking in life. Note that this isn’t the same as “bb.showhiddenobjects” as mentioned earlier. These items aren’t quite hidden – rather just locked behidn certain careers.
resetsim [firstname lastname]
There’s nothing more frustrating than a glitch. Unfortunately, The Sims 4 is full of them, even after all this time. The reality is that there are plenty of situations which can lead to your Sims getting stuck, in some cases permanently. However, that doesn’t have to be the end for your in-game avatars.
If you enter “resetsim [firstname lastname]” into the console, it will reset and respawn your Sim. It’s great for those frustrating times where they seem stuck without a solution, and should solve your problem. You can do this at any time, too. If you’ve simply lost track of a Sim, use this to bring them straight to your location.
relationship.introduce_sim_to_all_others
Personal relationships are everything in The Sims 4. They’re what the entire game revolves around, but the early building blocks of relationships can be rather tedious. Each save has a huge amount of Sims to meet, and with each of them, you’ve got to put in the time to get to know them. But not anymore!
Simply enter “relationship.introduce_sim_to_all_others” into the console. Using that cheat removes this step entirely, and will automatically introduce your Sim to everyone else in the neighborhood. If you’re someone who wants to jump straight into the friendships, this could be a great lesser-known cheat code for you to use in The Sims 4.
modifyrelationship [YourSimFirstName YourSimLastName] [TargetSimFirstName TargetSimLastName] 100 LTR_Friendship_Main
©Screenshot from The Sims 4.
As a great alternative to the previous Sims 4 cheat code, you can also use “modifyrelationship [YourSimFirstName YourSimLastName] [TargetSimFirstName TargetSimLastName] 100 LTR_Friendship_Main” to affect your in-game relationships.
By entering the above cheat into the console, it will instantly give maximum friendship to the two specified Sims. Once again, this is just a great way to bypass the tedious early parts of friendships in The Sims 4. If you want two specific Sims to start a relationship, this can also be a good way to build affinity quickly to make that process much easier.
careers.add_career [career]
Does your Sim have a dream? Are they failing to achieve it with your own actions in-game? Not to worry. If you enter “careers.add_career [career]” into the console, you can give them a new direction in life, without having to worry about any tedious steps beforehand.
Here are the career codes for each of the careers in The Sims 4:
- Politician: Activist
- Acting: Actor
- Astronaut: Astronaut
- Athlete: Athletic
- Business: Business
- Criminal: Criminal
- Critic: Careers_Adult_Critic
- Culinary: Culinary
- Detective: Detective
- Doctor: Doctor
- Entertainer: Entertainer
- Painter: Painter
- Scientist: Scientist
- Secret Agent: SecretAgent
- Social Media: SocialMedia
- Style Influencer: Influencer
- Tech Guru: TechGuru
- Writer: Writer
Teen Sims also have the following career options:
- Babysitter: Teen_Babysitter
- Barista: Teen_Barista
- Fast Food Employee: Teen_FastFood
- Scout: Scout
- Manual Laborer: Teen_Manual
- Retail Employee: Teen_Retail
careers.promote
Okay. So you’ve found the perfect career, but things aren’t quite progressing as you hoped for your Sim. The game has a solution for that, too.
Whenever you type “careers.promote” into the console, your Sims will automatically be promoted in their career. You can repeat this, too, instantly catapulting them to the peak of their profession. For many players, living on the breadline can be a real nuisance in The Sims 4, and this is a great way to circumvent that. It’s also perfect if you’re roleplaying as a character at the height of their career, so you don’t have to spend much of your Sim’s life actually getting them to that point.
FreeRealEstate on
It’s free real estate! This cheat does exactly what it says on the tin, and makes all of the lots in a given area free. It’s a good alternative to the money cheats in The Sims 4. With money cheats, it’s all too easy to go and spend your cash on other items, too. By entering “FreeRealEstate on” into the console, you can ensure it’s just homes that you’re getting for free.
If you want to make all homes cost money again, simply enter “FreeRealEstate off” into the console.