This article is part of a directory: The Sims 4: Complete Guide
Table of contents

Regardless of your goals in The Sims 4, having money is incredibly important. Money can either be an important tool for progress or prevent you from accomplishing anything if you find yourself short on funds.

Related: Which Sim Town Should You Live In Based On Your Zodiac Sign?

Fortunately, there are a variety of methods for making money in Sims 4 that cater to a variety of playstyles, but not all are created equal. Which method of money-making you choose will depend on how you want to play the game. All of these methods are proven to be some of the best moneymakers in the game with the right set up and strategy.

Updated on July 12, 2023, by Jouanna Bondakji: The base version of The Sims 4 is now free for everyone, so it's the perfect chance to try it out. Just like in real life, you need money to be able to do a lot of things in the game. Luckily, The Sims 4 offers many ways to get that money. Some of these methods require you to have certain DLC, but there are also plenty of ways you can earn Simoleons in just the base game.

25 Opt For A Traditional Career

Sims 4 get to work doctor performing a scan on a patient
  • Base Game offers a good range of careers, more are added through DLC.

Over time, the number of careers has been increased, and there are now several different types including active and work-from-home career types. They're the most straightforward path to making money in the game.

Some careers can rake in some serious profits once a Sim has climbed the corporate ladder and reached the upper tiers of income. There are plenty of jobs to choose from to make that money. Many players consider the Interstellar Smuggler to be the most profitable career, which earns a whopping $3,717 a day at level ten!

24 Collect All The Things

a large amount of frogs all in a line in sims 4
  • Base Game offers several options and some extras are added in DLC.

Collecting is a much-favored method of money-making used by rags-to-riches players. Collecting can bring in the big bucks but requires some luck. There are a lot of interesting things you'll find; the easiest and most profitable collectibles are actually frogs.

While ore can be harvested for crystals, if you can find a decent pair of valuable frogs, you can breed them on cooldown and sell the extras for plenty of cash. Some frogs are worth a few hundred Simoleons. Not to be sniffed at for literally two seconds work.

23 Become An Archaeologist

Sims 4 Jungle Adventure archaeology dig in progress
  • Requires Jungle Adventure.

For more advanced collecting, you can journey into Archaeology thanks to Jungle Adventure. The temples of Selvadorada include many traps but also yield huge treasures. As you uncover the relics of the past, you'll start to realize that some can earn you a lot of money.

Digging, cleaning, and identifying items will take some time and skills, but it is an interactive, fun and somewhat risky way to earn some cash while also seeking adventure. If you fancy being the next Lara Croft or Indiana Jones, this is the path for you.

22 Be A Black Widow Or Gold Digger

bella goth by a window looking at the viewer
  • Requires Base Game but more worlds and rich townies are in DLC.

This is by far the fastest way to make the most amount of money in Sims 4. To get started, simply create an attractive sim, find some poor sap who has spent a lifetime building a massive fortune, seduce them, and then bleed them dry in typical gold-digging fashion or quickly kill them and inherit their wealth as a black widow.

Related: Sims 4: Best Base Game Features

It’s definitely the most vile method of making money on the list, but there’s no denying the serious earning potential for very little effort. If you can live with yourself, this is the fastest way to become wealthy, short of cheating. You can even make it into a challenge.

21 Go Fishing

A Sim fishing on Sulani
  • Requires Base Game but more locations and a variety of new fish are available with DLC.

Fishing is perhaps the least profitable method of making money on this list, but it can still bring in some serious cash. Catching and selling a high-quality sturgeon, for instance, can bring in $3,000. The catch is that fishing is entirely randomized, so your earnings will vary each day.

That being said, there are ways to guarantee decent earnings by picking the right locations, bringing the right bait, and so on. Perhaps the greatest advantage of fishing is that there are little to no costs to get started, and you can make instant money on day one.

20 Get Hacking

A sim on the PCs at Foxbury tech in TS4
  • Requires Base Game.

This method of money-making comes with a certain amount of risk which can cut down on income, but that makes it more interesting than other forms of work. At the max skill level, Sims can hack supercomputers once a week for a thousand or so Simoleons. In between supercomputer hacks, you can do less profitable but still worthwhile hacks for smaller lump sums.

As stated before, it does come with risk. All your profits can go out the window if your computer gets damaged through a hack, and you have to shell out a few thousand to replace it.

19 Become A More Legitimate Computer Programmer

Sims 4's Penny Pizzaz using a computer.
  • Requires Base Game.

Sims that pursue computer programming can work their way up to creating computer games and mobile phone apps. These products can generate anywhere from $50-$200 a day before slowly losing their earning potential until they don’t make anything.

It’s not nearly as profitable writing, but having a couple of products generating money can make a couple thousand each day and provide a semi-passive source of income that’s nice when your Sim needs to step away from the computer now and then. If you have fewer morals, you can combine this money-making method with hacking for serious earning potential.

18 Garden (And Farm) Your Way To Greatness

Two Sims tending to a tree and plants while a child Sim watches on a bench
  • Requires Base Game, but more options added by Seasons and Cottage Living.

Arguably the second most profitable activity in the game, gardening can be a source of vast wealth if you like to micromanage and strategize. To keep things really simple, you can create a massive garden of money trees and scoop up large sums of cash with every harvest.

Related: The Sims 4: Best Reward Traits

This gameplay option has been expanded even further with the addition of Cottage Living. You can grow oversized crops in large soil patches and keep chickens, cows, and even llamas for their eggs, milk, and wool. Making money from the land and animals can be really rewarding.

17 Become A Painter

A sim painting in a small home studio
  • Requires Base Game.

Painting is another great and easy way of making money in Sims 4, but it’s a very active process. You don't have to pursue a standard career path of becoming a painter to get started, but this grants access to high-quality easels and the art gallery, which offers 20 percent more for paintings that your Sim sells, making it worth the hassle.

Once your Sim's skills are up to snuff, they’ll start pumping out masterpieces that can go for thousands of dollars. It does take a while, but efficient players have been known to create two valuable paintings a day, so this is definitely a profitable activity in the game.

16 Write That Novel

Sims 4 uni cassandra using her laptop
  • Requires Base Game.

Once your Sim masters the art of writing, they can write a book in four in-game hours that they can sell to the literary digest, a publisher, or self-publish themselves.

Once published, if the book is best-seller quality, it will spit out royalty checks between $200-800 every day for roughly 20 days. If you are dedicated, you can have your Sim churn out dozens of books and have dozens of royalty checks coming in every day, generating thousands of dollars. It’s also nice for adding in breaks as the checks will keep coming for a while after you stop writing.

15 Take Photographs

Two Sims posing in swimsuits on the beach
  • Requires Get To Work for the skill or Moschino Stuff, which adds a structured career.

Photography is more profitable than you may assume, as high-quality photos can sell for a good amount of money. You can pick up the photography skill with Get To Work, as well as some basic cameras, and start clicking. It's an interactive way to make money, since you'll be taking the actual picture and choosing what filters to include.

If you want to take your photography to the next level with better equipment and a tripod to minimize errors in your images then Moschino Stuff allows you to do this. It also allows you to do proper shoots and sell the images.

14 Become A Musician

Two Sims practice violin and guitar music skills
  • Requires Base Game.

Music can also make money, similarly to painting and writing. Sims can learn to play instruments that unlock different ways to earn money from the skill. You can play guitar, piano, violin, or organ.

RELATED: The Sims 4: Tips To Pursuing A Career In Singing

Sims with any of these skills will be able to busk to earn money, either playing an instrument from their inventory or using a busking item from City Living. Once they are at a higher level of skill, Sims can write music that increases in quality and will earn royalties each day in the same way that books and poems do.

13 Wish For It

A sim by a wishing well throwing in a coin
  • Requires Romantic Garden Stuff.

This is something that can only be done with the Wishing Well that was added with Romantic Garden Stuff. It's not just for looks. Place it in your garden and marvel at all the things you can wish for, including wealth.

Be careful though - if you wish for something while the Wishing Well is angry, you may end up getting the opposite of what you asked for. You can tell if the well is angry by looking at its stone face and seeing if it's smiling or not. Counterintuitively, you'll have to throw some money into the well to make it happy for the best wish outcomes.

12 Get Lucky

Sims 4 Geekcon Rocket Street Art Nerd Festival City Living
  • Requires Base Game and DLC for other options.

The Sims 4 gives you a lot of opportunities to get lucky. Many of these come with the base game, such as the chance to buy a lottery ticket. However, others were added with certain DLC packs. For instance, Eco Living gives you a chance to invest in a business.

Taking these chances doesn't always work out, but getting a random inheritance, a small lottery win, or marrying for money adds a unique way to up your bank balance. Just be careful which option you take. While not winning those competitions at Geek Con won't do you any harm, a bad investment can hit you hard. Remember, your bank balance can go down as well as up...

11 Give Sims Spa Treatments

Sims 4 spa day manicures and pedicures alongside a massage
  • Requires Spa Day.

That's right, it is indeed possible to make money giving spa treatments to random Sims. To do this, you'll need the Spa Day pack, which adds lots of health and well-being items, such as the massage table, yoga mats, and massage chairs.

With the Spa Day refresh, it is now possible to deliver treatments using spa items. Once you have a Wellness skill of two or more, you can charge Sims to give them massages, manicures, or pedicures. You can even charge according to how famous you are - it can be a fun little earner!

10 Open A Business

Sims 4 Retail Store with gossiping clients in the foreground
  • Requires Get To Work for a traditional business. Market stalls can be opened with City Living or Jungle Adventure. Stock can be expanded using skills and items acquired in other DLC.

Like the real world, opening a business in Sims 4 can be a fabulous way to make some serious money in the long run if you have the Get To Work expansion. It does take some initial effort and a hefty investment upfront to get it off the ground, but if you stick with it and find ways to stay solvent in the beginning, it’ll pay off big time.

Related: The Sims 4: Best Aspirations

There’s a debate on which type of business is better, but retail can be a great, straightforward business to start with. As each new pack comes out, it offers more items to be sold, allowing for variety. Set up your store, choose your wares, and be sure to charm those customers to see the profits roll in.

9 Sell At Flea Markets*

Sims walking around the Flea Market and checking out various furniture on display
  • Requires City Living.

One of City Living's features is festivals, where your Sim can participate in a few different types of events. Flea markets are one of those events, and many Sims come to sell their own things. You can find a lot of cool stuff there, but more importantly, your Sim can sell their own things for some extra cash.

It's the perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone by getting rid of unneeded items and getting money for it. Your Sims can also trade their items with other Sims, which they can also sell or keep for themselves if the item is particularly nice.

8 Run A Restaurant

A waitress taking the order of a family sat in a restaurant.
  • Requires Dine Out.

If you have Dine Out, opening a restaurant is another way to make money actively. Much like retail, it involves investing in a business, building your skills, and keeping your customers happy. Your Sim can take on any role in the business, and you can hire others to act as hosts, serving staff, or chefs alongside you.

Managing everything can be tricky, especially when you start, but get it right and the Simoleons will flow. Also, you won't have to attend the restaurant every day if your employees are good enough. Staying at home and watching the money come in is worth the effort you put into the business.

7 Befriend A Dust Bunny

Sims 4 Bust the Dust Bunny on the floor
  • Requires Bust The Dust.

If you have the Bust the Dust kit, it's not totally bad if you don't clean up around the house all the time. Dust bunnies are adorable little creatures that start appearing around your home once it has accumulated enough grime. These critters can be fed and petted, but most importantly, you can ask them to hunt for valuables.

Dust bunnies will have a quick search around your home - checking down the backs of sofas and such, probably. Eventually, you'll be presented with some Simoleons, sometimes in considerable amounts! It pays to be a bit grimy.

6 Become A Vet

Sims 4 vet examining a cat
  • Requires Cats & Dogs.

If you have Cats & Dogs a new career is open in the form of running a Vet surgery. As with retail, this involves initial investment but can be rewarding, lucrative, and enjoyable.

Related: The Best Sims 4 Careers, Ranked

Your Sim will learn the vet skill by practicing, and as they become more skilled, it gets easier to start making money. While this isn't the fastest way to make money by any means, it is fully hands-on, making it a great choice if you're an animal lover or want a more challenging and interactive career.