SimCheatcheats, guides & gameplay tools

Cheat not working?

Typed a cheat and nothing happened? It's almost always one of a handful of small things. Work down this list and you'll usually have it sorted in a minute.

Quick checklist: the right screen, the exact spelling, testing cheats on if needed, the right Sim selected. Those four fix most problems.

The console won't open

  • Use the right shortcut for your game. The Sims 4, 3 and 2 use Ctrl + Shift + C on PC. The original Sims adds Alt. On PlayStation and Xbox, hold all four shoulder buttons together. The enable cheats guide has every combination.
  • Be in the game, not a menu. The console won't open on the main menu or a loading screen. Load a household first.
  • Press the keys together. Hold Ctrl and Shift down first, then tap C.
  • Laptop or small keyboard? Some laptops need the Fn key as well, or have the shortcut taken by another program. Closing screen recorders, overlays and chat apps can free it up.

The cheat does nothing

  • Check the spelling. Cheats have to be exact, including dots, underscores and spaces. Copying from SimCheat avoids typos.
  • Swap in your own details. Cheats with names or careers in them, like modifyrelationship or careers.promote, only work once you've replaced the example names with real ones. The tools fill these in for you.
  • Select the right Sim. Skill, career and need cheats change whichever Sim you're currently controlling. Click on the Sim first.
  • Press Enter. Nothing happens until you confirm the cheat.

Testing cheats

In The Sims 4, many cheats only work after you enter testingcheats true. The cheat finder marks every cheat that needs it.

  • Enter testingcheats true first, then your cheat.
  • If it stopped working after you loaded a save or went back to the menu, enter testingcheats true again.
  • In The Sims 3 the equivalent is testingcheatsenabled true, and in The Sims 2 it's boolProp testingCheatsEnabled true.

Packs and mods

  • Pack cheats need the pack. A skill or career from an expansion only exists if you own and have installed that pack.
  • Mods can interfere. If a cheat used to work and doesn't any more, try it with mods turned off. An out-of-date mod after a game update is a common cause.
  • Game updates change things. Once in a while a patch renames or changes a cheat. If you think one of ours is out of date, please tell us.

Sims 1, 2 and 3

  • The Sims: money cheats add §1,000 at a time, so it can look like nothing happened. Check your funds, or use the repeat trick on the Sims 1 cheats page.
  • The Sims 2 and 3: some cheats only work in certain modes, such as while you're playing a lot rather than in the neighbourhood view.
  • See the full lists for The Sims 2 and The Sims 3.

Still stuck?

Email us at [email protected] with the cheat, your game and your platform (PC, Mac, PlayStation or Xbox), and we'll take a look.