How to Install Sims 4 Mods and Custom Content (CC)

Everything you add to The Sims 4, from new hair and clothes to furniture, gameplay tweaks and big script mods, ends up in a single folder called Mods. The catch is that the game ships with custom content switched off, turns it off again after updates, and is fussy about how deep you bury certain files. Get those three things right and installing CC takes seconds.

In a hurry? The short version

1. Start the game once so it creates its folders, then quit.
2. Extract the download if it’s a .zip, .rar or .7z.
3. Move the .package and .ts4script files into Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4\Mods.
4. In the game, open Game Options → Other and tick Enable Custom Content and Mods and Script Mods Allowed.
5. Quit and restart the game.

CC, script mods and tray files

Sims 4 downloads come in three flavours, and each one is handled a little differently:

• .package files are custom content (CC) and most tuning mods: a new top, an eye colour, a sofa, a tweak to how quickly Sims get hungry. The TONYA top and Angela Eyes N113 on CrashMods are typical examples.
• .ts4script files carry Python code. These are the big gameplay mods, and they usually come with one or more .package files that have to stay next to them.
• Tray files such as .trayitem, .blueprint, .bpi, .householdbinary, .hhi, .sgi, .room and .rmi are saved Sims, households, lots and rooms. They don’t go into Mods at all. They belong in the Tray folder and show up in your Library.

Where the Sims 4 Mods folder is

The game keeps your files in Documents, not where the game itself is installed:

Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4\Mods

On a Mac it’s the same path: Documents/Electronic Arts/The Sims 4/Mods. The folder is created the first time you start the game, so if it’s missing, launch the game, wait for the main menu and quit.

Two things regularly send people to the wrong folder:

• OneDrive. If Windows backs up your Documents to OneDrive, the real folder is C:\Users\<YourName>\OneDrive\Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4\Mods. CC dropped into a different “Documents” folder does nothing. While you’re there, right-click the Electronic Arts folder and choose Always keep on this device, so the game never has to wait for files to come down from the cloud.
• The game’s language. The folder name follows the language you play in: German players get Die Sims 4, French Les Sims 4, Spanish Los Sims 4 and Dutch De Sims 4. Switch the game’s language and it creates a brand-new, empty folder. Your mods and saves stay behind in the old one until you copy them across.

Switch on CC and script mods

A fresh install ignores everything in the Mods folder until you allow it:

1. Start The Sims 4 and wait for the main menu.
2. Click the … menu in the top-right corner and open Game Options.
3. Go to the Other tab.
4. Tick Enable Custom Content and Mods. If you use script mods, tick Script Mods Allowed as well.
5. Click Apply Changes, then quit and start the game again. The settings only take effect after a restart.

With mods enabled, the game opens with a window that lists the custom content it found. It’s a handy check: if your new file isn’t in that list, the game never saw it.

Installing CC and mods, step by step

1. Download the file. If it’s a .zip, .rar or .7z, extract it first. Windows 11 opens all three on its own; older systems need 7-Zip. This is the opposite of games like BeamNG: The Sims 4 cannot read archives.
2. Look at what came out. Move the .package files into Mods. Subfolders are fine, so feel free to sort, for example Mods\CC\Hair and Mods\CC\Clothing.
3. Move any .ts4script file into Mods itself or into a folder directly inside it, never deeper. Keep the script mod’s own .package files in that same folder.
4. Tray files go into Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4\Tray.
5. Restart the game if it was running. New CC is only loaded at start-up.
6. In Create a Sim or Build Mode, use the filter’s Custom Content option to show only your downloads.

The folder-depth rule

This rule is behind a surprising number of “my mod doesn’t work” posts:

• .package files load from up to five folders deep inside Mods. Anything deeper is skipped.
• .ts4script files load only from Mods itself or one folder deep. Mods\MCCC\mc_cmd_center.ts4script works; Mods\Scripts\MCCC\mc_cmd_center.ts4script doesn’t.
• Leave Resource.cfg where it is. The game creates it inside Mods and uses it to know how far down to look.

Script mods and game patches

EA patches the game regularly, and any patch can break script mods, the ones with .ts4script files. Plain CC made of .package files almost always survives. After an update you’ll often find mods switched off again. Before you turn them back on:

1. Check each script mod’s page, or the creator’s Discord or Patreon, for a version that matches the new patch.
2. Swap the old files for the new ones. Delete the old version rather than adding the new one beside it.
3. Tick both options under Game Options → Other again and restart.

If you’d rather decide when that happens, switch off automatic updates for The Sims 4 in the EA app (on Steam, set it to update only when you launch it) and update once your must-have mods are ready.

When a script mod does fail, the game writes a lastException.txt file into Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4. It’s hard to read on its own, but tools like Better Exceptions turn it into a plain list of the mods involved.

Clear the cache when things look wrong

The Sims 4 keeps thumbnails of everything in a file called localthumbcache.package, which sits in Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 4, not in Mods. After adding or removing a lot of CC you may see blank icons, the wrong pictures, or items that refuse to appear. Close the game, delete localthumbcache.package and start again. The game rebuilds it on its own, and it never contains your saves, so deleting it is safe.

Finding a broken mod with the 50/50 method

1. Close the game and move half of your Mods folder to the desktop.
2. Delete localthumbcache.package and start the game.
3. If the problem is gone, the culprit is in the half on your desktop. If not, it’s in the half still in Mods.
4. Keep splitting the suspect half until one file or folder is left.

A tidy folder structure from day one makes this a lot quicker.

Common mistakes

• Leaving downloads zipped. The game doesn’t open archives, so extract them.
• Extracting the .ts4script. It looks like an archive, but it has to stay exactly as it is.
• Script mods buried too deep. One subfolder, no more.
• The wrong Documents folder. Check whether OneDrive or a different language folder is the one the game really uses.
• Forgetting to restart. Both the settings and new CC need a fresh start of the game.
• A missing mesh. Some recolours need a separate mesh file from the original creator. Without it, the item is invisible or doesn’t show up.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use mods on PlayStation or Xbox?

No. Custom content and mods only work in the PC and Mac versions of The Sims 4.

Do I need any packs for CC?

Most CC works with the base game alone. When an item needs an expansion, game or stuff pack, the creator says so, and on CrashMods it’s mentioned on the mod page (look for “base game compatible”).

Will mods break my save?

Removing CC is usually harmless: Sims wearing a deleted outfit switch to a default one, and deleted objects simply disappear from lots. Big script mods can leave data behind in a save, so back up the saves folder before you add or remove one.

Why can’t I find my CC in Create a Sim?

Check, in this order: are custom content and mods enabled, did you restart, is the file deeper than five folders, and are you looking at the right age and gender? Clothing only appears for the frames it was made for, so a teen-to-elder top won’t show up on a child.

Is Sims 4 CC safe to download?

.package files contain no executable code. Script mods do, so get them from sources you trust. Every file on CrashMods is scanned with VirusTotal before it’s published.

Looking for something new? Browse all Sims 4 mods and CC, or go straight to clothing, objects, accessories, eye colours and floors.