The Sims 4 has always been about making what you want out of a digital life, so your career should be no different, and whether you’re chasing a passion or chasing a paycheck, the game has a job for you. But the best jobs in The Sims 4 aren’t always what you’d expect – like, did you know a botanist makes more than a celebrity athlete?
Some of the best careers in Sims 4 are pretty easy to predict, while others are a surprise. Either way, here are the highest-paying jobs in The Sims 4 to earn you some sweet Simoleons.
Updated on May 9, 2023 by Gabrielle Castania: There have been several new packs for The Sims 4 since this list was originally written, and we wanted to make sure we were considering absolutely all the best jobs in The Sims 4. We’ve gone back and recalculated some salaries for the game as it is now, offering you a current list of the best careers in The Sims 4 following the Growing Together release.
15 Secret Agent
This career path has you living the double life, dealing in spycraft and national secrets. There are two paths two follow: the goodie two-shoes Diamond Agent route, or the darker Villain route. Diamond Agents are ideal, as they only work three days a week and make $4,260, but they put in 15 hours on each day they work.
Villains, on the other hand, make a slightly higher $4,260, but must work five hours a day, five days a week. It’s not a particularly hard career path to get into, and the money is decent, which is why it makes the list.
Social Media stars have an interesting career path – Internet Personality is by far the best route and most profitable, but they make a measly $6,480 a week. But, at times, this can be one of the most profitable career paths, thanks to your ability to gain followers and advertise products.
Depending on the size of your follower base, you can make a couple thousand dollars with little effort. The onky reason this doesn’t rank higher is that it’s a long road to getting to Rank 10 in this career, and every time you push a product you lose followers, meaning it becomes annoying regaining them constantly.
13 Actor/Actress
A life in the spotlight can be lucrative, but not nearly as lucrative as the real-world equivalent would be, unfortunately. For starters, you only make money after you audition for a gig, get hired, and do the work. From audition to payday takes three days, meaning you can really only do two gigs a week, even if you’re efficient.
This does mean you can earn $19,600 at peak efficiency, though, and you have the flexibility to create your own schedule. It’s recommended to, when you have lots of fame, launch a lifestyle brand – it’ll generate a bit of daily revenue, which is helpful between gigs.
12 Conservationist
This career was added into the game via the Island Living expansion alongside mermaids and tropical Sulani sunshine. The most profitable route is the Environmental Manager, who works six hours a day, five days a week, and earns $10,080 each week.
In addition to decent pay and a standard workload, you can spend your free time working on documentaries and submitting grant applications that can bring in some residual income on top of your salary. If you’re looking for stability and some nice side income, this is one of the best careers in Sims 4 for it.
11 Tech Guru
At first glance, being a Tech Guru seems like a pretty questionable career choice. At the highest rank as an eSports Gamer you only make $7,872 working four days a week, but the key to making this job a career lies in livestreaming.
With enough followers, you can make a ton of money doing livestreams. Granted, there is a significant cooldown between livestreams, and you have to participate in a number of tournaments to keep your follower base up, but it’s a very profitable career if you put in the time and effort.
10 Style Influencer
Style Influencers are Sims who have a passion for fashion and thrive on critiquing others’ appearances. The Stylist branch, in particular, is one of the best moneymakers in the game, generating a cool $15,000 after working five days a week for five hours a day. They can also publish fashion articles for additional cash.
The reason it ranks so low in our list is that there’s a lot of micromanagement involved in dressing up other Sims and starting trends, which not all players will enjoy. If Create-a-Sim isn’t for you, you may be better off with another of the careers from our Sims 4 best careers list!
9 Military
Serving your country can earn serious bucks in The Sims 4 after the Strangerville pack. In fact, it’s the highest paid job in the game, earning a whopping $16,880 a week. That said, it does require working eight hours a day for five days a week – a standard, 40-hour week.
Both branches of the military career offer the same payout, so choose which feels right for you – a life of recruiting new Sims, or a life of espionage.
8 Culinary
The chef path is the higher earner in the Culinary career track in The Sims 4, bringing in $9,840 for six-hour days, four days each week. The bright side is that you’ll work earlier hours on the weekend than your Mixologist counterparts.
The reason it ranks a little higher is that there are several helpful appliances and cooking skills that come with being a Chef, while the Mixologist branch teaches your sim to mix drinks, which is helpful for mood bonuses.
7 Criminal
While crime doesn’t pay in the real world, it certainly does in The Sims 4. Becoming the boss of a crime ring pays the fourth-highest overall salary in The Sims 4, at $12,460 a week for working seven-hours a day, four days each week. It also provides the biggest cash bonus for promotions in the game, at $8,039 total just for being promoted.
Being a boss also gives you the work event to rob bank vaults, which nets a hefty windfall if you succeed. For those who pursue the Oracle path, hacking is a very profitable side-hustle, and they’ll gain access to Hack Mainframe, the best computer in the game.
6 Painter
At first, it seems like becoming a painter is living the life of a starving artist, as Painters at the highest level earn a measly $4,920 a week, but the perk really comes from working only five hours a day, two days a week. Painters can use that free time to make their own paintings at home, which is where the real money is.
Large paintings go for a few hundred, easily earning back the $100 it cost to make them. Occasionally, you’ll craft a masterpiece that sells for thousands. Keeping paintings also serves to decorate your house and improve a Sim’s mood.
5 Astronaut
Being a space traveler earns big bucks, especially if you go the Harrison Ford route with the Interstellar Smuggler branch. The third-highest paying job overall in The Sims 4 brings in $14,868 after working nine hours a day, four days a week.
It also grants access to the Retro Rocket, which can be used to travel to space and bring back valuable space rocks and even aliens. Unfortunately, it does become rather difficult to get promoted, meaning the Smuggling life is likely a ways away without cheats.
4 Business
If you want to make money, you go where the money is, and that means getting a career in Business. Following the Investor path earns a cool $12,992 per week, working eight hours a day, four days a week.
Not only do you earn a lot, you can also begin to invest, which may yield up to 2.5x your initial investment on payout! You can invest, every 48 hours, up to $5,000 , which means it’s possible to earn a whopping return of $12,500 three to four times a week. But, you could also see the investment go sour, so tread lightly.
3 Writer
The Author branch for Sims 4 Writers can yield serious money: the career itself pays peanuts (your sim earns $5,580 a week), but, similar to the Painter, they only work six hours a day, two days a week. Again, use the free time to create and sell your own works at home.
A bestselling book will take about four in-game hours to write, and it can then bring in anywhere from $200-800 per day for 20 days. There’s also the interesting perk of being able to write a book about a Sim that, when read, will bring them back to life again after death.
2 Gardener
The Botanist earns an impressive $14,700 a week, working five seven-hour. Botanists have events that can earn more than $1,500 for two hours of work, and can apply for research grants for an immediate windfall. The Florist, on the other hand, has a higher base salary and can run a floral shop for some hefty additional profits.
The perks of Gardening far outweigh the money, however. The Gardener gains access to plants that can do all kinds of things normal Sims can’t. If you’re looking for a Death Flower for immortality, or Cow Plant of your own, Botany is your only way to get them.
1 Scientist
This is the best and most fun career path in Sims 4, for all the perks and fun toys it yields. Salary-wise, it’s $11,115 a week for nine hours of work, five days a week. Your sim gets access to a SimRay that can transform items or even enslave other Sims into cleaning for you. The Satellite Dish can make the entire neighborhood happy or start a dance party, while the Cloning Machine can be used for good or evil.
By far the best perk for Scientists are the serums that can satisfy hunger, lose weight, resolve your needs, boost your mood, gain alien powers, or even turn back the clock on a Sim’s age. Enjoy the power of immortality!