When does The Sims 4 become free and how do I claim it?

By Hope Bellingham
published

The Sims 4 is about to go free to play

The Sims 4
(Image credit: EA Games)

The Sims 4 goes free to play tomorrow, which means you can play the base game for absolutely nothing - here's how you can claim it. 

As announced last month, The Sims 4 is going free to play tomorrow on October 18, 2022. This means that players can download The Sims 4 base game for free and just purchase the expansions and kits they want to add to the base game like usual. 

This new way to play will be available on PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, and Xbox One. To get started, all you need to do is download The Sims 4 (from October 18) for free via the new EA app, Origin, or Steam. The same goes for the PlayStation Store and Microsoft Store. 

If you've already been playing The Sims 4 for quite some time now, there is a small bonus for you - but you need to act fast to claim it as the offer ends once the game goes free to play tomorrow on October 18. To claim the Desert Luxe Kit, you must select the free add-on via The Sims 4 main menu.

There's also a bonus for those who have been playing The Sims 4 via EA Play or EA Play Pro. From October 18, EA Play subscribers will be able to claim the 'The Sims 4 EA Play Edition' which will include The Sims 4 Get to Work expansion, and EA Play Pro subscribers will be able to pick up the 'EA Play Pro Edition' which includes both the Get to Work expansion and The Sims 4 Toddler Stuff pack. 

This is just one of the exciting things Sims fans can look forward to experiencing tomorrow. On the same day that the base game goes free to play, October 18, EA is also holding the Behind The Sims Summit at 10 am PDT / 1PM EDT / 6PM BST. The event will be live-streamed tomorrow via YouTube and Twitch and will showcase what's in the works for The Sims series. 

Need to take a break from your virtual life? Take a look at our games like The Sims list for ideas on what to play next. 

Hope Bellingham
Hope Bellingham
News Writer

After studying Film Studies and Creative Writing at university, I was lucky enough to land a job as an intern at Player Two PR where I helped to release a number of indie titles. I then got even luckier when I became a Trainee News Writer at GamesRadar+ before being promoted to a fully-fledged News Writer after a year and a half of training.  My expertise lies in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, cozy indies, and The Last of Us, but especially in the Kingdom Hearts series. I'm also known to write about the odd Korean drama for the Entertainment team every now and then.