The Sims 4: Life Spans Explained

It’s both rewarding and bittersweet to watch Sims grow in The Sims 4 as a brand-new family slowly turns into generations over time. Growing up and aging is one of the key features of the game, and Sims lives are divided up neatly, with specific events being tied to each life stage.

For players handling a long family lineage or doing the legacy challenge – or even just for casual players wanting to maximize efficiency per life stage – knowing how long Sims life spans will be and how each life stage is split can be important. For younger life stages, in particular, learning those key development skills can be a real advantage later on, especially if you have Parenthood or Growing Together installed. We take a look at a Sim’s life span and how long each life stage lasts.

Updated on December 26, 2024, By Helen Ashcroft: With the release of Life & Death, Sims now have a new way to extend their lifespan. We’ve added the details to this list to keep everything up to date.

How To Change The Length Of A Life Stage

Changing the life stage in the game’s settings will make a huge difference. The short life span will reduce each life stage by half, while the long life span will more than triple their length.

Certain gameplay features will also change the length of some life stages.

• The Active trait will increase the elder life stage
• Long-Lived will increase the elder life stage
• Aging will be paused during pregnancy
• A Potion of Youth will reset the current life stage

You can also turn aging off completely and choose to manually age your Sims using a birthday cake when you want to progress to the next life stage.

Life Span Lengths

You can choose between three lengths of life span that govern how long a Sim will live in the game world. Shorter lifespans allow for generations to be created more easily, while longer lifespans let you craft unique and meticulous stories for each of your Sims. Here’s how each lifespan breaks down into life stages and the number of in-game days in each.

Elder life stages operate on minimums. An Elder Sim will die of natural causes within a few days of the minimum being hit.

These changes to life spans are likely due to additional gameplay mechanics added since release. Below we outline each life stage and what you can expect.

Newborn Life Stage

The first life stage is now known as newborn, rather than baby, but is still the shortest and most boring of them all. Your newborn will be mostly confined to the crib and will simply eat, sleep, and poop. You can now change the outfit of a newborn and interact with them a little more, but they are still very dull.

Thankfully, newborns can be aged up very quickly using the crib, but if you want to enjoy your little one’s cuteness for a bit longer, then you have up to four days to do so before they automatically age up to the next stage. There are no candles for newborns!

Infant Life Stage

Infants reflect those early months of development. If you are playing the base game only, your infant will feel like they are around nine months old and will sit up, crawl, and cause some mischief. They can drink from a bottle but are also ready to eat their first foods. If you have Growing Together installed, the life stage is far more intricate, involving a number of milestones.

Growing Together babies start off unable to crawl, sit, or even roll over. They’ll need to learn these skills over time as well as things like reaching, grabbing, smiling and laughing. Each milestone unlocks new opportunities, such as the ability to try their first foods, which requires sitting.

Toddler Life Stage

Toddlers begin life walking shakily but need to learn to talk, as well as how to use the potty. You’ll also need to keep an eye on their social and motor skills. Building these up will give them a head start in life, so it’s best to pay attention to developing them as much as you can.

Toddlers can be very demanding, but you are eased into this a little more now that infants are here. Infants are similarly demanding but sleep more, giving you more of a rest. Toddlers, however, do not like to sleep, preferring instead to cause even more chaos, since they can now reach higher items.

Child Life Stage

The child life stage is fairly simple in the base game, with children traveling to school or hanging out at home. They can occasionally bring friends home or visit parks, but there’s not much that’s specific to this life stage. However, some DLC changes this.

Scouting is added by the Seasons expansion and offers children a hobby to partake in. Parenthood allows them to work on developing manners and other positive personality traits, while Growing Together adds milestones for them as well as social events such as slumber parties. They can even learn to ride bikes.

Teenagers

Teenage Sims will enter the world of high school. In the base game, not much changes, but if you have High School Years, then school becomes a whole new experience. You’ll be able to accompany your Sims to school and help them earn those grades. They’ll also experience things like crushes, and needing to shave.

Parenthood adds more options to keep control of your teens, as well as moods and acne, while Growing Together will add milestones for them to achieve. Combining all these packs gives teens clubs to join, activities to keep them busy, and gives you more control over their path.

Young Adult Life Stage

Young adulthood is considered the default starting age and the majority of the world’s Sims will be in this life stage, which is filled with tons of opportunities and life paths, including the chance to go to University, assuming you have Discover University. Sims of this age can begin to hit those important life events like getting married or having kids.

Young Adults don’t gain much from specific packs in terms of life stage-specific options, but as with any other life stage, they will benefit from new milestones and social interactions in Growing Together.

Adult Life Stage

Adults are basically just a continuation of the young adult life stage. The only difference is that you might notice some lines forming around your Sim’s face, namely around the mouth and the eyes. It’s the inevitable signs of aging, slowly coming in as the Sim powers through their career and family life.

There are no new skills in this life stage, and all skills carry over from young adulthood. It’s the longest life stage in the game, and also the last one before things become more unpredictable. So make sure you live your adult life while you can.

Elder Life Stage

The final life stage of any Sim is elder. Mostly there isn’t much unique about this life stage, but a few tiny things have been added over time. Nifty Knitting added rocking chairs and the ability to reminisce, and of course, Growing Together has those final milestones, as well as some elder-appropriate clothing.

When a Sim reaches this age, they need to be careful of any strenuous physical activities (yes, even woohoo), as that can spell their death sooner than expected. Elders with the Active and Long-Lived traits can expect a longer life, although the exact days as an elder are hard to pinpoint since they vary from one Sim to another.

The After Life

If you have Life & Death, then there is life after death, if you so desire. Sims can complete bucket list tasks during their life and open up two options for the afterlife. Your Sim can decide to be reincarnated, or they can become a playable ghost.

A reincarnated Sim can be played with as a member of an existing or a new household, as can a ghost. Both function as regular Sims do, although ghosts have their needs re-branded to be a little more spooky and have access to some powers.

Now those legacy challenges can all be played by one Sim.