The Sims Legacy Collection: Best Paying Careers

Summary

• Some careers in The Sims Legacy Collection pay off instantly, while others pay peanuts at first but come through in the end.
• Politicians, law enforcers, and military Sims start with decent pay but face diminishing returns at the top.
• Pro athletes, fashion designers, and hackers in The Sims see low starting salaries but end up with lucrative top-level paychecks.

The Sims Legacy Collection has finally hit digital storefronts, meaning that gamers everywhere can revisit this social simulation classic. To build dream homes and enjoy the luxuries of life in their idyllic neighborhood worlds, Sims will need to find a career to fund their frivolities. There are many careers in the Legacy Collection, thanks to the accumulated content from all the expansions.

Some careers pay off instantly, but these tend to burn out just as fast, whereas other careers pay peanuts at first but come through in the end. For this reason, it is a good idea to take a well-paying entry position while waiting for the more lucrative career tracks to appear. This list will include the best of the short-term and long-term career options as well as advice on how to ascend their ladders.

8

High To Low – Politics

A Golden Handshake But No Golden Parachute

• Entry Level Pay: §220 (daily)
• Top Level Pay: §750 (daily)
• Required Skills: Creativity, Logic, Body, Charisma
• Family Friends Need For Top Level: 17

Politicians earn a surprisingly low amount of money at the top in The Sims, but unlike in real life, they have no way to make insider trading deals to enrich themselves after they reach the top, even with the whopping 17 total family friends requirement. For whatever reason, after the tenth step, mayors (who are paid 750 simoleons per day) transition to interns in the medical profession.

However, while high-end political Sims have no access to the endlessly revolving door of regulation to industry and vice versa, campaign workers, or those on the first rung, are compensated well enough, despite the job description, with a fairly decent 220 simoleons a day.

7

High To Low – Law Enforcement

A Good Starting Salary That Becomes Something Of A Joke

• Entry Level Pay: §240 (daily)
• Top Level Pay: §700 (daily)
• Required Skills: Mechanical, Charisma, Body, Creativity, Logic
• Family Friends Need For Top Level: 12

The law enforcement career offers a strong starting salary of §240 per day, making it an attractive option for Sims who want to earn quick cash. However, the top-level pay of §700 per day, the reward for making 12 family friends, seems like a joke, which may be why top-level law enforcers switch over to the Entertainment track after reaching the top.

Despite the modest top-level pay, the law enforcement career is a solid choice for Sims who value justice and order, or for players who want to roleplay as tough, no-nonsense Sims for a while. However, for the true no-nonsense money-makers, this track is best taken and dropped early when a more appealing career lead appears.

6

High To Low – Military

An Early Win But Not Worth Soldiering On For

• Entry Level Pay: §250 (daily)
• Top Level Pay: §650 (daily)
• Required Skills: Mechanical, Charisma, Logic, Body
• Family Friends Need For Top Level: 8

As previously mentioned, careers in the Sims tend to be either well-paying at the entry-level and less so high up or low-paying to start with and well-paying at the top. This career track offers the highest starting pay at the bottom of the ladder with a respectable 250 simoleons per day. However, generals at the top only take home 650 simoleons per day.

Sims who are strapped for cash (without sufficient money to use a computer to find a job) could not do better when looking for a gap-filler entry role. After a couple of paychecks, recruits should have plenty of cash for their savings to find work that pays higher later down the line. The top-level job in this track leads to the Law Enforcer career, another profession that underpays at higher levels

5

Low To High – Pro Athlete

A Marathon, Not A Sprint To The Top

• Entry Level Pay: §110 (daily)
• Top Level Pay: §1,300 (daily)
• Required Skills: Charisma, Body, Cooking, Creativity
• Family Friends Need For Top Level: 13

The Pro Athletic career is a long-term investment, with an entry-level pay of just 110 Sim bucks per day. However, the top-level daily pay of 1,300 simoleons makes it one of the most lucrative careers in the game. This career requires high skills in Charisma, Body, Cooking, and Creativity, and plenty of support in the form of 13 family friends.

This career is perfect for those who are physically fit and enjoy sports or players who want to watch over competitive, driven Sims. The top-level job in this track leads to the Xtreme career, which is more of a job that Sims might want to do for the thrill rather than the dough.

4

Low To High – Fashion

Trend Getters And Trend Setters

• Entry Level Pay: §130 (daily)
• Top Level Pay: §1,350 (daily)
• Required Skills: Charisma, Body, Creativity
• Family Friends Need For Top Level: 7

Unlike some of the other highest-paying careers in The Sims, the fashion track’s early levels aren’t too punishing. Taking home 130 simoleons per day for the starting gig doesn’t hurt, but fashionistas will be highly motivated to take home the 1,350 that top-level fashion designers enjoy each day.

To get there, they will need to perfect their Charisma and Body skills, as well as pull high Creativity. Having high style points doesn’t necessarily mean well-liked, as the top job only requires 7 family friends. Perhaps after having seen so many hungry models each and every day, fashion designers transition to the Culinary track

3

Low To High – Music

From Rags And Trombones To Riches And Grand Pianos

• Entry Level Pay: §90 (daily)
• Top Level Pay: §1,400 (daily)
• Required Skills: Mechanical, Charisma, Body, Creativity
• Family Friends Need For Top Level: 15

As the lowest-paying entry position, the Music track’s subway musician ekes out a meager existence with only 90 simoleons to go off each day. However, with determination, passion, and of course, maxed-out Charisma and Creativity skills, Sims can live in the lap of luxury at the top as a celebrity activist.

Mid-level Body, Mechanics, and Logic skills are also required on the hard grind to the top, and since becoming a celebrity is something of a popularity contest, 15 family friends are needed to hit the top level with its sweet 1,400 simoleons take-home pay. This lifestyle can mess with a Sim’s mind, as they eventually try to transition into the much less profitable Paranormal career track.

2

Low To High – Entertainment

It Pays To Be Loved At The Top

• Entry Level Pay: §100 (daily)
• Top Level Pay: §1,400 (daily)
• Required Skills: Charisma, Body, Creativity
• Family Friends Need For Top Level:

Only slightly above those in the entry levels of the Slacker, Music, and Circus career is the waitrer and waitress of the Entertainer track with their 100 simoleons per day. There is quite a gult between this first step and the Superstar, who cashes in §1,400 after a day’s work thanks to their high Charisma, Body, and Creativity skills.

After a lifetime of having their finger on the pulse of international audiences, superstar Sims begin to crave real influence and will transition into politics. The Fame “career” found in the Superstar expansion is distinctly separate and unrelated from this career, even if it uses the same tropes.

1

Low To High – Hacker – 1,550

Breaking Out Of The System

• Entry Level Pay: §120 (daily)
• Top Level Pay: §1,550 (daily)
• Required Skills: Mechanical, Charisma, Logic, Creativity
• Family Friends Need For Top Level:

If money is power, and knowledge is power, then it makes sense that the Hacker track should have the biggest paycheck of them all at the top. The entry position isn’t too bad at 120 simoleons per day. With maxed-out Logic and Creativity as well as high Charisma and Mechanical skills, Hackers can hack their way to the top of the pile.

Perhaps best of all is the fact that it only takes eight family friends to reach the highest rung in the ladder, information overlord. Perhaps with so much tantalizing gossip, hackers at the top slide into the Journalism career, which is a much more middle-of-the-road profession when it comes to compensation.