What Are The BEST Sims 4 Expansion Packs? // Ranking Each Pack According to CAS, Build and Gameplay

*what are your favourite expansion packs:)?*

i used to really want discover university, and then i started university and now i really don’t want to recreate my life of doing homework all the time

As someone who mostly builds I really like cottage living, high school years, snowy escape, and eco lifestyle.

Seasons also has my favorite Elders-only death: the death by flowers. If you get to level 9 of the flower arranging skill, you can scent an arrangement with a death flower and if you give it to an Elder, they will immediately die. If you give it to anyone else, they will immediately age up. It's a really cool death but one that's hard to get and very few people know about, I think. I actually discovered it through gameplay myself.

Some of these packs, I bought for one specific item or feature.
Get together: clubs
University: the shower
Island living: beaches
That being said, I have found more in the packs that I liked. I still explored them since I bought it. Overall I find sims4 is dissapointing in general. Every single pack feels like it's missing stuff. Just usually feels rushed and not checked over or synced with the other games. I feel like I have to buy multiple packs inorder to play in the way I want to, build the way I want to.
My best advice for any new person looking to get expansions, wait for the sales. They have pretty big sales every year. Save up and buy a bunch of them during the sales you'll save a lot of money and get more for your money.

Syd really outdid herself with the editing on this one! It must have taken ages to prep all the B-roll and get the timing lined up. This is absolutely a top-tier video.

I can’t imagine playing without the city living pack. So many havks based around those festivals , rummaging for snow globes and taking expensive flowers to make money. Food stalls immediately increase what your sim can cook by eating one time there and I love the city. My sims go there often

You should do a Halloween murder mystery themed house or sims

Get to Work: 1:22
Get Together 3:48
City Living 5:44
Cats and Dogs: 8:07
Seasons: 10:56
Get Famous: 14:01
Island Living: 16:34
Discover University: 18:29
Eco Lifestyle: 20:43
Snowy Escape: 23:47
Cottage Living: 25:40
High School Years: 27:17
Conclusion: 29:13
Hi, this video helped me so much!
I'm interested in the next videos for this series! I'm brand new to The Sims as a franchise! So far I only have Vampires, cause its my thing! Based on this video, I'm likely to get City Living next!
Thank you for your effort, videos, and sharing this info!

love how you go in depth for each pack! i often forget what features come with each pack, so this was very appreciated!

Can we get the follow up for packs and kits?? Want to use your ideas to help me pick my next buy! Tysm for everything you do!! 💕

This video could not be more perfectly timed. Thank you for your service!

Tbh i want to see Syd building Halloween neigbourhood on one lot! Glowing look macoretta👻🎃💜

I love snowy escape!
not only bc I love the style personally but we got soooo much with it! a new world, clothes, food, gameplay,...

I thought it was just me who get stressed out by discovering university 😭😭😭

If you're curious, I ranked every Sim world by size, where by "size" I mean, in order of importance: number of lots (apartments count 2/3 because of the "outside limitations), eventual same-world extra lots (Deep Woods or Hospital yes, Sixam no), extra places like the trails in Komorebi, number of neighborhoods, how the lots are distributed in the neighborhoods and outside-world lots (the science lab, Sixam...)
So, from the biggest to the smallest, we have:
- Get Together - Windenburg (27 map lots, 4 neighborhoods)
- City Living - San Myshuno (23 "lots" -should be 30 but 21 are apartments and only 9 are actual building lots-, 4 districts)
- Base Game - Oasis Spring (21 map lots + 1 secret lot that definitely still belongs to Oasis Spsrings, 6 neighborhoods)
- Base Game - Willow Creek (21 map lots + 1 secret lot but I can't decide if it's still part of Willow Creek or not, 6 neighborhoods)
- Cats & Dogs - Brindleton Bay (16 map lots, 4 neighborhoods)
- Base Game - Newcrest (15 map lots, 3 neighborhoods)
- Snowy Escape - Mt. Komorebi (14 map lots + 1 secret lot, which is the mountain top, in 3 neigborhoods, and that's without counting the hiking trails each neighborhood has)
- Island Living - Sulani (14 map lots, 3 islands and a lot of sea)
- Eco Lifestyle - Evergreen Harbour (13 "lots" -should be 15 but there are 4 apartments-, 3 neighborhoods)
- Cottage Living - Henford-on-Bagley (12 map lots, 3 neighborhoods but they're very open)
- High School Years - Copperdale (12 map lots, 3 neighborhoods and the fair but it's not that big)
- StrangerVille - StrangerVille (11 map lots + the secret lab, 3 neighborhoods)
- DIscover University - Britechester (11 "lots" because I counted each University for 3 instead of 4 because of the Dorms, 2 campuses + 1 neighborhood)
- Get Famous - Del Sol Valley (11 map lots, 3 neighborhoods)
- My Wedding Stories - Tartosa (9 map lots, 2 neighborhoods but very big to run around)
- Jungle Adventure - Selvadorada (technically is bigger than Tartosa but there are only 7 lots and 2 neighborhoods and then around 5 "?" in the Jungle)
- Outdoor Retreat - Granite Falls (6 map lots + 1 secred lots in the woods and a bit to explore around, 2 spots)
- REalm Of Magic - Glimmerbrook (5 map lots, 1 neighborhood and then there's the whole Magic Realm, which is huge but not really in Glimmerbrook, 1 secret lot still)
- Vampires - Forgotten Hollow (5 map lots, 2 spots)
- Werewolves - Moonwood Mills (5 map lots, technically with the whole lake and wolf rock should be bigger than Forgotten Hollow but those are not buildable spots)
- Get To Work - Magnolia Promenade (4 map slots, then the 2 lots of the hospital and Police department that are hidden but still part of the Promenade. The Research Lab lot is not near there so it doesn't count and Sixam secret lot is DEFINITELY soewhere else)
- Journey to Batuu - Batuu (technically none but you can enable 3 lots, one for each location)

Thank you for making this! I am trying to figure out which pack I want next. I want to know the details you're sharing and not many other channels I've watched explain much on the packs. Love you for always being my favorite go to simmer to learn from!

i literally have all the packs and still watched this whole thing. just can't miss a single drop of your content! love your channel so much!!

seasons is conflicting for me as well because while the build items are soso great, the rain puddles and clouds can be such a nuisance in build mode (not to mention what landscaping is generally like when it's not summer)

I was trying to figure out which I should buy! This is so helpful ❤

EA has a sale right now so I came back to watch this. I love the breakdown, hopefully you do more for the other expansion types soon! :)

Hi!! You should do the Pinterest Challenge + Aesthetic wheel, that way you can create different styles! That would be so cool. Following you since the beginning of your channel, I love it! Hope its gets even better cause you deserve it

You actually made it so movie hangout is one of the stuff packs I'm gonna get! I wanted it for the sims going to movies and watching movies together (my sis and I are big cinephiles) but seeing what you do with the build items really made me want the pack! I have get together, seasons, and discover university bc i felt they were necessary for making my sims lives more "real" (i live in an area with a very wildly different climate every week so seasons was a must, i cried when i saw snow covered builds on youtube) and next on my list is get to work, island living, and cats and dogs, which I feel a lot more confident about after watching this video!

the daily syd mac sims video fr getting me through the semester bless🙏🙏🙏

I love this! Although I have majority of the packs and all the expansions, I still enjoy these very much. Can’t wait for the next ones! 😊

Gosh your channel has grown so much and I feel like I’ve been here for awhile! It’s been awesome to watch !congrats🎉 you’re like my favorite summer

I'm really glad you actually like cottage living that much bc I just bought it before I found this video and I would've cried

I agree about seasons. Everyone says "need it" because the weather changes, but otherwise it seems meh to me

Thank you so much! This is such a useful video for a newbie like me ☺️

I love your this video! Can’t wait to see your recommendations for the other packs! I’m not sure which ones I’m gonna get so I love your advice!

For me, Get Together is the best Expansion in The Sims 4. I love the build and CAS items so much as well as playing with the townies in the pack.

Thank you so much for doing this video it really helped me decide witch packs I'm going to buy or not

I love cottage living and cats and dogs for the worlds alone. I play in them all of the time just because they are so pretty and kind of realistic to imagine yourself living there

I only have city living and island living out of these, but I really like both of them. I actually commented on another video asking which were worth the buy because I was going to buy another.

Hi syd!! I wonder if you're gonna make the next video soon about the other dlcs?? I value your opinion a lot!! Thank you so much in advance!!

Oh this is great I’m so used to the usual ‘seasons is the best’. No Snowy Escape needs more love!!! :D

If you have kids in the sims i would say need it for snowy escape just for the childrens festivals but it’s also beautiful, great Cas items gorgeous build items and beautiful world.

Searched up ranking expansion packs and found you, I love this video and its very well explained lol. You got a subscriber even though this video was 10 months ago.
edit: I love your makeup lmaoo

I feel like Snowy Escape gets slept on a lot so I am glad it's in your need it. The pack also came with Kiyoshi Ito and Kaori Nishidake and they are just one of the prettiest people to have babies with lolol.

Im glad Snowy Escape gets the recognition it deserves its such a chill and a fun pack and I love it, definitely worth buying

Pet avoidance issues (in game) for the reasons you mentioned. Got very sad when my first chicken died. Heavens help me when my first llama goes (yep only just stated to have llamas ;)!
Seasons: Gives me mixed feelings. We have to pay for weather in 2018 onwards? In the year 2000 this made sense because of technology limitations but nowadays it should be basegame. Plenty of games do this (Animal Crossing, My Time at Portia, Pokemon - well sorta in certain areas there's weather - etc.).
Hehe you @SydMac mentioned "mermaids are shallow", not sure if you intended it but that's a pretty good pun! *thumbs up* indeed

You should do a video like this where you rate the debug items each pack comes with!! ❤️❤️❤️

i love cats and dogs and how they added dog/pet doors! it adds a lot of realism :)

id love to see more!!

Was just going to ask you about this (new viewer) - but I’m planning on bundling! Only bundle-able EP left for me right now is Snowy Escape, so I’d love for you to do GPs and SPs! ❤

28:10 Maybe you could build one😃 I don’t like the default Highschool either and I tried to build one but it’s hard. Maybe you could even build it just with base game and Highschool years so everyone with the Highschool years pack can download it. I’d love to see that😊

I was just ready to buy a new expansion pack or two so this came in time ... even though you posted this close to a week ago.

Snowy Escape getting the love it deserves

You’re SO pretty w out makeup and of course just as pretty with it ❤

Gotta love a list ranking video!
I really liked the edited part you added in on the Seasons part. Looking nice and cozy.
My rankings would go like this:
Need it: Get Together, Seasons,
Like it: Cottage Living, Cats & Dogs
Meh: Island Living, City Living, Get To Work
Don't like: Snowy Escape, Discover University
Delete it: Eco Lifestyle, High School Stories, Get Famous
As a note: all those ranked below "Meh" I do not own. I've watched enough reviews to know I do not want any of those. Although the ones under "Don't Like" while I don't want, I'm not opposed to them.

I agree with the Need Its but as you said, expansion packs are expensive (and I can't afford a lot of them 😭) so my plan is to just wait for the next sale.

I was looking for a video that could summarize what’s in each pack

i just bought snowy escape i had been debating but i love japanese culture and i love the snowy vibe, i’m super excited to try it out!!!

i mostly agree
the only difference is that i LOVE eco lifestyle, especially the gameplay
p.s. justice for mermaids!

BUILD CHALLENGE - Build a house using only packs from the Delete it/Hate it category!

We need a video on packs and kits! 🙏🙏😍

Cats and dogs is my 1st thing I bought in all the sims 4 😊

Already own on the packs ... Yes all *lowers head, I know, don't judge* But, watching this vid to support Syd who is rapidly becoming one of my favorite Sims KRplusrs!

lolol I got a jumpscare at 3:00 I was wearing headphones and the sound creeped the soul out of my body

You should build 4 houses for different seasons or like each room a different holidays ❤🎉

I have gone rogue with the sale on the sims packs 🤣

Please finish this series

I live vicariously through island living that world is so beautiful it's my escape (I do agree that the mermaids could have a lot more features though!)

I love all of the expansion packs. They are essential for me

Can you please do a video on the kits!!!

I was SO chocked that you put Get Famous in meh

The odd jobs makes island living worth it for me. I use it a lot. It gets repetitive though, and I wish there were more cross pack playability with it

Seasons and Cats & Dogs are “Need it” for me.. City Living is “like it” and I don’t have any others but thinking of buying a few more but don’t know which ones yet

Hi! Can you make this cahllenge: pick one of the houses EA build and try to make it look good only changing swatches. So no adding items or deleting. Hoping ypu try this one

28:27 my "prom" was something else. to start off the reason i quoted "prom" was because we werent allowed to call it that. we were told we had to refer to it as a formal or they would cancel it. the principal literally told us if he heard the word "prom" he would shut it down. i did go to a pretty small religious school, but it honestly wasnt as stuck up as some can be. anyway, since it was so small my graduating class was only like 12 of us so i had decided that i really didnt want to go because they said we werent going to have any real music, there was to be no dancing with exception of like the cha cha slide or crap like that. dont get me wrong those kinds of dances can be fun or entertaining in certain situations but not here all night. the only music was going to be religious based. it was going to be held in our gymnasium at school. i just was not interested. day of came and still not going. then probably half an hour after it was set to start i broke and went, but i didnt have a tux or any type of dress suit so i went to Tommy Hilfiger and got a nice pink and blue stripped button down shirt. i forgot to mention my truck was broke down and my mother's car had been stolen and totaled so the only available vehicle was my father's work van which i wasnt allowed to drive so my mother had to take me. another reason i didnt want to go. i got there and of course music sucked and it was empty basically everyone was there but again only 12 of us and most were dating each other so there were no other people. now is where my story gets a little "better", i was 18 my senior year and there was a 24 yo teacher that was NOT my teacher, but she taught something in the HS. she was very attractive, and she was going to be a chaperone. i came in the door and went to the table we had set up as a snack bar and was just pouring a glass of punch and she came up beside me and we started talking. back then in the early 2000s i was pretty slick and a big flirt so i had flirted with her in the past so, when she said that she liked "my tux" i replied, "thanks, it's the new invisible tux. they're all the rage over in Japan right now." she smiled and said that she wished she had an invisible dress. without hesitation i said "yea, me too." she and i both blushed and she had an intrigued shocked face, and like playfully slapped at my arm. one of the girls there was an ex of mine, and she did bring a date that wasnt a classmate. i noticed when they came in that i recognized this guy because we went to the same gym. throughout the night i noticed him looking at me alot. i just figured he recognized me but couldnt place where he knew me from so i just let it go. eventually, my ex formally introduced us and i said that i knew him from the gym thinking he would like gasp and say 'THATS WHERE IVE SEEN YOU", but nope, he didnt remark. the night ended and i didnt have a ride home, so the hot teacher asked me if i needed a ride. i was a flirt but i wasnt very smart so i said "no, that alright". eventually my mother came and i went home. fast forward a few days and my ex came to school upset. i asked her what was wrong, and she told me that the guy she brought to prom ended up dumping her because he was gay. YEP, that's right. this guy had been checking me out, not trying to figure out who i was. not sure why, I never noticed him doing it at the gym. i was kinda sad for her, but at the same time strangely flattered because honestly this was a good looking guy. i may be straight, but still. so, my "prom" almost didnt happen then i was there flirting with a teacher, then i was being checked out by my ex's boyfriend. it was not the typical prom, but how many have this story?

Seasons is fun, but damn, the first time my sim got struck by lighting scared me.

I can't find any Sims KRplusr that does a review of packs only based upon the potential of lots. I am new to the game and I'd like to see which have the best lots for rural living. I assume the Cottage one?

I personally think if seasons had a world it could have different areas, one with it being snowy and winter all the time, one being super warm a little like sulani and it being summerry, one being like springy warm and chilly and pretty and all, and one like auttumny like

I like to see a pack ranking, but I'd love one that is based on facts instead of opinion.
Can this pack meet all a sims needs and build a functional house with just this pack.
Hunger (fridge), Hygiene (sink, shower, bath), Bladder (toilet), Fun (bookshelf, chess board etc), Energy (bed), Social (dresser or mirror)
Tiers:
Mansion = Meets all 6 needs . Also has wallpaper, flooring, windows, doors, lights.
Starter home = meets all needs (not fussed about social) but missing doors and/or windows, wallpaper, flooring, lights
Rags to riches : meets all needs but some in unconventional ways (e.g. public toilet for bladder, cooler for hunger)
Touch of base= fulfils 4 needs
Turn up the base= fulfils 3 needs
All about the base = fulfils 2 or less needs

i've never had any problems with eco lifestyle, its not broken in my game 👀👀

I struggle a lot with Sims 4, it's great!! don't get me wrong, I'm addicted. But...i can never decide on a pack, I am always about gameplay, I rarely build..and just get old builds, I love cas although I don't have CC or enough packs, I only have werewolves, cottage living and get to work. Ofc it adds a lot to the gameplay, you can either be an alien, werewolf, or a farm gal

personally still think it sucks we have to pay for some of this stuff, i forget which one but i remember having things like seasons, snow escapes, Vampires, werwolf etc for BASE game… but
my favorites are seasons, Cats&Dogs, Cottage-living, and high school years.

I NEED the update to this and the rest of the videosss

@syd in the event you want to muse a pet inn your game. You can go to vet buy immortal treat and your pet will never age or die

Such a shame the eco lifestyle world is broken I loved the concept

I get kind of annoyed when people ask "which packs are worth the money?" Imo no one can answer that for you because we all have different tastes. If you enjoy it then it's worth the money. I don't know which ones I'm going to enjoy until I'm actively playing with them. Some of the ones I was the most excited for I ended up not really using, and some of the ones I had zero interest in and only bought because there was a sale ended up being some of my favorites.

Get to Work, Get Together, City Living, and Cottage Living are the must haves for me. My controversial opinion is I would've put Seasons in the delete it category, in my gameplay I always disable all weather and delete all holidays as I find them to be more of a nuisance than fun. Also I strongly believe all expansion packs should come with a new world and not having one makes it not worth the cost.

Can you do a updated version of this since we had so many releases this year 😅

Sims University is great if you are playing a Van Wilder like townie. 🕺

Hii I am early. I LOVE YOU YOU'RE AMAZING! sorry for being aggressive😓

I've never had an issue with eco lifestyle at all (on xbox) it is hands down the best pack

ALL OF THEM❤

the fact expansion packs are $55 bucks in CA is insane because in the US they're only $40.😭

Omg within 20 min!

Nice! 😀🤘🏼

Please make the video about the dlc's soon!

Its Halloween , can you do the haunted house sim its soo cool to do it🥰🥰🥰😘

I hate that the seasonal pack has no world but damn I need it !

As a builder Get Together has the best & largest world n a ton of essential build buy 😫

Am I crazy or have I never seen Syd build apartments in the Sims 4? 👀

Anyone else remember when a lot of those "features" were base game? No? Just me?

The school can be changed, least mine asked if I wanted a default or if I wanted to build on the school

I feel highschool is totally meh and didn’t buy it but I’m SO tempted cause of the build items

Except for the cost, I could’ve stayed in college for the rest of my life. I’ve been out for 13 years so I’m not just saying that’s what I’m used to. It was the best time and I still wanted to do so much more.

I only want eco for the craft (candle making,etc) but I don't want to have to do the cleaning part😭 or have my town look like a dump, is there a way I can only have the craft instead of the other stuff?