Not only do personality traits color people in real life, but they also add character to your various Sims and affect the way gameplay plays out. Unfortunately, choosing a trait for your Sim is a fairly permanent decision without the ability to easily change it. However, this guide will talk you through how to change traits in The Sims 4, with and without cheats.
What are traits?
Traits make up the personality system of The Sims 4, borrowing the traits from The Sims 3 and aspirations from The Sims 2.
There are four kinds of traits that build this system in the base game, including personality, bonus, death, and reward.
| Personality | Emotional, hobby, lifestyle, social and toddler. |
| Death | Ghost |
| Bonus | Animal affection, high metabolism, muser, dastardly, domestic, essence of flavor, business savvy, quick learner, home turf, alluring, collector, gregarious and entrepreneur. |
| Reward | Aspiration reward, inherited, toddler skill reward, child aspiration, character value, satisfaction reward, career reward, food mastery, mountaineer, temporary and sage. |
How many traits can each Sim have?
All adult Sims can possess up to three traits. Teens can only have two traits, children can have one and toddlers may have one.
Traits have a direct impact on the Sims’ behavior and emotions, which will greatly affect the outcome of the event at play and broaden the narrative.
Why can’t Sims’ traits be changed?
Once you have gone through the process of creating a Sim and have carefully selected their traits, they cannot be changed thereafter – at least not easily.
There is one way to change traits without cheating and another, easier way by using cheats and we will cover both options below that will allow you to get the most out of your gameplay.
How to change traits in The Sims 4 (without cheats)
Change traits with a Re-Traiting Potion
If you have reached the unfortunate conclusion that your character needs a trait change, then the only way to do it without cheating is by purchasing a Re-Traiting Potion.
Firstly, you must accumulate 5000 Satisfaction Points. These points can be gained by getting your Sims to perform activities that they enjoy.
Whims were automatically turned on before, however a patch for The Sims 4 turned them off. Navigate to game options > game play > and select ‘show whims’ to turn it on again – whims will assist in your collection of points.
Once you have collected 5000 Satisfaction Points, head to the Rewards Store and exchange those points for a Re-Traiting Potion.
Once purchased, drink the potion. This will trigger a pop-up screen, which will then allow you to select the traits you wish to change for your Sim.
How to change traits in The Sims 4 (with cheats)
Of course, there is always the option to change traits the easier but unorthodox way: using a cheat to change your Sims’ traits.
Change traits on PC
The following steps are straightforward enough and a sure-fire way to change your Sims’ traits on PC:
- Press Ctrl + Shift + C on your keyboard. Then type in ‘testingcheats’ and hit enter
- Proceed to type ‘cas.fulleditmode’ and hit enter once again
- Then press Esc and close the cheat box
- Hold the Shift key and click on the Sim whose traits you wish to alter
- Select ‘Edit in CAS’
- The Create a Sim menu will then open and you will be free to edit your Sim’s traits
Change traits on Xbox and PS4
There is also the option to cheat on the Xbox and PS4 version of the game.
- Press and hold down R1/RB, R2/RT, L1/LB, and L2/LT all at the same time for a few moments
- Type ‘testingcheats’ once again and hit enter
- Select the Sim you would like to alter and press R1/RB, R2/RT, L1/LB, and L2/LT at the same time
- Type ‘cas.fulleditmode’ and hit enter
- Select ‘Edit in CAS’ and repeat the same process
Take a look at our guide on more The Sims 4 Trait Cheats, to allow you to be who you want to be.
