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Sims 4 Benchmarked

Maximizing the target audience. With the game's brightly colored visuals and low hardware demands, the creators of Sims 4 want to reach as wide a player base as possible. Was the undertaking a success? Read our benchmark article to find out.
Sims 4 Logo

For the original German article, see here.

Graphics

While the predecessor game's graphics looked at least somewhat realistic, in their fourth title, EA gives the extremely popular Sims series a very sketch-like appearance. Similar to Diablo III, the graphics are rather reminiscent of a comic. This design choice is completely understandable, as with it the developers can easily hide weaknesses in the graphics.

In addition to the lower texture and effect quality, the number of polygons is not exactly sumptuous. In the year 2014, gamers who expect a lot of a title's graphics hope for a lot more. The size of the levels also leaves something to be desired (did someone say SimCity?) When moving to other parts of the city, the user is confronted with a loading screen. It is hardly surprising, then, that the game's hardware demands are quite modest. Of course EA is interested in reaching as many customers as possible. Considering the high performance, however, the developers could have ventured to do a little more graphics-wise.

Sims 4
Sims 4
Sims 4
Sims 4
Sims 4
Sims 4

Still, the imagery fits wonderfully with the typical Sims situational comedy. Along with the background sounds, the animations also turned out well and are extremely funny. The graphics when changing perspectives, on the other hand, did not turn out quite so well. If the player flies over houses with the camera or zooms in or out drastically, the game often produces unattractive "image errors" (objects pop up, object wallpapers make a visible switch, etc.). The image shading is especially affected by this, as you can see in our benchmark video (watch the trees).

Low Settings
Low Settings
Medium Settings
Medium Settings
High Settings
High Settings
Ultra Settings
Ultra Settings
Low Settings
Low Settings
Medium Settings
Medium Settings
High Settings
High Settings
Ultra Settings
Ultra Settings

In terms of the options menu, the range of available settings is more or less average. The "Graphics" tab has 10 items, most of which can be adjusted across a gradation with several steps. For our benchmarks, we used the comfortable presets that automatically adjust the rest of the options. Apart from that, in the graphics menu the player can change the display mode, resolution and refresh rate. Vertical synchronization (eliminates image tearing) is also present.

While at minimum details, the game is fairly ugly (blue "fog of war" when the camera is in a high position), at medium to maximum settings, the graphics certainly have their charm. The differences in performance between the "High" and "Ultra" settings are only noticeable on weaker graphics cards. Speaking of the GPU: Except at low details (here the CPU is often the limiting factor), Sims 4 is rather lays most of the burden on the graphics card. By the way, due to the built-in limit, the framerate cannot exceed 200 fps.

Low Settings
Low Settings
Medium Settings
Medium Settings
High Settings
High Settings
Ultra Settings
Ultra Settings

Benchmark

Although we made a concerted effort to find a fair and sensible benchmark sequence, but it is also impossible to generate consistent results with "The Sims 4". Due to the manually directed camera movement, unfortunately the sequence can never be 100% identical. As a result, every once in a while GPUs place in higher positions than models that are actually stronger -- at least at moderate settings. Otherwise, our benchmark should give a pretty good idea of a Sims player's everyday experience will look like. In order to achieve that, the sequence is comprised of about 50% close-ups and 50% camera movements from a distance.

As we have already indicated, "The Sims 4" does not require a high-end computer. At maximum details and 1920x1080 pixels, the game runs fluidly with just a graphics card from the upper middle class. The DDR3 version of the GeForce GTX 850M managed 48 fps. For higher settings in Full HD, a mid-range chip more towards the inexpensive end will suffice, for instance the GeForce GT 750M (~40 fps). On the other hand, entry-level GPUs on par with the Intel HD Graphics 4600 cannot handle more than 1366x768 pixels and the "Medium" setting. Almost every notebook can render the game fluidly at low details (unless the device is 500 years old).

Sims 4
    1920x1080 Ultra Preset     1920x1080 High Preset     1366x768 Medium Preset     1024x768 Low Preset
GeForce GTX 780 Ti, 3770K
Desktop-PC
90.4 (59min) fps ∼47%
92.3 (71min) fps ∼48%
102.1 (77min) fps ∼51%
168.9 (141min) fps ∼84%
Radeon R9 290X, 2600K, Samsung SSD 840 Pro 256GB MZ7PD256HAFV-0Z000
Sapphire Tri-X R9 290X Desktop
93 (63min) fps ∼48%
Radeon R9 280X, 3770K
Desktop-PC
79.4 (61min) fps ∼41%
83.8 (66min) fps ∼44%
104.8 (76min) fps ∼52%
187.9 (161min) fps ∼93%
GeForce GTX 760, 3770K
Desktop-PC
77.8 (56min) fps ∼40%
83.7 (62min) fps ∼44%
97 (63min) fps ∼48%
183 (126min) fps ∼91%
GeForce GTX 880M, 4700MQ
Schenker W504
73.5 (55min) fps ∼38%
80.8 (63min) fps ∼42%
99.6 (67min) fps ∼50%
150.9 (120min) fps ∼75%
GeForce GTX 780M, 4700MQ
Schenker W503
72.8 (52min) fps ∼38%
80.5 (59min) fps ∼42%
94.2 (65min) fps ∼47%
143.9 (108min) fps ∼72%
GeForce GTX 870M, 4700MQ
Schenker W504
65.8 (43min) fps ∼34%
73.7 (58min) fps ∼38%
96.1 (65min) fps ∼48%
156.2 (118min) fps ∼78%
GeForce GTX 750 Ti, 3770K
Desktop-PC
63 (44min) fps ∼33%
71.9 (54min) fps ∼37%
94.8 (71min) fps ∼47%
172.5 (104min) fps ∼86%
GeForce GTX 770M, 4700MQ
Schenker W503
60.6 (44min) fps ∼31%
69.2 (51min) fps ∼36%
92.7 (66min) fps ∼46%
144.8 (111min) fps ∼72%
Radeon R9 M290X, 4700MQ
Schenker W504
57 (41min) fps ∼30%
59.7 (46min) fps ∼31%
81.6 (63min) fps ∼41%
111.6 (90min) fps ∼56%
GeForce GTX 860M, 4700MQ
Schenker W504
54.9 (38min) fps ∼28%
67.3 (48min) fps ∼35%
90.9 (70min) fps ∼45%
155.7 (111min) fps ∼77%
GeForce GTX 765M, 4700MQ
Schenker W503
49.8 (35min) fps ∼26%
61 (46min) fps ∼32%
83.2 (61min) fps ∼41%
148.5 (104min) fps ∼74%
GeForce GTX 850M, 4340M
Schenker M504
47.8 (33min) fps ∼25%
53.7 (40min) fps ∼28%
82.7 (60min) fps ∼41%
159.1 (124min) fps ∼79%
GeForce GT 750M, 4702MQ
Schenker M503
31 (22min) fps ∼16%
39.9 (30min) fps ∼21%
61.8 (44min) fps ∼31%
121.1 (97min) fps ∼60%
Iris Pro Graphics 5200, 4750HQ, Intel SSD 525 Series SSDMCEAC180B3
SCHENKER S413
24.3 (16min) fps ∼13%
34.7 (26min) fps ∼18%
68 (49min) fps ∼34%
178 (153min) fps ∼89%
Radeon R7 512 Cores (Kaveri Desktop), A10-7850K, Samsung SSD 470 Series MZ-5PA256/EU
A10-7850K Asus A88-XM-PLUS
24.1 (8min) fps ∼12%
29.5 (20min) fps ∼15%
51 (34min) fps ∼25%
126 (77min) fps ∼63%
GeForce GT 740M, 4200M
HP Envy 15-j011sg
23.3 (16min) fps ∼12%
32.8 (23min) fps ∼17%
65.6 (38min) fps ∼33%
128.2 (107min) fps ∼64%
Radeon HD 8650G, A10-5750M, Samsung SSD 470 Series MZ-5PA256/EU
Pumori Test Platform (A10-5750M)
16.7 (9min) fps ∼9%
19.3 (15min) fps ∼10%
36 (22min) fps ∼18%
82 (60min) fps ∼41%
HD Graphics 4600, 4700MQ
Schenker W503
12.4 (8min) fps ∼6%
18.8 (14min) fps ∼10%
40.3 (32min) fps ∼20%
139.8 (125min) fps ∼70%
GeForce GT 720M, 4200M, WDC Scorpio Blue WD10JPVX-22JC3T0
MSI CX61-i572M
21.5 (0min) fps ∼11%
26.2 (0min) fps ∼14%
55.3 (0min) fps ∼28%
166.3 (0min) fps ∼83%

Test Systems

Our four test devices are courtesy of Schenker Technologies (mysn.de):

  • W504 (Core i7-4700MQ, 8 GB DDR3, GeForce GTX 860M, GTX 870M, GTX 880M, Radeon R9 M290X)
  • W503 (Core i7-4700MQ, 8 GB DDR3, GeForce GTX 765M, GTX 770M, GTX 780M)
  • M504 (Core i5-4340M, 8 GB DDR3, GeForce GTX 850M)
  • M503 (Core i7-4702MQ, 8 GB DDR3, GeForce GT 750M)

Windows 7 (64-bit edition) is installed on each of these notebooks. A further thank you goes to Micron for the 480 GB Crucial M500.

Another test device was provided by Nvidia:

  • HP Envy 15-j011sg (Core i5-4200M, 12 GB DDR3, GeForce GT 740M)

GPU drivers used: Nvidia 340.52, AMD 14.7 RC3, Intel 10.18.10.3907

There are also benchmarks from other notebooks, possibly with different drivers.

Overview

Show Restrictions
PosModel< PrevNext >Sims 4
 Sims 4 (2014)
low
1024x768
Low Preset
med.
1366x768
Medium Preset
high
1920x1080
High Preset
ultra
1920x1080
Ultra Preset
NVIDIA Titan X Pascal
181.1
166.3
161.8
159.7
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Mobile
173
141
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 Mobile
118
112
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980
199.3
150.4
113.5n2
105.6n2
AMD Radeon RX 580 (Desktop)
183.3
168.7
161.2
150.3
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 (Laptop)
180.15n2
150.25n2
129.85n2
120.95n2
AMD Radeon R9 390X
190.4
121.7
111.4
106.8
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 (Desktop)
192
184
164
148
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 Mobile
122
119
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 Ti
168.9
102.1
92.3
90.4
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970
183.9
167.7
140
127.3
AMD Radeon R9 290X
93
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980M
187.15n4
138.15n4
109.4n4
104.1n4
AMD Radeon R9 280X
187.9
104.8
83.8
79.4
AMD Radeon R9 380
179.8
131.7
95
92.8
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960
178.8
141.3
107
98.3
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M
188.25n2
145.6n2
98.8n4
91.4n4
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680
187.05n2
141.65n2
118.6n2
109.4n2
AMD Radeon R9 M295X
173.1
93.8
66
60.4
PosModel< PrevNext >Sims 4
low med. high ultra
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Mobile
73
AMD Radeon R7 370
195.1
159.9
124.7
96.8
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 880M
150.9
99.6
81.2n2
73.1n2
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950
198.3
131.8
95.3
85.4
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760
183
97
83.7
77.8
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M
143.9
94.2
80.5
72.8
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 965M
182.3n3
118.8n3
83.3n3
70.7n3
AMD Radeon RX 560X (Laptop)
145.4
114.8
73.2
64.8
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 870M
156.2
96.1
73.7
65.8
AMD Radeon R9 M290X
111.6
81.6
59.7
57
AMD Radeon HD 8970M
182.7
139
102
87.2
AMD Radeon R9 M390
82
AMD Radeon Pro 460
164.9
69.6
63
Intel Iris Xe Graphics G7 96EUs
48.3
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M
182.6n4
109.1n4
71.1n4
62.35n4
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 Ti
172.5
94.8
71.9
63
AMD Radeon Pro 555
53.9
AMD Radeon Pro 455
50.6
NVIDIA GeForce GT 1030 (Desktop)
188.8n2
155.5n2
110.25n2
72.15n2
NVIDIA GeForce MX150
58.4
PosModel< PrevNext >Sims 4
low med. high ultra
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M
144.8
92.7
69.2
60.6
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 860M
141.15n2
77n2
54.35n2
47.45n2
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M
166.35n2
93.05n2
55.3n2
46.2n2
AMD Radeon 540X
111.6
62
35.1
30.5
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 850M
159.6n2
84.5n3
49.8n3
41.6n3
AMD Radeon R9 M280X
57.8
44.9
43
16.5
NVIDIA GeForce 945M
184
101.1
57.7
45.5
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 765M
148.5
83.2
61
49.8
Intel Iris Plus Graphics G7 (Ice Lake 64 EU)
175.4
70.1
37.8
27.6
AMD Radeon RX Vega 10
102.05n2
45.75n2
27n2
29.9
AMD Radeon R9 M370X
162.9
99.9
54.5
46.8
NVIDIA GeForce MX230
171.9
110
60.5
48.7
AMD Radeon RX Vega 7
162.9
85.5
47.2
41.5
NVIDIA GeForce 845M
56.2
30.7
26.3
AMD Radeon R9 M265X
81.7
36.3
33.7
NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M
121.1
61.8
39.9
31
NVIDIA GeForce 940MX
158.6n3
68.7n3
38n3
29.5n4
AMD Radeon RX Vega 8 (Ryzen 2000/3000)
150
57.9
31.5
27.7
NVIDIA GeForce 940M
166.65n2
77.65n2
38.75n2
31.5n2
Intel Iris Plus Graphics G4 (Ice Lake 48 EU)
166.7
60.3
35.2
25.2
PosModel< PrevNext >Sims 4
low med. high ultra
NVIDIA GeForce 930MX
186
81.2
40.3
30.4
AMD Radeon R7 M445
132.9
66.9
28.8
27.4
AMD Radeon R7 M370
172.7
58.6
35
25
NVIDIA GeForce 840M
110.15n2
59.45n2
34.2n2
24.75n2
AMD Radeon R7 512 Cores (Kaveri Desktop)
126
51
29.5
24.1
Intel Iris Pro Graphics 5200
186.45n2
68.2n2
33.7n2
23.2n2
NVIDIA GeForce GT 740M
128.2
65.6
32.8
23.3
NVIDIA GeForce 930M
184.5
90.1
40.1
33.9
Intel Iris Graphics 550
183.4
78.2
39.7
29.4
AMD Radeon 530
124.6
46.4
22.8
NVIDIA GeForce 830M
142.1
60.5
27.2
23.6
NVIDIA GeForce MX110
151.1
66.4
37
32.1
Intel Iris Plus Graphics 640
28.6
20.5n2
NVIDIA GeForce 920MX
171.4
63.4
34.1
Intel Iris Graphics 540
32.2
AMD Radeon R7 M260X
157.6
51.9
26.1
22.8
AMD Radeon R7 M265
90
33.7
26
20.1
AMD Radeon R7 (Bristol Ridge)
122.3
44.8
23.2
AMD Radeon R7 (Carrizo)
99
33.5
20.8
16.3
AMD Radeon R7 (Kaveri)
94.3
40.1
23.1
PosModel< PrevNext >Sims 4
low med. high ultra
AMD Radeon R7 M460
137.5
49.9
21.7
18.6
AMD Radeon R7 M360
85.3
36.5
21.2
18.4
NVIDIA GeForce 920M
175.8n3
73n3
31.5n3
22.85n2
AMD Radeon R7 M440
81.9
40.4
19.9
16.2
AMD Radeon R7 M260
125
25.9
13.7
AMD Radeon R7 M340
160.6
61.7
25.2
20.8
AMD Radeon RX Vega 6 (Ryzen 2000/3000)
105.5
50.3
30.8
26.4
AMD Radeon RX Vega 5
179.4
83.1
36
32.7
Intel UHD Graphics G1 (Ice Lake 32 EU)
162.3
56.3
29.8
23
Intel UHD Graphics 630
171
65
29.1
Intel HD Graphics 630
186.3
57.1
27.2
Intel HD Graphics 530
153.3
52.9
26.6
19.3
AMD Radeon R5 (Bristol Ridge)
99.6
35.4
19.4
15.8
Intel UHD Graphics 620
52.6
25.2
17.7
Intel HD Graphics 620
184.4n2
59.7n2
28.55n2
20.05n2
AMD Radeon R6 (Carrizo)
86.6
34.3
18.3
15.8
AMD Radeon R6 (Kaveri)
89.7
26.9
12.6
10.6
Intel HD Graphics 5600
187.4
52.6
25.2
16.8
AMD Radeon HD 8670M
150.1
42.9
17
AMD Radeon HD 8650G
82
36
19.3
16.7
PosModel< PrevNext >Sims 4
low med. high ultra
AMD Radeon R5 M335
145.9
41.8
17.7
14.7
AMD Radeon R5 M330
32.7
15.3
AMD Radeon R5 M430
123.4
35.7
AMD Radeon R5 M255
158.3
50.5
21.5
18.5
AMD Radeon RX Vega 3
152.7
56.1
26.5
21.7
NVIDIA GeForce 820M
141.9
48.3
25.3
20.5
Intel HD Graphics 520
164.8n5
46.7n5
21.8n5
13.45n4
Intel Iris Graphics 6100
178.3
55
25.2
17.4
NVIDIA GeForce GT 720M
166.3
55.3
26.2
21.5
AMD Radeon R5 M240
160.7
45.3
AMD Radeon R5 M230
130.9
38.9
16.1
AMD Radeon R5 (Stoney Ridge)
111.9
34.3
Intel HD Graphics 6000
144
45.4
21.8
14.1
Intel HD Graphics 4600
139.8n3
32.5n3
16.2n2
10.95n2
Intel HD Graphics 5500
150.8n4
36.5n4
17.45n4
10.2n3
Intel UHD Graphics (Jasper Lake 32 EU)
71.2
18.3
Intel HD Graphics 615
151.2n2
92.1n2
42.5n2
29n2
Intel HD Graphics 5000
168.3
32.8
14.2
10
Intel HD Graphics 515
161.1
39.2
17.1
10.4
Intel HD Graphics 610
168.9
32.5
PosModel< PrevNext >Sims 4
low med. high ultra
Intel HD Graphics 4400
146.55n4
28.45n4
12.4n2
Intel HD Graphics 510
173.7
32.2
Intel UHD Graphics 605
96.9
21.8
10.5
Intel HD Graphics 505
75.2
18.4
Intel HD Graphics 5300
91
17.6
8.5
6.6
AMD Radeon R4 (Stoney Ridge)
90
28.8
AMD Radeon R5 (Beema/Carrizo-L)
57.9
25.2
AMD Radeon R4 (Beema)
60
22.9
AMD Radeon R4 (Kaveri)
62.6
13.8
6.9
AMD Radeon R3 (Mullins/Beema)
70.1
25.5
AMD Radeon R2 (Stoney Ridge)
82.1
20.7
Intel HD Graphics (Broadwell)
113.6
26.3
Intel HD Graphics 4200
89.1
24.4
AMD Radeon HD 8400
71
21.3
AMD Radeon HD 8350G
81
26.5
13.5
11.4
AMD Radeon HD 8330
55.3
18.5
Intel UHD Graphics 600
77.8
17.7
10.2
Intel HD Graphics 500
71.6
13.7
Intel HD Graphics 405 (Braswell)
77.5
19.6
Intel HD Graphics (Braswell)
64
18.7
PosModel< PrevNext >Sims 4
low med. high ultra
Intel HD Graphics 400 (Braswell)
37
7.6
AMD Radeon HD 7420G
88.7
19.7
Intel HD Graphics (Haswell)
123.6
26.2
AMD Radeon R2 (Mullins/Beema/Carrizo-L)
78.7
23.7
Intel HD Graphics (Cherry Trail)
66.6n3
16.9n3
7.75n2
AMD Radeon HD 8210
27.3
8.4
Intel HD Graphics (Bay Trail)
54.85n2
6.8n2
(-) * Smaller values are better. / n123 Number of benchmarks for this median value / * Approximate position

 

Legend
5Stutters – This game is very likely to stutter and have poor frame rates. Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, average frame rates are expected to fall below 25fps
May Stutter – This graphics card has not been explicitly tested on this game. Based on interpolated information from surrounding graphics cards of similar performance levels, stutters and poor frame rates are expected.
30Fluent – Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, this game should run at or above 25fps
40Fluent – Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, this game should run at or above 35fps
60Fluent – Based on all known benchmarks using the specified graphical settings, this game should run at or above 58fps
May Run Fluently – This graphics card has not been explicitly tested on this game. Based on interpolated information from surrounding graphics cards of similar performance levels, fluent frame rates are expected.
?Uncertain – This graphics card experienced unexpected performance issues during testing for this game. A slower card may be able to achieve better and more consistent frame rates than this particular GPU running the same benchmark scene.
Uncertain – This graphics card has not been explicitly tested on this game and no reliable interpolation can be made based on the performances of surrounding cards of the same class or family.
The value in the fields displays the average frame rate of all values in the database. Move your cursor over the value to see individual results.
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Florian Glaser, 2014-09-10 (Update: 2021-05-18)