How long do Sims live?

The game gives you three lifespan settings: short, normal, and long. Your choice changes the Sim days in each life stage.

Early life moves fast, especially for a Newborn. A Newborn stays in that stage for 0.5 days on short, 1 day on normal, and 4 days on long. You spend the most time in the Adult stage, which lasts 42 days on the normal setting.

From the Child stage through the Elder stage, the game gives you a birthday warning. This alert appears 2 days before your Sim ages up.

Animals in The Sims 4 have shorter lifespans than human Sims and go through fewer stages. On the normal setting, a dog lives for 36 Sim days and a cat lives for 43 Sim days. Foxes start as Adults and live for 41 days on normal, 20.5 on short, and 164 on long.

Horses live longer than smaller animals. A horse lives for 70 Sim days on normal, 35 days on short, and 280 days on long. They spend 7 days as a Foal, 50 days as an Adult Horse, and 13 days as an Elder Horse on normal.

You can extend your Sim's life by picking specific traits or choosing the long lifespan setting. Certain traits multiply the days your Sim gets in specific life stages. Most of these traits stretch the Elder stage, delaying when your Sim dies of old age.

For example, the Active trait applies a 1.47 multiplier to the Elder stage, giving 20.58 days on normal. The Long Lived trait uses a 2.175 multiplier, stretching the normal Elder stage to 30.45 days. A Mermaid gets a 3.35 multiplier as an Elder, lasting 46.9 days on normal.

The Fairy trait stretches three stages instead of one. On the normal setting, a Fairy gets 38 days as a Young Adult, 55.02 days as an Adult, and 30.03 days as an Elder.