The highest-paying painting in The Sims 4 is a Masterpiece-quality Abstract or Classic painting created by a Sim with a very high Painting skill. When painted while Inspired, these can sell for several thousand Simoleons, and the value goes even higher if the Sim has fame perks from Get Famous.
Want Money? Become a Painter
Painting is one of the best ways to make money in The Sims 4. Once your Sim gets good at it, the payouts can get pretty wild. With a high Painting skill, a single painting can sell for tens of thousands of Simoleons.
The higher your Sim’s Painting skill, the more their work sells for. Sticking to one type of painting, like Abstract or Classic, helps too.
Practicing the same style makes those paintings more valuable over time. Jumping between different styles won’t earn as much in the long run, so it pays to pick one or two and focus on them.
If you’re aiming for the biggest payouts, stick to large classic or abstract paintings. Those are the real money-makers.
Sims who’ve mastered painting can regularly sell these for around 13,000 to 15,000 Simoleons. With the right traits, that number can climb even higher. Hitting 20,000 for one painting isn’t unusual once everything lines up.
Mood matters a lot here. Sims who are feeling Inspired tend to produce better work. Masterpieces sell for way more than regular paintings.
Little things help with that, like taking a thoughtful shower, looking at art, doing some art research before painting, or using a higher-quality easel.
Painting from reference also seems to boost the value, especially when paired with classic or abstract styles.
Styles like pop art or impressionist paintings usually don’t bring in as much, so they’re better skipped if money is the goal.
Traits make a huge difference, too. The Marketable reward trait can massively increase a painting’s value, sometimes tripling what it sells for. A 5,000 Simoleon painting can suddenly turn into 15,000.
The Creative Visionary reward trait helps by making masterpieces more likely in the first place. Just be careful with the Perfectionist trait. While it can lead to better results, your Sim might scrap paintings that don’t meet their standards, which can slow things down.
Once everything clicks, painting becomes a steady, almost endless source of income. There’s no schedule, no boss, and no promotions to worry about.
Your Sim can paint whenever they want and still make more money than most careers in the game.
Use Get Famous and Get to Work to Increase Painting Value
With Get Famous, reaching 3-star celebrity unlocks a perk that boosts the value of anything your Sim makes using a skill. It gets even better at 4 stars.
For example, a painting worth 10,000 Simoleons can jump to around 25,000 once your Sim has the 4-star perk.
With Get to Work, you can take this even further with a retail store. Buy a store, put that 25k painting up for sale, and set the markup to 100%.
Using the retail interactions with customers, your Sim can sell it for 50,000 Simoleons.
Here’s a quick cheat sheet for making serious money with painting in The Sims 4:
1. Stick to high-paying styles:
- Large classic and abstract paintings sell the most.
- Avoid pop art and impressionist styles if you want big payouts.
2. Keep your Sim Inspired:
- Inspired Sims produce higher-value paintings.
- Boost mood with thoughtful showers, viewing art, using a quality easel, or doing art research.
3. Paint from reference:
- Using reference images increases the chances of creating high-value pieces.
4. Use helpful traits:
- Marketable can triple a painting’s value.
- Creative Visionary improves the chances of masterpieces.
- A perfectionist produces better quality but may scrap imperfect paintings.
5. Masterpieces are gold:
- Masterpieces sell for the most and can massively boost household funds.
To Sell or Not to Sell Masterpieces
Masterpiece paintings in The Sims 4 are a bit of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, they increase your household’s overall value, which raises bills.
If your goal is to pad your household funds, selling them is the easiest way to do it. A single masterpiece can bring in thousands of simoleons.
But there are good reasons to hold onto masterpiece paintings, too. If you love decorating, masterpieces make your walls look impressive and give your Sims a little extra happiness thanks to their emotional aura.
Kids can inherit them when they move out and sell them to upgrade their own homes, or just keep them as heirlooms.
Here’s a neat trick if you want the best of both worlds. You can make copies of a masterpiece. Take a picture of it or use it as a reference for another painting.
That way you can sell the original for simoleons while still enjoying the artwork on your walls.
Happy Simming!