The Sims 4 Cottage Living

The Sims 4 Cottage Living Expansion Pack

The Sims 4: Cottage Living is the eleventh expansion pack for The Sims 4, announced on June 10, 2021 and released worldwide on July 22, 2021 for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4/5, and Xbox One/Series consoles. Developed by Maxis and published by Electronic Arts, Cottage Living draws inspiration from earlier titles in the series such as The Sims: Unleashed, The Sims 2: Seasons, and The Sims 3: Pets, along with farming-themed Store content from The Sims 3. Arriving nearly seven years after The Sims 4’s original 2014 launch, it was the first expansion to let Sims truly live off the land — raising farm animals, growing crops, and running a working smallholding — and it quickly became one of the most beloved packs in the franchise for its cozy, cottagecore take on life simulation.

The Sims 4 Cottage Living at a Glance

• New World: Henford-on-Bagley
• New System: Farm animals (cows, chickens, llamas) and wild-animal friendships
• New Skill: Cross-Stitching
• New Traits: Animal Enthusiast, Lactose Intolerant
• New Aspiration: Country Caretaker
• New Lot Challenges: Simple Living, Wild Foxes
• New Objects: Animal shed, chicken coop, garden patch, cross-stitch kit

New Features in The Sims 4 Cottage Living Expansion Pack

Cottage Living’s central theme is trading city life for the English countryside, giving Sims the tools to farm, forage, and befriend both livestock and wildlife. The expansion introduced several headline systems that reshaped how players approach self-sufficiency and community life in The Sims 4.

Henford-on-Bagley: A New English Countryside World

The pack’s new world, Henford-on-Bagley, is a rural village inspired by the British countryside, complete with thatched-roof cottages, rolling green hills, a village pub called The Gnome’s Arms, and a lively town square. It’s spread across three neighborhoods and twelve lots, mixing rental, residential, and community spaces, with two lots arriving fully furnished so newcomers can settle in right away. There’s no hidden secret lot here, but Henford-on-Bagley makes up for it with a genuinely distinct, laid-back atmosphere unlike any other Sims 4 destination — right down to a duck pond, a swimmable lake, and the Bramblewood forest for foraging.

Henford-on-Bagley Lots Details

How Farm Animals Work in Cottage Living

Raising animals is the defining addition of Cottage Living, and it works through two connected systems: domesticated livestock and wild-animal friendships.

• Cows and llamas live in an Animal Shed (one per shed) and provide fresh milk or wool that can be sold, cooked with, or crafted into goods
• Chickens live in a Chicken Coop that holds up to eight birds, laying eggs that come in a variety of flavors and colors
• Wild rabbits and birds can be won over with patience and treats, occasionally rewarding Sims with gifts or a helping hand in the garden
• Foxes roam the countryside too, and while they can eventually be befriended, they’re notorious for raiding henhouses and stealing eggs

Animal care is a genuine daily commitment — feeding, grooming, and interacting with livestock affects their mood and the quality of what they produce, which in turn determines how well Sims do at local competitions.

Gardening, Foraging & the Simple Living Lot Challenge

Cottage Living significantly deepens gardening with oversized crops, new fruits like blueberries, raspberries, and the fittingly whimsical “chocoberries,” plus a canning system tied directly to the stove, letting Sims preserve produce without a dedicated station. Foraging in the Bramblewood adds mushrooms and wild berries to the mix. Tying it all together is the new Simple Living Lot Challenge, which requires every recipe to be cooked from fresh ingredients on hand rather than pulled from an infinite fridge — pushing the whole household toward a genuine garden-to-table lifestyle. A second challenge, Wild Foxes, adds extra risk to keeping chickens safe.

Cross-Stitching & Other New Skills in The Sims 4 Cottage Living

The headline new skill is Cross-Stitching, a five-level minor skill available to Sims aged child and up, similar in spirit to knitting and painting. Sims who already have a high knitting skill pick it up faster. There are 64 different patterns to unlock through skill progression, chatting with villagers, completing errands, and receiving gifts from wild animals, and reaching level five unlocks “Stitch by Reference” for creating fully custom designs — including portraits of other Sims. Cottage Living also brings back canning as a returning activity linked to cooking, letting Sims turn fresh produce into preserves for their pantry or the market.

Villagers, Errands & the Finchwick Fair

Henford-on-Bagley is built around its close-knit community. Sims can chat with locals at The Gnome’s Arms pub or the village market stall, run errands for neighbors in exchange for unique gifts, and get to know the town’s returning NPCs — the Crumplebottom sisters, Agnes and Agatha, both back for the first time since earlier Sims titles, one famously grumpier than the other. The weekly Finchwick Fair lets Sims enter their best livestock, oversized crops, pies, and cross-stitch pieces into friendly competitions for ribbons and prizes, giving farm life a genuine sense of progression and bragging rights.

Build Mode and Other Additions

The expansion adds a substantial batch of new Build and Buy items centered on cozy, rustic, farmhouse aesthetics. Alongside general décor, several expansion-specific objects define the gameplay:

• Animal Shed, which houses a single cow or llama and also functions as a new WooHoo spot
• Chicken Coop, holding up to eight chickens and chicks
• Garden Patch, which can grow four small crops, two medium crops, or one large crop at once
• Cross-stitch kits and hoops in small, medium, and large sizes for the new craft

Cottage Living also introduces a new Animal Enthusiast trait, a Lactose Intolerant trait for dietary variety, and the Country Caretaker aspiration, which guides players through the pack’s animal and farming content and rewards the Nature Conservationalist trait — improving animal relationships, crop yields, and even offering free grocery delivery and bill discounts while living in Henford-on-Bagley.

The Sims 4 Cottage Living – All New Build Mode Items

Cottage Living’s Build Mode additions lean firmly into cottagecore and farmhouse styling — think thatched roofing, rustic wood furniture, country kitchens, and dedicated farming structures like the animal shed and chicken coop.

The Sims 4 Cottage Living – All New CAS Items

The pack’s Create-a-Sim additions bring rustic, cozy, countryside-appropriate fashion for every age group, from toddlers to elders — cardigans, prairie dresses, wellington boots, and practical outdoor wear that suits a Sim spending their days in the garden or the henhouse just as easily as a picnic by the lake.

The Sims 4 Cottage Living Reviews & Player Feedback

The Sims 4: Cottage Living was met with strong reviews, landing around 80/100 on Metacritic — one of the higher scores of any Sims 4 expansion. Critics highlighted the charm of Henford-on-Bagley and praised the pack’s willingness to slow the game down and encourage a different pace of play. Rock Paper Shotgun called it their favorite Sims 4 expansion in a while, noting that it captures the same old-school silliness and mild chaos — like slugs beating you to your own strawberries — that has always defined the series’ best moments. Reviewers generally agreed that the animal care and cross-stitching systems, while simple, were satisfying additions that gave farm life real texture rather than feeling like a reskinned gardening update.

Is The Sims 4 Cottage Living Worth Buying?

For players drawn to slower, cozier gameplay — building a self-sufficient farmstead, bonding with cows and chickens, or losing themselves in a village where every neighbor has a story — Cottage Living stands out as one of the most atmospheric and wholesome expansions in The Sims 4 lineup. Its combination of a beautifully themed new world, genuinely engaging animal care, and a relaxed cottagecore aesthetic makes it an easy recommendation for anyone looking to bring a bit of countryside calm into their game.