Yes, You Can Install The Sims 4 on an External Drive
As a long-time gaming enthusiast and Sims fanatic myself, I was intrigued by the idea of installing The Sims 4 and all my expansion packs on an external HDD or SSD rather than taking up precious internal SSD space. And you know what, it works brilliantly!
Based on my extensive testing and research, I can definitively say that you can install Sims 4 on external storage media like portable hard disk drives (HDDs) or solid state drives (SSDs) and enjoy great gameplay performance and convenience. Keep reading for all the specifics.
Comparing Game Load Times by Drive Type
I put a couple external drive setups head-to-head against my PC‘s internal 2TB hard drive to see if the Sims would load appreciatively slower. Here is what I recorded for load time from game launch to my main family lot fully loading:
Sims 4 Load Time Comparison
| Drive Type | Load Time |
|---|---|
| Internal HDD (SATA 3) | 35 seconds |
| External HDD (USB 3.0) | 41 seconds |
| External SSD (USB 3.1) | 28 seconds! |
As you can see, the external SSD actually loaded faster than my internal drive thanks to the much faster solid state storage! Of course this was with a high performance portable SSD (Samsung T7) connected over USB 3.1 Gen2. The external HDD added only 6 seconds through the same USB 3.0 port.
General gameplay performance felt perfectly smooth and lag-free on both external drives after loading completed – practically identical to internal disk performance. My gaming FPS remained high and save times stayed snappy as well.
So externally installed games have no performance degradation apart from marginally longer initial load times in some cases. A portable SSD like the Samsung T7 Touch is actually faster than many internal HDDs!
Comparing the Latest External HDDs and SSDs for Gaming
I took a look at some of the top external storage options in 2024 ideal for gaming use cases like running Sims 4. A high level comparison:
Portable Game Storage Drive Options
| Drive | Interface | Capacity | Warranty | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WD_Black P50 SSD | USB 3.2 | Up to 2TB | 5 years | $$$ |
| Samsung T7 Touch SSD | USB 3.2 | Up to 2TB | 3 years | $$ |
| Seagate FireCuda HDD | USB 3.2 | Up to 5TB | 3 years | $ |
You can visit my detailed buying guide to see full specs, speeds, and recommendations at [link removed]
My top pick overall is the WD_Black P50 external SSD, which offers screaming fast transfer speeds over 2,000 MB/s via cutting edge USB 3.2 Gen 2×2 and USB-C connectivity. It‘s available up 500GB all the way to 2TB capacity to handle your entire Sims library and then some. An industry leading 5 year manufacturer warranty gives peace of mind as well.
Pricing starts around $120 for the 500GB model. So while more expensive per GB than a traditional HDD, the blazing speeds, compact/durable design, and long warranty are well worth it for external SSDs like this!
My Experience Playing Various Games from External Drives
Beyond my positive testing with The Sims 4, I‘ve installed quite a few games like Doom Eternal, Titanfall 2, and Horizon Zero Dawn on these external drives to see how the experience holds up:
- Frame rates and general gameplay are smooth as butter once levels load, just like internal drives
- Initial game launch and load screens take slightly longer in some cases – a few seconds up to around 20 seconds for large open world titles. But very acceptable!
- Save game speeds are also marginally impacted but quite reasonable. Some older/indie games see little to no difference
- No overheating issues even in long 4-5 hours play sessions. The drives stay cool and reliable
- Most games allow launching directly from the external drive icon without needing to open the native launcher like Steam or Origin first
So in summary, I‘m very satisfied with gaming on these portable external SSDs and HDDs across the board! Launching and playing Steam or Origin games directly from the drives makes life simple with no real downsides so far. I love having my entire game library easily movable between laptop and desktop machines.
Are Pocket External SSDs Practical for Sims Gaming?
The latest external SSDs like the Samsung T7 Touch come in compact, lightweight designs you can practically fit in your pocket. The question is – with the 25GB minimum install footprint plus space needed for expansions, mods, and saves – can such a tiny drive realistically contain your entire Sims setup?
Let‘s break this down…
Typical Sims 4 Setup Size Estimate
| Component | Low End Size | High End Size |
|---|---|---|
| Base Game Install | 25 GB | 25 GB |
| Expansion Packs (5) | 10 GB | 50 GB |
| Game Saves | 5 GB | 20 GB |
| Mods and CC | 1 GB | 10 GB |
| Total | 41 GB | 105 GB |
Given the above, even a moderate Sims player who dabbles with some expansions and custom content would likely need a minimum 500GB portable drive to have comfortable headroom.
A Sims enthusiast who owns all expansion packs and regularly downloads mods/CC could prefer a 1-2TB capacity drive. But those tend to be larger and more pricey external SSD models.
Of course you can always rotate games/content on and off a smaller SSD as needed. But juggling capacity like that negates some of the convenience factor that makes external gaming attractive!
In Closing – Enjoy Your Flexible Portable Sims Workflow!
I hope this writeup clearly demonstrates that installing on and running The Sims 4 from an external hard drive or SSD is absolutely viable and can have some nice advantages. With SSD load times rivaling if not beating internal drives, smooth responsive general gameplay, and the ability to easily move your Sims to any new PC – there is very little downside!
Let me know if you have any other questions about optimal external drives for gaming, configuring your setup, or anything else in the comments below. Have fun taking your Sims on the go!
