# How to Install Sims 2 Mods Source: https://sims2mods.com/how-to-install Last updated: 2026-11-10 To install Sims 2 mods, unzip the download and put the `.package` file in a folder named `Downloads`: `Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2 Legacy\Downloads` for the Legacy Collection, or `Documents\EA Games\The Sims™ 2 Ultimate Collection\Downloads` for the Ultimate Collection. Create the folder if it is missing, start the game and enable custom content when asked. ## Where the Downloads folder is | Version | Downloads folder | | --- | --- | | Legacy Collection (Steam, EA app, Epic) | `Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2 Legacy\Downloads` | | Ultimate Collection | `Documents\EA Games\The Sims™ 2 Ultimate Collection\Downloads` | | Older disc installs (Windows Vista and later) | `Documents\EA Games\The Sims 2\Downloads` | | Mac Super Collection (path as listed on Mod The Sims) | `Library/Containers/com.aspyr.sims2.appstore/Data/Library/Application Support/Aspyr/The Sims 2/Downloads` | - The Ultimate Collection folder name contains the ™ sign. Open it in Explorer instead of typing it. - EA's help page places the Legacy user folder under `Documents\Electronic Arts\The Sims 2 Legacy`, while players and mod readmes use `EA Games`. The right one is the folder that holds your `Neighborhoods` folder. - Start the game once before you add anything, so it creates its user folder. Then make `Downloads` yourself, with a capital D. - If your Documents folder is synced by OneDrive, the creator of the Legacy Body Shop installer advises moving it out, because syncing can corrupt neighborhoods. ## Install a .package mod or CC file - Download from the creator's page. Extract the `.zip`, `.rar` or `.7z`; the game cannot read archives. - Read the readme. Some mods come in several versions, and you must pick one. - Copy the `.package` file into `Downloads`. A few subfolders by type, such as `Downloads\Mods` and `Downloads\Hair`, make problems easier to trace. - Start the game. When the custom content message appears, enable custom content. TS2 Extender's readme also tells you to enable custom content in the game's settings. - Test on a neighborhood you have backed up. The Sims 2 has no `Mods` folder, and `.package` files made for The Sims 3 or The Sims 4 do not work in it. ## Install a .sims2pack file Lots, Sims and some CC come as `.sims2pack` files, which need an installer. - Install the [Sims2Pack Clean Installer](https://modthesims.info/d/409950) from Mod The Sims. - Open the `.sims2pack` with it. It lists everything inside, so you can untick CC you do not want. - Install, then start the game. On the Legacy Collection the Clean Installer looks for the old documents folder. The [Body Shop Installer For Legacy Collection](https://modthesims.info/d/690428) by CroconawSims fixes that path and also makes Body Shop run. It is for Legacy only: its page warns it will break other versions. ## Install engine fixes (.asi and .dll files) Engine fixes do not go in `Downloads`. They go in the game's program folder. | Version | Program folder | | --- | --- | | Legacy, Steam | `steamapps\common\The Sims 2 Legacy Collection\EP9\TSBin` | | Legacy, EA app | `Program Files\EA Games\The Sims 2 Legacy Collection\EP9\TSBin` | | Ultimate Collection | `...\Fun with Pets\SP9\TSBin` | ### TS2 Extender - From the [Releases page](https://github.com/LazyDuchess/TS2-Extender/releases), download `TS2.Extender.1.0.0.LC.zip` for Legacy or `TS2.Extender.1.0.0.UC.zip` for Ultimate and disc. - Extract it. You get three folders: `TSBin`, `TSData` and `Documents`. - Copy `TSBin` and `TSData` into the game's `EP9` folder and let them overwrite. The readme's example is `...\steamapps\common\The Sims 2 Legacy Collection\EP9`. On Ultimate or disc with an ASI loader already installed, skip `TSBin\dsound.dll`. - Copy what is inside `Documents` into your Sims 2 user folder. - Start the game. A splash screen shows it loaded. You can also open the cheat box with `Ctrl`+`Shift`+`C` and type `ts2extender` to see the version. Some antivirus programs flag the `.asi` file. The readme says to add an exception for `TSBin`. ### DXVK Extract the [latest release](https://github.com/doitsujin/dxvk/releases), open its `x32` folder and copy the DLLs into `TSBin`. To undo it, delete those files. ## Mods not showing up? | Check | Fix | | --- | --- | | Wrong folder | The file must be in `Downloads` next to `Neighborhoods`, not in the install folder | | Still zipped | Extract it first | | Custom content is off | Enable it when the game asks at startup | | It is a `.sims2pack` | Use the Clean Installer | | Engine fix vanished | Steam's file check and the EA app's repair put the original files back. Install the fix again | | Two mods fight | Scan `Downloads` with [HCDU Plus](https://www.picknmixmods.com/Sims2/Notes/HcduPlus/HcduPlus.html) by Pick'N'Mix Mods | Next: the [best Sims 2 mods](/best-mods) to install, and [what works with the Legacy Collection](/legacy-collection-mods). The [main page](/) has a symptom picker for pink flashing and crashes. ## FAQ ### Where is the Mods folder in The Sims 2? There is none. The Sims 2 reads mods and CC from a folder named Downloads inside its user folder in Documents. You may have to create it. ### Is installing mods different on the Legacy Collection? The Downloads folder works the same way, but its path is different, engine fixes need their Legacy builds, and the Sims2Pack Clean Installer needs the path fix from the Legacy Body Shop installer. ### Do Sims 2 mods work on Mac? Package mods and CC work in the Mac Super Collection's Downloads folder. Engine fixes such as TS2 Extender and DXVK are Windows files for the TSBin folder. ### Why does the game warn me about custom content at startup? The game asks before it loads custom content. Choose to enable it. If your content still does not show after that, check the folder path.