Best computer specs for sims 4 and 3

Thank you so much! I’m in the US and my budget is around 1200.

@malanaab  That's more than enough money to run both games on ultra settings, with room to spare, whether you want a laptop or desktop.  Here's what you'd want to look for:

Graphics card:  An Nvidia RTX 3060 or 4050 is overkill but well within your budget, so I'd suggest one of these rather than the cheaper 1650 or 3050.  An RTX 4060 is more overkill and not necessary, but sometimes options with a 4060 are only marginally more expensive, so keep it in mind as well.  An AMD RX 6600 is overkill as well, with anything higher (6700, 7600, etc.) being more power than either game can use.

Processor:  Any sort-of-current Intel i5 or AMD Ryzen 5 (11th-gen and 5000-series, respectively) is sufficient to keep up with the graphics cards listed above.  I would avoid an i3 or Ryzen 3 for longevity reasons—they're fine now but may struggle with complex tasks in a few years.  Most of the 12th-gen and newer Intel processors have an issue loading Sims 3, but that can be fixed with a one-time patch, so don't cross off a system that's otherwise perfect for this reason alone.  AMD CPUs don't have this issue at present.

Memory:  Get 16 GB for multitasking and longevity, unless you're comfortable upgrading yourself.  (RAM is cheap and very easy to install even in a gaming laptop.)

Storage:  Since you want to play both games, 512 GB or more would be highly useful if not technically required.  You could get a full terabyte but won't need it unless you like to hoard giant piles of custom content AND backup saves.  Storage is also easy to upgrade, especially in a desktop, and not particularly expensive these says.

Screen:  If you're buying a laptop, or a monitor to go with a desktop, it's worth considering a higher resolution, e.g. 2560x1440, and perhaps a higher refresh rate, something above 100 Hz.  While you don't need either in the traditional sense, the higher res will make everything look more clear and sharp, and the higher refresh rate will make Sims 3 and everyday use feel more smooth.  Whether Sims 4 benefits from the higher refresh rate will depend on what GPU you get—a laptop 3060 is not going to run the game at a consistent 144 fps at 1440p but mostly could at 1080p, other than the game's own slowdowns.  Sims 3 has slowdowns too, but these graphics cards are above the level where it makes much difference.

With a desktop, you could of course upgrade the monitor later, so this is not a critical decision.

For desktops, these are examples of cheap good options that fit all the criteria above:

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/ibuypower-tracemesh-gaming-desktop-intel-core-i5-13400f-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-rtx-3060-8gb-500gb-nvme-black/6536552.p?skuId=6536552

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/thermaltake-graphite-360-gaming-desktop-amd-ryzen-5-5600x-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-rtx-3060-1tb-nvme-m-2-black/6488518.p?skuId=6488518

And this is more overkill and still well within your budget:

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/skytech-gaming-blaze-4-mini-gaming-pc-intel-core-i5-14400f-16gb-memory-nvidia-rtx-4060-1tb-nvme-ssd-black/6577926.p?skuId=6577926

These are hardly the only decent systems in this range, just the first ones I found with good build quality and a reasonable price for the configurations.  If you'd like me to find other options that have whatever details matter to you, just ask, for either laptops or desktops, or monitors for that matter.  And if you find something yourself and would like a second opinion, feel free to link it.

Thank you so much, this is so helpful! I was wondering if there is any significant drawback to buying a laptop vs a desktop. A laptop would likely suit me better as I could take notes in lectures etc. But will it change the game performance? I do intend to hook up a monitor to a laptop most of the time so I am not concerned about the screen size of the laptop, just the performance. Thank you again!

@malanaab  As far as Sims games go, the only practical difference between an AMD or Intel CPU is the Alder Lake issue with Sims 3 that I mentioned, and that can be patched.  So pick the platform you want for whatever reasons you want, and you'll be fine.

All else being equal, a desktop is better than a laptop because it can be repaired or upgraded more easily and because the hardware is faster, relatively speaking.  But if you have a use case for a laptop, then that's the better choice for you.  In your price range, you can still find hardware that's more than good enough for both games, so it's not like you'd be sacrificing any performance.

How would this laptop be? https://www.bestbuy.com/site/lmd?cmp=qrcesl&skuId=6570270&extStoreId=1028

@malanaab  That laptop is significant overkill for both Sims games.  It's also a high-quality machine with a beautiful screen, and portable, so if you like it and are fine with its price, it's a great choice.

If and when you install Sims 3, you'll need to manually limit your in-game framerates because the game itself doesn't have a working fps limiter.  Let me know if you need help with this process; you can post in the Sims 3 PC forum here:

https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-PC/bd-p/the-sims-3

Thank you so much!!! I bought the laptop since today is the sales last day and it is beautiful. Should I limit fps for sims 4 as well or thats not necessary?

Again thank you for everything I really appreciate it.

@malanaab  Sims 4 has a built-in fps limit of 200, set in Options.ini.  It's called frameratelimit and you can adjust it if you like, but 200 is a reasonable limit overall.  You might want to set a lower limit if your laptop is running a bit hot for your taste, maybe 120 or 144 fps, but it's not necessary.

And congratulations on the new laptop.  I hope it serves you well.