The only file that community guidance specifically names as routine cleanup is localthumbcache.package, and only after you have removed or replaced Mods or custom content (CC). Your saved games, Tray, and mod configuration files should be kept unless a specific step tells you otherwise. Everything else in the game’s user folder is a case-by-case decision, not a blanket cleanup.
Find the correct folder before you delete anything
The Sims 4 keeps two different kinds of files in two different places. The game installation holds program files. The user folder holds your personal data: Saves, Mods, Tray, screenshots, and videos. Almost every cleanup question concerns the user folder, and it is the one you should open first.
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On a typical Windows setup, the user folder is at:
Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4
That path is a default, not a guarantee. If you have moved your Documents folder, or your Documents folder is synced to cloud storage, the game may be writing somewhere else. Confirm the real location by finding your Saves folder inside the candidate folder and checking that its save files match the game you actually play. On Mac, the community instructions place the same folder inside the user’s Documents hierarchy, so the same check applies.
The one targeted cleanup file: localthumbcache.package
localthumbcache.package is a file the game creates itself. Its job is to store thumbnails for Mods and CC. The EA Forums community guide that covers this topic advises deleting it after you remove or replace Mods or CC, because the game then rebuilds it from the current contents of the Mods folder. The guide’s author puts it this way: “DO delete localthumbcache! You need the game to have a fresh look at the Mods folder.”
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- Requires The Sims 4 & all game updates. For PC, see minimum system requirements for the pack.
- Develop Parenting Skills – Level up your Sim’s parenting skills to satisfy their child’s needs and influence their behaviors. Gain new abilities through experience and choosing when to discipline bad actions, encourage good behavior, or just let kids be kids.
- Shape Your Sim’s Childhood – The decisions you make influence how your Sim parents and leave a lasting impact on their child’s future. Each choice shapes their personality, affects their traits, influences their family relationships, and guides their path into adulthood.
- Gather your Sim’s family to participate in new activities and spend quality time with each other. Sims of all ages can work together to complete a variety of school projects, express their creativity using construction blocks, or volunteer their time for good.
- Customize your Sims’ looks and their home with new family fashion and build items. Give the kids’ bedrooms extra personality, remodel the kitchen to feel homier, and let your Sims express their sporty or artistic sides with new outfits.
To do this safely:
- Close The Sims 4 completely, including any launcher window that may still be running it.
- Back up your Saves folder (see the backup section below).
- Open
Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4. - Delete
localthumbcache.package. Do not delete anything else in this step. - Launch the game and let it run. The file reappears on its own. Check that it has returned before assuming the step failed.
Set expectations accurately. Clearing this file refreshes how the game sees your Mods and CC, and it may clear some display glitches tied to them. It is not a performance boost, it does not free meaningful storage, and it does not repair every problem. If the issue is a broken mod, removing or replacing that mod is the fix, and the cache deletion is only the follow-up.
What to keep, and what not to touch
Use the table below as the decision reference. It covers the items that come up most often when people try to clear space or troubleshoot.
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- Requires The Sims 4 & all game updates. For PC, see minimum system requirements for the pack.
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| File or folder | Guidance | Why |
|---|---|---|
localthumbcache.package |
Delete after removing or replacing Mods or CC; the game recreates it. | The EA Forums community guide specifically recommends this step. |
| A known broken or outdated mod or CC item | Remove only after checking the creator’s uninstall instructions and backing up Saves. | Some mods need special removal steps, and removing some can leave a save unplayable. |
Saves |
Keep. Back up before updates or before adding or removing Mods or CC. | Saves hold your households, lots, and worlds. Outdated mods can corrupt them. |
Tray |
Keep if you want your locally saved households, lots, and rooms. | Forum support responses from EA identify Tray as user data, not cache. |
.cfg files inside Mods |
Do not delete unless the mod creator directs you to. | These files can store mod settings; deleting them can change how a mod behaves. |
| Other cache, log, or error files | Leave alone unless a trusted source names the specific file. | No complete, current list of safe-to-delete files was found from an official source for all versions and platforms. |
When you are choosing between two troubleshooting steps, compare three things: how much they risk your saved data, whether you can undo them, and whether they isolate Mods specifically. Moving a folder aside is more reversible than deleting it. Backing up Saves reduces the damage any experiment can cause.
Removing Mods and CC without damaging your saves
Outdated or broken mods are the most common reason players lose progress, not the cache file. They can crash the game, prevent saving, and damage lots, households, worlds, and saves. The EA Forums guide puts the risk directly: “Because some outdated (“broken”) mods can actually corrupt your save file, before you let the EA App/Origin update your game, back up your Saves folder.”
Rank #3
- Create unique sims: A variety of sims are yours to personalize, each with distinct appearances, dynamic personalities, and inspiring aspirations
- Build the perfect home: Construct the home of your, and their dreams by planning its layout, choosing furnishings, and altering the landscape and terrain
- Explore vibrant worlds: Travel between locations, discover amazing and distinctive neighborhoods, and encounter captivating venues
- Play with life: Control the rich and entertaining moments of your Sims’ lives from their relationships to their careers
Keep these points in mind when removing mods:
- Check the creator’s page or readme for uninstall instructions first. Complex mods can require extra steps beyond deleting their files.
- Be aware that removing some mods can leave an existing save unplayable, even if the game itself runs normally.
- Do not delete
.cfgfiles as a general tidy-up. They can hold settings the mod depends on. - Mod advice can change with game patches. Check the creator’s current notes and the game’s patch information before applying older instructions.
Back up Saves before any risky change
Back up the entire Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4 > Saves folder before game updates, before adding Mods or CC, and before any troubleshooting step that removes files. Copy the folder rather than moving it, so the working original stays in place. Good backup locations include a separate folder on your computer, your desktop, or a USB flash drive. The USB option is only a convenience for keeping a second copy; it is not part of the cache-clearing process itself.
Test mod problems without deleting anything
When you need to find out whether mods are causing a problem, use tests that can be reversed. Start by backing up Saves as described above.
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- We’ve designed the game to be a live service so that we can continually evolve The Sims 4 experience with exciting new features and content.
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Vanilla test: game without Mods
- Close the game.
- Open
Documents > Electronic Arts > The Sims 4. - Move the
Modsfolder out of the user folder to a temporary location, such as your desktop. Do not delete it. - Delete
localthumbcache.package. - Launch the game and test the problem.
- When finished, close the game, move the
Modsfolder back into the user folder, and deletelocalthumbcache.packageagain so the game rebuilds it from the restored Mods.
Clean-folder test: game with a fresh user folder
- Back up Saves.
- Close the game.
- Move the entire
The Sims 4folder aside rather than deleting it. The game will create a fresh folder on launch. - Launch the game and test the problem.
- After testing, close the game and delete the new folder it created.
- Copy back only the personal data you need: Saves, Tray, Mods, screenshots, and videos. Leave out anything you do not recognise.
Avoid saving while you are testing if there is any risk that the test will write to an important save with broken content loaded.
Narrow down a broken mod in batches
If the vanilla test works and the problem returns once Mods are back, the community guide describes a 50-50 method to isolate the culprit:
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- Customize Kids Rooms – Build kids bedrooms that are both expressive and full of style. Excite your Sim’s imagination with colorful new furniture and themed decorations ranging from space robots to fun flower flourishes.
- Battle with Monsters – Collect and trade monster cards featuring your Sim’s favorite magical creatures. Use cards in the electronic battle station to bring them to life and challenge friends to a monster duel that’s sure to excite.
- Play with Puppets – With the all-new puppet theater and a bit of imagination, Sims can tell a variety of whimsical stories to entertain an audience of family and friends.
- Kids Fashion – Trendy yet playful kids clothing and hairstyles let Sims showcase their individual style, or highlight obsession with the latest tween heartthrob.
- Run the game with the Mods folder empty to confirm the baseline.
- Put back half of your mods and test again.
- Keep the half that causes the problem and split it again. Repeat until you have one mod.
- Keep mods with dependencies in the same batch, so a mod that needs another is not tested without it.
- Delete
localthumbcache.packageafter each change to the Mods folder.
What this guidance does not establish
The most detailed guidance available on this topic is a community-written EA Forums guide, supported by forum responses. It is not a comprehensive, official file-by-file deletion list. It does not establish which other cache, crash, or log files are safe to remove across current game versions and platforms. Until you have confirmed a file’s role from a trusted source, leave it in place.
Specific mod instructions, game patch behavior, and folder locations may change over time. Recheck them against the current game version and the creator’s notes before acting on older advice.
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