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There once was a time of plenty. A time when you could get The Sims 2 for free on Origin. A time we still speak of as the age of glory…
Ok, I’ll stop.
But in case you didn’t know, those days are over. As of October 2018, free copies of the Sims 2 are no longer available on Origin – even if you beg and plead and provide proof of purchase. See this forum post on the official forums. However, it’s not impossible to get your hands on the best game ever.
So, how can you buy The Sims 2? The best way is to purchase a used copy of the disc version on Amazon or Ebay. Check both sites for the best price, as it varies depending on what’s currently available. For the best deal, look for bundled editions like Double Deluxe and then purchase other must-have expansions separately.
Note: If you buy the game through one of the links on this page, I’ll get a few cents of commission at no additional cost to you – which helps me with the cost of running this website. Thank you!
Buy it on Amazon
Amazon has a ton of copies available for dirt-cheap. Click here to view the listings.
If at first glance, they look really expensive, that’s because the brand new ones are listed first. Scroll down to the “More Buying Choices” section under the expensive price and you’ll see hundreds of new and used offers for just a few bucks.
You’ll find everything available including the base game, various bundles, all expansion packs, and all the stuff packs.
Buy it on Ebay
Ebay is another good place to find used copies of The Sims 2 – and often at a lower price than on Amazon too. Click here to view the listings.
Ebay is also great for finding “lots” where a person sells multiple expansion packs or stuff packs for a single price. This means you only have to pay shipping once for several different discs.
Unfortunately, Ebay does have some scammers trying to sell illegal digital copies of the game. If the listing says the game is a download, it’s not real or it’s illegal. There is no legal way to download The Sims 2. The only option is to buy an actual physical disc version.
WARNING: DO NOT BUY THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION ON EBAY!!!
There are numerous listings for The Ultimate Collection on Ebay and they are dirt cheap – usually just a few dollars. When you dig deeper, you find out these are actual Origin accounts being sold with the Ultimate Collection on them. After you pay, you’ll be given a username and password for an Origin account. Many of these are stolen accounts.
Origin WILL figure out this account was stolen and it will be revoked. You will lose your money and the access to the game. Even if the account wasn’t stolen, it’s still against the Terms of Service to sell an account, and will eventually be revoked.
And finally, you can also be scammed by the seller changing the password after selling you the account and re-selling it again. Or even claiming to Origin that YOU hacked the account and getting it back. This is NEVER legit. DO NOT BUY THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION ON EBAY. Only buy the physical disc from reputable sellers who include the CD key and have a picture of the product.
Tip: The Sims 2 is an old game. A CD Key can be used multiple times and doesn’t have to be registered online – unlike modern games. As long as you have a CD key and a disc, you’re good!
Tips for Buying The Sims 2 Online
In my opinion, there’s really no good reason to buy a brand new version unless you just want to and have the extra money to spend. Otherwise, a used copy will work fine. Here are some tips to help you find the best deal without getting ripped off:
- Make sure the disc you buy includes the CD key. If you aren’t sure, ask the seller before you buy. A disc alone without a CD key won’t do you any good. You have to enter the key to install the game on your computer.
- Buy Bundles to get more for your money. There were several Sims 2 bundles released that include expansions and/or stuff packs with the base game. Double Deluxe, University Life Collection and Best of Business Collection are some examples.
- Don’t buy “downloads” of The Sims 2. Digital versions do not exist. Look for good quality used discs.
And that’s all there is to it, folks. If you still want this game, it’s totally possible to get your hands on it. Just be safe, have some common sense, and don’t be afraid to compare prices. I have seen the base game for as little as $0.99 on Ebay before.
This doesnt make any sense due to the codes only being able to be used once? if any one has a way aroun d that lmk cuz i have the CD and the codes but natta . says ites been used
You don’t redeem Sims 2 codes via Origin or through any online service. They are only used to install the game. You can use them as many times as you want. That’s how it worked before the introduction of “launchers.” If you registered your game online in any way (there was a short time you could do it in Origin), then that’s the only way I can think of that would result in that.
Hi Cindy
If you know of anyone who wants the Sims2 I thought I should let you know I will be looking to sell my complete disc collection.
Most discs were used to install and haven’t left their boxes since as they weren’t the disc I needed to play the game. I am also 90% sure they all have their original manuals but will be checking that out before selling them of course.
Just thought this might be helpful.
Hi Nicole, are you still selling?
Thanks for the article. Lately I have a renewed interest in the sims 2. I used to play Sims 2 + pets, but both belong to my sis. I totally would have downloaded the sims 2 ultimate collection illegally (with risk of viruses) if it weren’t for your article. Buying is safer and I at least support a vendor.
I didn’t buy them via Amazon or eBay though. I found out that, even with the dutch sites, the shipping costs would make it more expensive than sims 4 + all expansions. If you live in the Netherlands I recommend going to http://www.retrogameking.com. I scored 5/8 expansion packs and 5/9 stuff packs that way. Not a bad score for an old game. And there is always Marktplaats.
Thanks for sharing that info!
Very informative. Thanks!
Hi Cindy,
I would like to download Sims 2 Ultimate Collection, but I am afraid to get a virus. Do you know of any website that will allow me to download this virus free? I used to play this game all the time 15 years ago, and I really miss it a lot lately. It was one of the favorite games. I am willing to buy it, but I cannot find physical copies anywhere; and I do not think it’s wise to purchase an origin account. Please help me. Thank you.
You can easily find the physical copies on Ebay for dirt cheap – not the Origin version. If you want to download it, I can’t say. I have never tried any of those sites, but you might ask in our Discord server.
Hi Cindy,
I have a hard copy of my sims2 double deluxe … unfortunately, my code is no longer any good. I know I registered it but EA help rep told me its no good. They told me to repurchase my game. It is so silly, I have a disk and I can not play my game. So bummed. I have no clue what to do, I think my disk is garbage now.
Hi! You don’t register The Sims 2 online if you have the disc. You just install it, enter the product key when prompted, and play the game. If you’re trying to enter the code into Origin, it won’t work because Origin does not support The Sims 2. But the code will work to install the game on your computer the old-fashioned way.
Hi,
I have the Sims 2 Double Deluxe disc, and I have been trying to install it on my windows 10 laptop. However, it gets to about 50%, and I am met with an error code that says it cannot install it. Are there any solutions for this ?
I really loved this version of Sims. I still have my discs but I don’t have a machine to run them on anymore. Are there instructions to get them to run on a Windows 10 Nadine?
See my tutorial here: https://pleasantsims.com/sims-2-windows-10/
May be a stupid question here haha, but I’ve been looking on sites such as Amazon and Ebay and have not been able to find anyone selling multiple packs for anything less than $60. I’m trying to save money, as we all are haha. So, I wanted to ask if you may know of any links at all where people are selling multiple packs/bundles for cheap?
Ebay is probably the best you’ll get. However, I consider Sims 2 abandonware and if you Google it, you can find a place to download the Ultimate Collection for free. Hope that helps!
I got the Ultimate Collection from Origin about 2 years ago. I sent them a message on a chat asking if they were willing to give it for free and the guy who I was chatting with just wanted for me to show him if I have at least one CD with Sims 2 ( it could be a stuff pack, base game, doesn’t matter). Of course it only works if you already have at least one CD but for me it was great since I’ve never even had the base game ( I always borrowed from a friend when I wanted to install the game), just a few expansion packs.
Hi Joanna! Unfortunately, that is no longer possible. They discontinued this practice in 2018. https://forums.thesims.com/en_US/discussion/949386/ending-code-support-for-the-sims-2-ultimate-collection#latest
Hey! Thank you for this article! I have a question, I live outside America and I want to play sims 2 on my Mac, where can I get it? Not a disk but a download version I can buy from?
Thank you!
I can’t tell if this seller is legit or not. can someone help me out please?
Hi Riley! I removed the link from your comment, but I looked and I would NOT recommend buying this. It’s an Origin account with the game on it. See the article above for reasons why I do not recommend this. Thanks for stopping by!
my computer does not have a cd disc thing for me to put a cd on….what do i do now?
Unfortunately, there’s not really any other option. There’s no way to get a legal copy of the game electronically at this time. If you have a Mac, I believe you can get the Super Collection – but it doesn’t include all the expansion packs. If you REALLY want to play and have the extra cash, you can always get a cheap external DVD drive like this one: https://amzn.to/2QAIVhd
And thanks for bringing this up! It’s a good point and I’ll add this information to the post soon.
Hi Cindy, I kind of ran into the same problem as Danasia but while I was looking came across an interesting listing on Amazon. There is a listing for The Sims 2: Double Deluxe that they claim to have for sale both as a disk and as a download. I was under the impression that the Origin version was the only downloadable version of the game and that it couldn’t be sold because its attached to an Origin account and should be avoided at all costs.
Is it the same thing or did someone copy a Double Deluxe disc? that can’t be legal right?
You are right. There is no legal downloadable version of Double Deluxe right now. I don’t know how they could advertise that, but I would avoid it. The only way to legally download the game is on Mac (The Super Collection), but it does not include all expansion packs.
Ahh, thanks for clarifying that for me. I ended up just buying a disk and an external disk drive. It’s supposed to be here tomorrow. Thanks again!
You can buy an external disc drive for your computer. My laptop doesn’t have a disc drive either so I am going to have to do the same thing.
Ah! You can actually buy an “external cd drive” (something along those words) from Amazon or other local stores. They’re about $20. ☺️
If you purchase a CD from ebay etc., can you use that code on origin?
No, there’s no way to redeem the Sims 2 on Origin anymore. You’ll have to use the discs. 🙂
Thank you with all my heart! My sim dreams are coming true. I idiotically bought sims 3 and 4 and neither worked on my computer because it’s outdated! But this works like a charm. Thank you so much, I appreciate that you took your time to help others by writing this.
-Isabelle
Glad I could help, Isabelle! Happy Simming!
Hi Cindy, this might be helpful to folks in the UK. I had the original base game CD but was able to get all the expansion and stuff packs from a company called CEX which sells second hand electronics, CD, DVD Games etc. I had a look in person in a few of the shops to get a good number of the packs and then was able to get the remainder online:
https://uk.webuy.com/search?stext=sims%202%20pc
It’s a great resource for sim stuff and most of the expansion packs were only 50p to £2 each.
I’m loving all your videos, you’ve made me fall in love with the game again after many years of not playing it. Thanks so much!
Hi Lorraine! Thank you for sharing! That is very good information for our UK readers!
Wow, these blog posts are so well written I actually had to read it even though I don’t have to since these infos aren’t new to me. I hope they help a lot of people though. 🙂
Thank you! 🙂 I love blogging and I’m gonna be spending more time on it from now on .
Yikes. I bought UC off of Ebay. Oh well, if they try claiming I hacked I have email proof 🙂 also I don’t know if it’s just me but the digital version runs faster than the disc version
You might be okay Abby. I guess it just depends on the seller. For future readers, I wouldn’t take the chance. They can lock you out of those accounts at any time. The good news is if you do lose access, you will at least still have all your game content on your computer. Good luck!
When you say you still have the game content on the computer, how do you use it without loging into origin?
Or do I need to buy a hard copy and the content will come up?
Loving the blog posts, Cindy!!
I remember seeing a post on Tumblr back in 2013/2014 that was letting people know Origin was giving it away for free! Ugh what a happy day that was.
Thanks Jacob!! That was actually when I really got back into the Sims 2 – when I got the UC for free on Origin. Such a happy day! I wish they would bring it back.
wait they dont have sims 2 on origin no more?
No, it was only available to purchase through October 2018.
Yeah, the WELOVETHESIMS code was great… interestingly Origin decided to update the game sometime between then and now… just to add in more DRM. Before you could launch it without the origin client once you installed it from origin, now the client is mandatory.
It really is such a shame that EA has abandoned this great game.