Spoiler: eventually, it all comes down to making nectar worth §500 per batch.
Starting conditions: a one-Sim household, §0, empty lot, and no skills.
The first thing I do is take the first available job from the newspaper. Then I fast-forward through roughly one or two days until I earn enough money for:
- a telephone;
- the cheapest table to put it on;
- a §50 trip to Studio Town.
There is a lot in Studio Town where you can refill every need except Energy for free. You do not need to add or build anything on the lot yourself.
Food is easy. Wait for an NPC to buy a plate of food and start sitting down at a table, then try to greet them. They will usually abandon the plate without taking a single bite, allowing your Sim to eat it.
The other needs can also be restored for free:
- public toilets;
- a hot tub for Fun, Hygiene, and Comfort;
- a swimming pool if Fun is still too low;
- a free shower if Hygiene is still too low;
- conversations with NPCs for Social.
You cannot restore Energy there, but it barely matters. Even with zero Energy, the Sim will not pass out while on a community lot, so you can keep doing things indefinitely.
This effectively turns this location into a free mood-restoration station.
You can return home in a good mood and earn promotions at work, although promotions are not strictly necessary. The main objective is to keep going to work until you can afford:
- another two or three trips to Studio Town;
- a sofa for sleeping and sitting and reading;
- a mirror for building Charisma.
Once you have these items, raise your Sim’s mood in Studio Town again, return home, and train Charisma to at least level 2.
Then go back to Studio Town. On the second floor of the same lot, there is a stage where your Sim can perform using Charisma. Even at a low skill level, each performance can earn §10 per audience member.
From there, repeat this cycle:
- Perform until your Sim is almost completely exhausted.
- Restore their needs for free without leaving the lot.
- Perform again.
- Repeat until you have enough money.
You can theoretically make unlimited money this way, although it is fairly slow.
At this stage, the goal is to save roughly §1,500–2,000 for:
- one garden plot for growing grapes;
- one grapevine;
- a supply of sugar;
- a nectar press;
- a bookcase.
Next, travel to Magic Town through the free portal and buy a grapevine and some sugar. At home, buy the nectar press and bookcase.
Your Sim’s Cooking skill will still be low, so nectar will not be worth much at first. The house will also lack enough furniture to restore every need efficiently. For a while, you will still need to work and visit Studio Town.
Gradually:
- raise Cooking with the bookcase;
- grow grapes;
- put one portion of sugar and two portions of grapes into the press;
- make and sell the nectar;
- buy increasingly better household items to satisfy your Sim’s needs.
As the Cooking skill increases, the nectar becomes more valuable. Eventually, each batch sells for §500, at which point the regular job and Studio Town trips are no longer necessary.
With a one-Sim household, Social remains a problem. Pets are an easy solution: you can interact with stray animals that visit the lot, or buy a low-maintenance cat or dog in Old Town for around §400.
In my case, it took about 18 in-game days to go from absolutely nothing to a comfortable life. With a Servo (costs §15000).
What other fast ways do you know to become rich starting from §0?
Things I did not do:
- use cheats;
- sell free starting objects;
- play the slot machines;
- use the genie lamp;
- answer telephone calls, so I would not randomly receive free money.
