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Yes—Sims outside your active household can age, but whether they do depends on how their household is classified and on two separate Auto Age settings. To have only the household you are currently playing age, set Auto Age (Played Households) to Only Active Household and check Auto Age (Unplayed Households) separately.
What “not in world” means for aging
Being outside the household you are controlling does not, by itself, determine whether a Sim ages. The key distinction is whether their household is marked as played or unplayed, along with the aging options for each category. Inactive households are not automatically exempt from age progression.
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That distinction matters especially if you switch between families. A household you play in rotation may still be treated as a played household even when you are controlling someone else.
How to control aging for other households
- Check the aging options. Open Game Options > Gameplay and review Auto Age (Played Households) and Auto Age (Unplayed Households). They are separate controls.
- Choose the played-household behavior. Set Auto Age (Played Households) to Only Active Household if you want the household you are currently playing to age while other played households wait. The setting can also be turned off or allow all played households to age, depending on the options available in your game.
- Set unplayed-household aging independently. Decide whether unplayed households should age using Auto Age (Unplayed Households). Turning off played-household aging does not, by itself, settle what happens to unplayed households.
- Verify the family’s classification. Open Manage Households and check whether the household is marked played or unplayed. Community guidance for rotational play recommends keeping families you intend to play marked as played in My Households; otherwise, they may follow the unplayed-household setting.
EA Forums contributor CGrant56, identified on the forum as a “Seasoned Ace,” advises setting played-household Auto Age to “Only Active Household” when you want the Sims you play to age. This is community guidance, not an official EA policy statement. See the EA Forums discussion.
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Aging and Neighborhood Stories are different systems
Auto Age controls age progression. Neighborhood Stories governs some autonomous events, such as adoptions and career changes, and has its own options. Changing Neighborhood Stories does not substitute for setting played- and unplayed-household aging. The forum guidance describes controls for Neighborhood Stories at household or group level; see the EA Forums discussion.
What may continue when you switch households
Age progression is not the only activity that may continue for an inactive household. In an EA Forums player discussion, a player reports that a pregnancy continued to birth after they switched households. Treat that as reported behavior, not a guarantee for every save or configuration; the discussion does not establish that every inactive Sim or event progresses in the same way. See the EA Forums discussion.
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If the settings do not seem to match what happens
- Confirm the household’s played or unplayed status in Manage Households.
- Check both Auto Age settings in Game Options > Gameplay, not just the option for the household category you usually play.
- If you are investigating adoptions, career changes, or similar autonomous events rather than birthdays, check Neighborhood Stories separately.
These menu labels and behavior are based on EA Forums community guidance surfaced in October 2026. They are not independently verified against official patch documentation, and exact wording or behavior may change with updates.
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