Compete in equestrian competitions for prestige and prize money!

Raising horses in The Sims 4 Horse Ranch can become a very profitable business if you’re willing to put the time and effort into training them for Sims 4 horse competitions. There are four different types of disciplines you and your horse can compete in at the Equestrian Centre, each with four division levels. Winning in the final division of all four competitions will allow you and your horse to compete in the Ultimate Horse Championship! Both horse and rider will need to have the skills it takes to bring home those award plaques and prize money. It’s a partnership, after all!

We’ll walk you through every competition and it’s entry requirements to help you go into the arena prepared!

Sims 4 Horse Competitions Guide

Training for Competitions

If you have an adult horse, you have a potential champion. Key word: potential. It will take a lot of work to train your horse to dominate the Sims 4 horse competitions. How do you do this? By working on your horse’s skills!

Horses have four skills and all four of them are directly tied to at least two out of the four competition disciplines. We have a more detailed guide on horse skills and how to build them here but here’s a quick breakdown.

• The Jumping skill is tied to Show Jumping and Endurance Racing. Build this skill by practicing on horse jumps with your horse.
• The Agility skill is tied to Barrel Racing and Western Pleasure. Build this skill by practicing on horse barrels with your horse.
• The Endurance skill is tied to Endurance Racing and Barrel Racing. Build this skill by going on trail rides around the world with your horse.
• The Temperament skill is tied to Show Jumping and Western Pleasure. Build this skill by simply interacting with your horse to build a bond with them.
• All Horse Skills are tied to the Ultimate Horse Championship, so you’ll need a well-rounded horse who’s dominated all other competition divisions in order to qualify for this prestigious competition.

Your horse is not the only one who needs skills in order to do well in the Sims 4 horse competitions. Make sure you’re not neglecting your Sim’s Horse Riding skill. The Horse Riding skill is needed for all Sims 4 horse competitions. Luckily, it shouldn’t be too hard to build the Horse Riding skill if you’ve been working on Agility, Endurance, or Jumping skills with your horse. Anything you do on horseback builds the Horse Riding skill, so you can work on your own skill simultaneously while training your horse.

Entering Sims 4 Horse Competitions

The Equestrian Centre is located in the New Appaloosa neighbourhood of Chestnut Ridge and is open every day from 7am to 7pm. It is not its own lot type; it’s a rabbithole building located in the world’s common space so travel to the nearby park in order to visit it.

Sims can purchase, rescue, train, and sell horses at the Equestrian Centre and watch Sims 4 horse competitions as a spectator. They can also enter competitions themselves if they have an adult horse to compete with. Keep in mind that foals and pregnant mares cannot enter Sims 4 horse competitions. Horses are limited to competing only once per day but Sims can compete multiple times a day using different horses if they have more than one horse.

Don’t feel like traveling to the Equestrian Centre every time you want to enter a competition? No problem! You can also enter Sims 4 horse competitions through any community board in Chestnut Ridge. Community boards can also be purchased and placed on your lot if you live outside Chestnut Ridge.

Competition Divisions and Requirements

To start with, you and your horse will only be able to enter in the beginner division of any of the four main Sims 4 horse competitions. In order to qualify for the next division, you’ll have to place in the previous division. This means you will need to come in 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in order to qualify for the next division up.

Each competition has its own entry fee, potential prize winnings, entry requirements, and recommended skill levels so we’re going to break them down for you.

Barrel Racing

Barrel Racing is a classic Western equestrian sport. Barrel Racers must display both Agility and Endurance in order to excel in this discipline.

Beginner

• Entry Requirement: None
• Entry Fee: $100
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $300
  • 2nd: $250
  • 3rd: $200
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (3)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Agility (3)
  • Endurance (2)

Intermediate

• Entry Requirement: Place in Beginner division Barrel Racing
• Entry Fee: $250
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $750
  • 2nd: $625
  • 3rd: $500
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (5)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Agility (5)
  • Endurance (3)

Expert

• Entry Requirement: Place in Intermediate division Barrel Racing
• Entry Fee: $500
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $1,500
  • 2nd: $1,250
  • 3rd: $1,000
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (7)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Agility (7)
  • Endurance (4)

Master

• Entry Requirement: Place in Expert division Barrel Racing
• Entry Fee: $1,000
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $3,000
  • 2nd: $2,500
  • 3rd: $2,000
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (9)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Agility (9)
  • Endurance (5)

Endurance Racing

Endurance Racing can encompass either Western or English style riding. Endurance racers must display both Endurance and Jumping skill in order to excel in this discipline.

Beginner

• Entry Requirement: None
• Entry Fee: $100
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $300
  • 2nd: $250
  • 3rd: $200
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (3)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Endurance (3)
  • Jumping (2)

Intermediate

• Entry Requirement: Place in Beginner division Endurance Racing
• Entry Fee: $250
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $750
  • 2nd: $625
  • 3rd: $500
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (5)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Endurance (5)
  • Jumping (3)

Expert

• Entry Requirement: Place in Intermediate division Endurance Racing
• Entry Fee: $500
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $1,500
  • 2nd: $1,250
  • 3rd: $1,000
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (7)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Endurance (7)
  • Jumping (4)

Master

• Entry Requirement: Place in Expert division Endurance Racing
• Entry Fee: $1,000
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $3,000
  • 2nd: $2,500
  • 3rd: $2,000
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (9)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Endurance (9)
  • Jumping (5)

Show Jumping

A traditional English style equestrian sport that places an emphasis on both Jumping skill and Temperament.

Beginner

• Entry Requirement: None
• Entry Fee: $100
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $300
  • 2nd: $250
  • 3rd: $200
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (3)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Jumping (3)
  • Temperament (2)

Intermediate

• Entry Requirement: Place in Beginner division Show Jumping
• Entry Fee: $250
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $750
  • 2nd: $625
  • 3rd: $500
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (5)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Jumping (5)
  • Temperament (3)

Expert

• Entry Requirement: Place in Intermediate division Show Jumping
• Entry Fee: $500
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $1,500
  • 2nd: $1,250
  • 3rd: $1,000
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (7)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Jumping (7)
  • Temperament (4)

Master

• Entry Requirement: Place in Expert division Show Jumping
• Entry Fee: $1,000
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $3,000
  • 2nd: $2,500
  • 3rd: $2,000
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (9)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Jumping (9)
  • Temperament (5)

Western Pleasure

This laid-back sport showcases both a horse’s Temperament and Agility. How chilled out can you and your horse look for the judges?

Beginner

• Entry Requirement: None
• Entry Fee: $100
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $300
  • 2nd: $250
  • 3rd: $200
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (3)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Temperament (3)
  • Agility (2)

Intermediate

• Entry Requirement: Place in Beginner division Western Pleasure
• Entry Fee: $250
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $750
  • 2nd: $625
  • 3rd: $500
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (5)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Temperament (5)
  • Agility (3)

Expert

• Entry Requirement: Place in Intermediate division Western Pleasure
• Entry Fee: $500
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $1,500
  • 2nd: $1,250
  • 3rd: $1,000
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (7)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Temperament (7)
  • Agility (4)

Master

• Entry Requirement: Place in Expert division Western Pleasure
• Entry Fee: $1,000
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $3,000
  • 2nd: $2,500
  • 3rd: $2,000
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (9)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Temperament (9)
  • Agility (5)

Ultimate Horse Championship

The Ultimate Horse Championship only has one division. Think of it as the final showdown for the best of the best. In order to quality for the Ultimate Horse Championship, you and your horse will need to place in the Master division of all four Sims 4 horse competitions. This requires your horse to have nearly mastered every single skill so it’s no easy feat just to enter.

• Entry Requirement: Place in Master division of all four equestrian disciplines
• Entry Fee: $2,000
• Prize Winnings:
  • 1st: $6,000
  • 2nd: $5,000
  • 3rd: $4,000
• Recommended Sim Skill: Horse Riding (10)
• Recommended Horse Skills:
  • Agility (10)
  • Endurance (10)
  • Jumping (10)
  • Temperament (10)

The entry fees and prize money are the same across all the Sims 4 horse competitions in their respective divisions so there’s no equestrian sport that’s more profitable than the others. All four sports are equally profitable so specialize in whichever one you find the most fun to do, or master them all to compete in the Ultimate Horse Championship.

Sims 4 Horse Competitions Rewards

In addition to prize money, your Sims will receive plaques and trophies to display in their home when they place in Sims 4 horse competitions. The plaques can be displayed on a ranch sign or on any wall.

There are bronze, silver, and gold plaques for each of the Sims 4 horse competitions at all division levels. If you win 1st place in the Beginner Show Jumping division and then place 1st again in the Intermediate Show Jumping division, you will receive the same gold Show Jumping plaque for both those wins.

The Ultimate Horse Championship rewards Sims with trophies if they place. There is a bronze, silver, and gold version of the trophy. You can see the Ultimate Horse Championship trophies below.

Loved our Sims 4 horse competitions guide? Want more adventure? Check out our Dreadhorse Cavern walkthrough!