Just count the quality units for: Comfort, Room score, Fun, Hunger, Bladder and Hygiene. Add 1 unit if the object provides skill building, add 1 unit if it provides group activity.

Accept to pay §100 per quality unit, and add to the cost if you want design. Eventually accept to add §100 if the object can serve more than 1 Sim at the time. Or opposite; if any object costs §600 provides you with less than 6 quality units, it's considered expensive.

If you want an arm chair giving comfort=4 and room=1 then a good price tag would be §500 (5 quality units).

If you want a desk adding to the room score with 2, accept a price tag of §200 (2 quality units).

Anything costing less than the PTS calculation is considered a good buy, anything costing more is expensive, but might be worth it because of the design or personal reasons.

Value depreciation
Initial depreciation: 20%
Daily depreciation: 1%
Depreciation limit: 40%

How much is an appropriate price tag on a sofa or a table? Without knowing it, you are fooled by impressive sales descriptions to pay for quality you will never get. Many creators and manufactories could need some guiding, too. Thanks to PTS it is a lot easier than you might think to compare the cost and quality. Just in time for Christmas shopping!

Most of us tend to think that a seating is a seating, and we are willing to pay more Simoleons if the colour appeal to us, or if the chair or sofa matches the coffee table. In such cases we pay for something we can not count, and that is something this article will not deal with. What I will focus on is how to figure if any furniture or other household item is expensive or not. When is it a good buy?

The cost is rarely a problem for well established households, but to anyone with a tight budget the price tag is essential. They will more likely check how much quality they get from their Simoleons, such as how much comfort a seating provides, or how much score is added to the room. With the easy-to-learn Price Tag System (PTS) you will always know what is a reasonable price.

Quality Units
The PTS is a calculation system which helps you to see whether the object's cost actually reflects the item's quality, based on a count on the different quality units. These units are:

• Room score (most kind of products)
• Comfort (seating and beds)
• Fun (games, bookcases, electronics)
• Hunger (refrigerators and some appliances)
• Bladder (toilets)
• Hygiene (sinks/tubs)
• Skills (bookcases, computers, mirrors)
• Group activity (various games etc)

According to PTS each unit is worth §100. Counting units and multiplying them by 100 gives you an idea what a standard cost would be for most objects. Unique design or art work will often add further to the cost. Note that design is often reflected by the room score quality unit, so make sure you don't pay twice for design!

But you will also learn that for some items PTS is not enough. Some of those are double beds versus single beds, which both might have the same quality score, but we all accept that a double bed costs more than one single bed. So, for any objects that will serve more than one Sim at the time, you should add at least §100 to the PTS price. This goes for beds, sofas, dining tables, hot tubs, games and more. In the examples below the extra §100 was not added.

You will find a very brief PTS explanation to the left on this page. To learn PTS all you need to remember is §100 per unit, just as easy as that. You will realize that the PTS system has already been used for many of the products currently in your local catalogue. The PTS will be used for all products available on Simmerville STUFF section, starting January 1st 2003. The mission is to inspire the entire SimNation community to use PTS, or a modified version here of, as a common standard for pricing furniture, walls, floors and other household items.

Value depreciation When selling any object after a few days, the customer will expect to get some of the cost refunded. Unfortunately many furniture and household items' value depreciation is tagged completely wrong. The PTS also gives guidelines on how the value should depreciate, as a creator you might be interesting in using the PTS standard for your products, as many already do. The standard says the initial depreciation should be 20% of the value (cost), then a daily loss of 1% or actually the number of quality units (minimum §1), and finally a depreciation limit of 40% of the original cost.  This would mean when someone buys your sofa at §1200, it's value will be reduced to §940 the next day (initial depreciation 20% of §1200= §240), then it will be lowered with §12 daily (1%), until it reaches the bottom limit which is §480. This will naturally depend on what kind of item you sell, as personal or very short lasting items like perfume or Christmas trees will hardly be worth much if the customer sells them after using them for a couple days.

Below you will find some examples on Maxis items' cost compared to PTS standard.
 

Example PTS cost love seats: 
In general a loveseat will provide comfort 5. This gives a total of 5 quality units, and a PTS recommended price of §500. Compared to this most loveseats are priced too low, especially because they can also serve as a bed.

Indoor-outdoor loveseat, price §160:
Comfort=3 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 3 units x §100 = §300.
Comment: This loveseat is as cheap as it looks.

Pinstripe Loveaseat (blue), price §360
Comfort=5 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 5 units x §100 = §500.
Comment: This loveseat must be on sale.

Luxuriare Loveaseat, price §875
Comfort=8 units, room=2 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 10 units x §100 = §1000.
Comment: This loveseat provides so much quality that it should cost more than 2-3 average paychecks.
 

Example PTS cost sofas (3 tiled): 
Just like loveseats, also 3-tiled sofas are often very low priced. You can use a sofa as a bed, and it gives seating for 3 Sims. Most sofas cost less than an average daily paycheck, which is extremely low. According to the PTS system a standard sofa would provide 5 quality units (comfort), giving an average price tag of §500.

Recycled Couch, price §180:
Comfort=2 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 2 units x §100 = §200.
Comment: This sofa is a good buy for a tight budget, especially as the energy level is a lot higher than the comfort level.

Pinstripe Sofa (blue), price §400
Comfort=5 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 5 units x §100 = §500.
Comment: This sofa must be on sale.

Dolce Tutti Frutti, price §1450
Comfort=9 units, room=3 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 12 units x §100 = §1200.
Comment: This sofa is expensive but §250 extra might be worth it's design.
 

Example PTS cost Counters: 
In general surfaces rarely provide much quality, meaning counters often cost more than the PTS would recommend. Besides one will normally need more than one counter piece, often making the final cost a total rip off. Because of the counter being the most essential part of any kitchen, the customer have accepted the high cost, and the counter designers often focus more on design rather than quality units. According to PTS pricing system an average counter piece will provide 1 quality unit (room score), giving a price of §100-200. You will hardly desire any counter this cheap.

NuMica Kitchen Counter, price §150:
0 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be anything less than §100 because §100 would be right if the counter provided 1 quality unit.
Comment: This counter is almost correctly priced, as you pay only §50 for the design.

Count Blanc Bathroom Counter, price §400
0 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be anything less than §100.
Comment: This counter is expensive, but yet it is a typical design product made to add a lot more than surface to any bath room.

"Barcelona" Outcurve Counter, price §800
Room=2 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 2 unit x §100 = §200.
Comment: This counter is very expensive, but yet it is a typical design product made to add a lot more than surface to any kitchen.
 

Example PTS cost End tables: 
In generl surfaces rarely provide much quality, meaning dining tables and counters often cost more than the PTS would recommend. And a counter item should cost more than §100 even if it doesn't add to the room score. Most such items are is not well suited End tables rarely provide much quality, so they are often quite cheap. According to PTS pricing system an average end table will provide 1 quality unit (room score), giving a price of §100-200. When some end tables cost more it is often due to design.

KinderStuff Nightstand, price §75:
Room=0 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be anything less than §100 because §100 would be right if the table provided 1 quality unit.
Comment: This end table is correctly priced.

Imperious Island end table, price §135
Room=0 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be anything less than §100.
Comment: This end table is just a little expensive, but the price is still reasonable.

Gold end table, price §1000
Room=1 unit.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 1 unit x §100 = §100.
Comment: This end table is decorated with gold, and those into gold would surely pay the extra §900, but to most Sims the price is a rip off.
 

Example PTS cost dining chairs: 
A regular dining chair provides 3-4 quality units (comfort), but some also adds to the room score. So let's say 4 units is an average good dining chair, giving a cost of §400.

Werkbunnst All Purpose Chair, price §80:
Comfort=2 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 2 units x §100 = §200.
Comment: This chair is a bestseller most likely because of it's low price.

Touch of Teak Dinette, price §200
Comfort=3 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 3 units x §100 = §300.
Comment: This is a good buy because you get a good rest while eating, and the cost makes this chair available to most homes, you will get much quality for your money.

Parisienne Dining chair, price §1200
Comfort=6 units, Room=3 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 9 units x §100 = §900.
Comment: Quite expensive. This chair makes a difference to any dining room, but is it worth paying extra §300 per chair?
 

Example PTS cost beds: 
In general beds are priced very low, or this product group is not well suited with the PTS calculation system. A regular single bed gives 7 quality units (comfort), which gives an acceptable PTS cost of §700. A double bed will serve one extra Sim, meaning a reasonable cost would be a little higher, perhaps you should add 1 or 2 units. There are very few beds matching these calculations, in other words most beds are cheap compared to the number of quality units that they provides.

Spartan Special, price §300:
Comfort=6 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 6 units x §100 = §600.
Comment: This is a very low priced bed, 50% off! But it takes many hours each night to get enough rest. It's the bed for starters, which of course reflects the nice price.

Napoleon Sleigh bed (double), price §1000
Comfort=8 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 8 units x §100 = §800.
Comment: Rather expensive.

Modern Mission bed (double), price §3000
Comfort=9 units, Room=3 units.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 12 units x §100 = §1200.
Comment: This bed is very expensive, the cost more than doubles the PTS standard. Must be meant for a wealthy end user.
 

Example PTS cost entertainment: 
Most entertainment items are expensive, but if you want hi-tech you will also have to pay for design and trends which the PTS is not calculating. A regular item for fun would provide you with about 4 quality units (3-4 fun, 1 group activity). This means a cost of §400 should not be considered expensive.

Monocrome TV, price §85
Fun=2 units, Group activity=1 unit.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 3 units x §100 = §300.
Comment: This is a very good buy as you get much entertainment for your Simoleons, but knowing the Sim's nature, you will need to spend hours watching films on this cheap TV to meet your needs - making it a good buy for short terms only.

Trottco 27" Color television B94U, price §500:
Fun=4 units, Group activity=1 unit.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 5 units x §100 = §500.
Comment: This product is correctly priced, according to PTS.

Zimantz Component HI-Fi Stereo, price §650
Fun=3 units, Group activity=1 unit.
Standard cost according to PTS should be 4 units x §100 = §400.
Comment: This stereo is quite expensive, but at least you don't need a table to put it on.