With a cozy, content-rich, and incredibly wholesome farming life sim experience, Stardew Valley has won over many fans and a thriving modding community working hard on big and small mods. Few games can claim to have such a vibrant modding community, and players with a bit of modding experience can choose from a vast library of mods designed to breathe new life into Stardew Valley.

Although significant content updates are few and far between these days, Stardew Valley is still getting a 1.6 update with features designed to make things much easier for the modding community. However, while plans are made to keep the game evergreen with mods for years to come, players on PC can dive in right now and start checking out some of the modding community’s best offerings.

8 SMAPI And Content Patcher

SMAPI and Content Patcher by modder Pathoschild are essential to the Stardew Valley modding experience. These mods serve as mod loaders and allow players to mod in custom content packs, including the rest of the mods on this list. In fact, most mods players can find for Stardew Valley need SMAPI and Content Patcher. These are the basic bread-and-butter mods players need to install first to ensure that anything else they actually works.

To install SMAPI, use the link above to the SMAPI files, then unzip and run the installer, following the on-screen instructions. The process isn’t too tricky overall, but players should ensure the installer has the correct file path. Installing SMAPI creates a dedicated mods folder for players to put their mods in.

Players should also back up their game files in a safe location before starting to mod Stardew Valley.

To install Content Patcher, simply the Content Patcher files, unzip the folder, and put it inside the mods folder created by SMAPI. Players can and install most Stardew Valley mods this way.

7 Stardew Valley Expanded

Stardew Valley Expanded, or SVE, is a fan-made content expansion that adds an impressive amount of content to the base Stardew Valley experience. Made by modder FlashShifter, SVE adds new NPC characters, including potential romantic partners, and dozens of new character events, questlines, and locations. On top of that, SVE also reimagines and reinvents areas from the base game and introduces a revamped world map. Players can also participate in the expanded Joja storyline, which involves siding with the nefarious Joja Corporation as it attempts to take over the valley.

Although SVE’s size and scale are impressive, it’s also very faithful to the base game experience, and any new content seamlessly fits into the game. It’s arguably the closest thing Stardew Valley has to an expansion pack and an excellent choice for players who’ve seen everything the unmodded game has to offer.

Unfortunately, installing Stardew Valley Expanded is a little tricky and requires nine additional mods to work, including SMAPI and Content Patcher. However, once players have set up a mods folder, it’s a simple process of ing and unzipping the files and dragging and dropping them into the folder. The official install guide is also easy to follow.

Players can also two new fan-made farm maps, including Grandpa’s Farm, for SVE.

6 NPC Map Locations

Mods like SVE are great for adding tons of new content to Stardew Valley, but players shouldn’t overlook mods that add fundamental quality-of-life changes, such as the NPC Map Locations mod. Created by the modder Bouhm, this mod adds icons on the in-game map to show where the player and each NPC are currently located. It’s arguably so basic that it seems odd that the base game doesn’t feature it.

Villagers in the unmodded version of Stardew Valley follow a dizzying array of daily schedules and timetables, making it tricky for players to find a new friend or steady romantic partner. NPC Map Locations doesn’t change that, but it allows players to figure out where their favorite Stardew Valley marriage candidates are at any time, making it easier to spark conversations and give gifts to raise friendship levels.

To install NPC Map Locations, and unzip the file and place the folder inside the mods folder. As a neat bonus, this mod also works well with SVE.

5 The Love Of Cooking

In the base game, players can cook all 74 meals in Stardew Valley if they have the right ingredients. It’s functional but relatively basic by design. However, cooking becomes a much more involved process with The Love of Cooking mod. Made by modder Bblueberry, this mod introduces an old family cookbook that players receive shortly after starting a new game. This implements a newer, more immersive cooking menu that allows players to pick and place ingredients to cook meals.

There are also new recipes, new cooking skills that players can level up to become a master chef, and even a few new crops to cook with. There are tons of smaller improvements too, including frying pan upgrades and rebalanced meal stats. Overall, this is an excellent choice for aspiring Stardew Valley chefs who felt the base game lacked a little spice.

To install The Love of Cooking, simply and unzip the file, and place the folder inside the mods folder. This mod also requires Json Assets by modder spacechase0, although it’s worth noting that players will have already installed this if they’ve decided to get SVE.

4 Tractor Mod

Pathoschild’s Tractor Mod allows players to manage their fields with less backbreaking manual labor that can eat up entire in-game days. This mod is exactly as described, adding a customizable tractor that players can purchase from Robin, the local carpenter. With the new tractor, players can select tools to clear debris from their fields, till the land, fertilize the soil, plant, water, and harvest crops. Essentially, anything players can do by hand using their tools, the tractor can do over a wider area in much less time.

Players can install the Tractor Mod the same way as other mods: unzipping the file and placing it inside the mods folder. This should make it much easier for players to harvest bundles of Stardew Valley’s most valuable crops in no time.

3 Skip Fishing Minigame

Turning the tables on The Love of Cooking mod is the Skip Fishing Minigame mod by modder Dewmods, which removes an in-game mechanic. This mod removes Stardew Valley’s notoriously contentious fishing minigame and instead ensures that players catch every fish they hook as soon as they cast their lines into the water. The mod changes nothing else; players still receive experience and can level up their Fishing skills.

This might seem a little like cheating, especially since it makes catching Stardew Valley’s Legendary Fish much easier, but for some players, it’s also a worthy trade for convenience. Players can install it the same way as other mods.

Players who’d like a better balance can try a Stardew Valley mod that lets players see fish currently swimming near them.

2 Canon-Friendly Dialogue Expansion

Stardew Valley’s villagers are a talkative lot, but after a few seasons, players may begin to notice that their dialogue tends to repeat. The Canon-Friendly Dialogue Expansion mod by Gizzymo adds over 2000 lines of dialogue for all of the characters in the game. It’s an excellent mod for players who want to give Stardew Valley’s locals a bit more to say, improving the sense of being immersed in life in a rural town.

According to Gizzymo, the new dialogue was written to be as close to the original game’s style as possible; much like SVE, players will find new dialogue fits the in-game canon rather than stomping all over it. Players can install it the same way as other mods listed here.

1 Babies Take After Spouse Plus New Toddler Hair and Clothes

This adorable mod by modder Lakoria makes several neat cosmetic changes that ensure any babies in the player’s household have eyes and hair that match the player’s in-game spouse. Players who marry Emily will wind up with children who inherit her bright blue hair, while players who marry Sebastian will have children with dark hair. This doesn’t affect gameplay, but it’s very cute and boosts players' immersion.

Players can install it by dragging and dropping the files into their mods folder and using the included configuration file to tweak their children’s appearances. It even includes custom appearances for players who marry the new bachelors and bachelorettes added in Stardew Valley Expanded.

Installing mods can give players a good reason to restart their Stardew Valley farms, and the ones listed above are all great examples of the creativity and ambition of the Stardew Valley modding community.

Once players have the modding bug, it’s easy enough for them to explore Nexus Mods to find their own favorite Stardew Valley mods, whether it’s anime-style character portraits, quality-of-life improvements, or even modding toolkits designed to help players make their own stuff.

Source: SMAPI, Content Patcher, Stardew Valley Expanded, NPC Map Locations, The Love of Cooking, Json Assets, Tractor Mod, Skip Fishing Minigame, Canon-Friendly Dialogue Expansion, Babies Take After Spouse Plus New Toddler Hair and Clothes