Summary
One of the largest additions toFallout 4was settlement building. Players can take the assortment of junk they find in the wasteland and turn it into buildings, turrets, generators, and much more. Bethesda went as far as to makean entire factionin the story revolve around this mechanic. However, many players have a hard time getting into settlement building due to some unintuitive systems and features. Fortunately, the talented and passionate modding community ofFallout 4has created some fantastic mods that make settlement building much more intuitive and enjoyable. From simple quality-of-life improvements to fundamental overhauls,many fantasticFallout 4mods make settlement building so much better.
Modding always comes with its risks, and players should read the fine print for the mods they download before deciding to implement them. Thankfully, given the amount of untapped potential in this mechanic, it’s easy to see why some mods can do a great job of letting players really go to town (no pun intended) on every settlement, decking it out in the most efficient manner so that it attracts more settlers and becomes a notable place in the vast expanse of the Commonwealth.
Updated June 12, 2025 by Rhenn Taguiam:While Fallout 5 is still years away, fans of the acclaimed Bethesda sci-fi franchise might prefer a more solo experience away from the chaotic wilderness of Fallout 76. In this case, Fallout 4 is the perfect way for players to unwind in an apocalyptic wasteland, especially with their self-made player Settlements.
While Fallout 4 already has quite the plethora of Settlement offerings in the base game, mods can make the prospect of Settlements all the more attractive - especially when some of them give a new aged look to items, provide more offerings across themes, rearrange the overall layout of the Workshop, and even provides players the opportunity to create buildable rafts - like pirates!
1The Cozy Scavver
Downloads: 48,273
WhileFallout 4certainly nailed the atompunk aesthetic consistent with the series, players whocreate Settlementswithin the game might not necessarily want to focus too much on this visual theme. For players who want their playthroughs to be focused more on survival instead of flair,The Cozy Scavveris perfect for their preference.
With the Cozy Scavver, the game now adds not just 100+ furniture items but also 109 buildings - all of which are comprised of brand-new models, retextures, prefabs, and mashups. A key element present across all of these new items is their “used” feel, making every item feel like they’ve been a hand-me-down from a civilization that still functioned normally.
2Thematic And Practical
Downloads: 287,730
Settlements are customizable with almost any item inFallout 4, making them highly personalized based on the player’s needs. Unfortunately, players at some point might realize there are not enough items in the game to get their Settlements to look “precisely” the way they prefer - which is whereThematic and Practicalcomes in.
At its core, this mod provides quite a lot of constructible objects for Settlements - all of which follow design conventions based on different themes. The Workshop Menu will now have different categories dedicated to certain themes, letting players quickly sift through their options and find something that best fits their needs. Some modes include the Trading Emporium, which gives more options to manage traveling caravan traders, and Brotherhood which enables the construction of Brotherhood of Steel buildings from scratch.
3Workshop Rearranged
Downloads: 283,456
Players ofFallout 4who are currently enjoying the vanilla Workshop might slowly realize the system’s rather generic nature - especially when it comes to its lineup of constructible objects and its overall arrangement. In the context of today’s more modern base-building games,Fallout 4’s Workshopmight be behind the UX/UI department - and this is something thatWorkshop Rearrangedcan specifically help out with.
Unlike other Workshop modifications inFallout 4, Workshop Rearranged attempts to be a “lore-friendly” addition to the game, complete with thousands of new objects with appropriate menu icons, snap-points, collisions, and navmeshes. An overhauled snapping system will enable more combinations with existing items, while build costs and scraps are rebuilt to become more realistic. For additional immersion, building specific objects may now require related Perks.
4Buildable Rafts
Downloads: 2,435
Fans who loved post-apocalyptic films will likely rememberWaterworldfor its unique premise - where an Earth engulfed in pure sea meant civilization had to thrive in sea-faring colonies.Fallout 4players can replicate a similar experience withBuildable Rafts, with the game giving them the opportunity to create different kinds of floating platformsfor their Settlements and Settlers.
While this might seem to only extend the viability of usable land beyond the ocean, players with more creative minds can begin creating functional rafts that transform into ships - especially pirate ships complete with flags - they can use to travel around the game. The mod also features a new floating settlement between Nahant and Libertalia to serve as an inspiration for players.
5The Rebuild Collection
Downloads: 71,702
WhenFallout 4players start to improve upon their chosen Settlement, chances are they’d want the “new” version to look clean and polished instead of being the next-best-thing-before-rundown. Thanks toThe Rebuild Collection, this becomes possible. With this Settlement-cleaning mod, players now have the opportunity to remove unsavory parts of the landscape whenever they start rebuilding their structures.
In a technical sense, repairs will now auto-remove trash, brambles, vines, rubble, and sticks out of the way to make structures look as good as new. While not necessarily the most groundbreaking Settlement mod, locations likethe Castlebecome much more ready for occupancy upon being cleaned. This should allow players to have a more complete “look” at the bare form of their Settlement before adding new components.
6Farming Resources
Downloads: 93,887
WhileDogmeat is the player’s quintessential companion inFallout 4,the game established that other animals can have survived the cataclysmic nuclear disaster that had befallen the region. By the time players start making their Settlements, seeing a little semblance of other lifeforms can certainly spice up their visuals, makingFarming Resourcesquite the delightful addition to players.
When installed, Farming Resources allows players to purchase livestock in the Workshop menu.
These include Chickens and Rabbits that stay within a particular area, Brahmin and Brahmiluff Shorthorn and Longhorns, Gazelles, Cats, and Guard Dogs. All animals, save for Cats and Dogs, can be harvested for hide and meat, while cats and guard dogs can open doors. Whenever a Guard Dog is purchased, they also come with unique gear and skins. Thanks to this mod, players can have a livelier version of paradise in their Settlement as they can see the periodic movement of these animals.
7Craftable Greebles
Downloads: 22,129
Similar to other Bethesda titles where players can collect items as they explore the game,Fallout 4has its fair share of Junkthat players can usually leave alone or carry with them in exchange for spare cash. However, when players can create Settlements, they might notice that their structures may lack a particular kind of pizzazz that makes them seem extremely lifeless - this is whereCraftable Greeblescomes in.
When installed, Craftable Greebles transforms some static items from the base game and otherFallout 4mods into craftable decorations. Whereas they are generally background elements that can’t be interacted with in the base game, Craftable Greebles allows players to create them and use them to decorate their structures - whether they want to pursue an underground lab aesthetic or some other theme. When used properly, Craftable Greebles can allow players to recreate their versions ofFallout 4bases ordinarily exclusive to particular characters they can interact with.
8Real Name Settlers
Downloads: 224,732
When players invest in the settlements they’re trying to make more habitable, it’s always nice to see more settlers come in to help build a community. However, a single round of exploration is all it takes to realize that these NPCs are nothing more than soulless husks made to give the illusion of life in an area that remains fairly bland.
While it’s not a major change, having settlers with fixed names is a great way to build a connection with the community, no matter how minor it may be. It’s a pretty simple mod, but one that can potentially aid the immersion of a player who wants to feel like their maintenance of settlements is reaping a meaningful reward.
9Building Budget Extender
Downloads: 93,893
For balancing purposes, players can’t go all-out while developing every settlement to make sure that people live in the lap of luxury. There’s a set budget for each settlement that players must adhere to. It can be rather limiting but makes sense in a functional sort of way, but this hasn’t stopped players from trying to get rid of it altogether.
The Building Budget Extender mod does precisely what is stated and lets players go bonkers when developing settlements. It may not be the most realistic change around, but it’ll surely get the creative juices flowing for players who love interacting with this system and want to show off their artistic zeal instead of trying to keep things functional all the time.
10This Settlement Does Not Need Your Help
Downloads: 70,510
Despite all the improvements that players make to a settlement’s defense, there’s always a chance that a raid will cause serious damage if players don’t intervene. It’s one of the game’s more frustrating mechanics that force players to either stop what they’re doing and fast travel to stage a defense or ignore the attack and hope that the place holds up without suffering too much damage.
With this mod, players don’t have to worry about something so petty all the time anymore. As long as they invest the time and resources required to completely spruce up a settlement’s defensive capabilities, that area will never face any issues in repelling an attack ever again. This guaranteed chance makes more sense than leaving everything to chance no matter how much work players put in for each settlement.
