FiveM citizen: sky images, colors and water

What is a citizen in FiveM?

A citizen is a pack of files that changes how FiveM looks: the lighting, the sky, the colors and the atmosphere at each time of day. It replaces some files in FiveM’s citizen folder (FiveM.app\citizen): the ones in citizen\common\data and the ones in the timecycle subfolder.

It doesn’t change the map, the cars or how the guns work. It changes what you see. That’s why lots of people search for it as a “graphics mod” or “FiveM graphics”. It’s not a program either: it’s data files you copy into a folder, with nothing that gets inside the game.

Since it’s on your PC, the citizen only changes what you see. Other players on the server don’t notice it.

Citizens with an image: sky, clouds, colors and water

Our citizens with an image combine several things:

• An image in the sky, a big one, that shows up when you look up.
• Clouds with a different shape and light.
• Ambient colors changed: warmer, colder or with a strong tint.
• Water with a different color and reflection.
• A fixed time of day, so the atmosphere is always the same while you play.

We test every citizen in-game before uploading it to Discord, to see how it really looks and not just in a picture.

PvP citizen and light versions

If you play PvP, what you want is to see clearly. We don’t have a separate PvP category: every citizen has a light version, with fewer effects on top, and that’s what people usually search for as a “PvP citizen”. And if you’re looking for a realistic citizen for roleplay, there are also citizens with a natural, more realistic atmosphere.

That light version is also easier on your PC. If you’re looking for an FPS citizen, start there, but we’re not going to promise numbers: what you notice depends on your hardware and the server you play on. If what you want is for FiveM to run smoother, that’s mostly done in Windows and in the game settings, and you’ll find it on the optimize FiveM page and in the guide to graphics settings for PvP.

Custom skies and timecycle

The timecycle is the set of files that tells the game how the sky looks and how the light falls at each hour. When someone talks about a “FiveM sky mod” or a custom sky, they almost always mean a citizen that changes those values or puts an image in the sky.

That’s why we don’t treat them separately: a custom sky is just another citizen. If you want a specific sky, for example with your server’s image, ask on Discord, because we also do custom modifications.

How to pick the best citizen for you

Before installing, ask yourself these questions:

1. Do you play PvP or roleplay? For PvP, the light version. For roleplay, one with an image or a realistic atmosphere.
2. How does your PC run? If it’s already struggling, start with a light version.
3. Does your server allow mods? If it uses pure mode, it won’t load the citizen. Every server decides.
4. Do you already have another one installed? Usually you can only have one citizen, because they all replace the same files and the last one you install overwrites the previous one.

How to install a FiveM citizen

Back up the whole citizen folder, copy the pack’s files into place and open FiveM. To go back to the original, delete the citizen folder and FiveM downloads it again. We explain it step by step in the guide to installing a citizen in FiveM.

Watch out for updates: sometimes FiveM overwrites the files in citizen. If your citizen stops showing up after an update, install it again. And remember that our citizens are for FiveM Legacy: in the FiveM Legacy vs Enhanced guide we explain why.

Combine it with the rest

The citizen changes the world; the rest completes it. You can add BloodFX and kill effects, 3D weapon skins and a gun sound pack. On Discord we have what every FiveM community has and more: join the Discord and watch each citizen on video before you choose.