EventLab unlocks when the game gives you your first house, Casa Bella. That is all. No level to reach, nothing to buy.
It comes early in the story, so if you have just started Forza Horizon 5 you are a few events away from it.
How to unlock EventLab
- Play the opening events. The game walks you through the first drives and races. Just follow the story.
- Drive to Casa Bella. It is the first player house, in the town of Mulege. The game puts the marker on your map.
- Watch the cutscene. You are given the house. From this moment the creative tools are open.
- Pause and go to the Creative Hub tab. EventLab is in there.
If you do not see the Creative Hub tab in the pause menu, you have not been to Casa Bella yet. Keep following the story marker.
Other houses work differently, you pay for them. I cover that in how to buy a house in Forza Horizon 5.
Where to find everything
| What you want to do | Where to go |
|---|---|
| Play events made by other players | Pause menu, Creative Hub tab, EventLab |
| Build a race on the Mexico map | Drive to any race event, choose Solo, then Create Blueprint |
| Build on a blank canvas | The EventLab Island icon on the map |
| Find one specific event | Search in EventLab with the share code from its creator |
How to play EventLab events
Pause, open the Creative Hub tab and select EventLab. You get a browser with events made by other players. You can sort it, search it, or enter a share code.
A share code is a nine digit number that points to one event. Creators post them on Reddit, YouTube and the Forza forums. If someone tells you about a good track, ask for the code. It is much faster than searching by name.
The quality goes from bad to very, very good. Some people have built full circuits, with kerbs, barriers and grandstands, that feel like real tracks. If you like clean racing more than jumps, search for those. My list of the best tracks in Forza Horizon 5 is the place to start for the routes that ship with the game.
You need to be connected to play events from other players. If the online side of the game is still locked for you, see how to unlock online in Forza Horizon 5.
How to create your own event
- Drive to any race event on the map and start it.
- Choose Solo.
- Choose Create Blueprint. Here you set the car class, the cars allowed, the time of day and the weather.
- Choose to create a new route. You drive it, and the game drops checkpoints behind you.
- Add props if you want them: ramps, barriers, signs, anything in the catalogue.
- Finish the route, test it, then name it and share it.
The start is always at the event you picked. The rest of the route is up to you.
Not every place is open. You cannot build inside the Gran Caldera volcano, and you cannot put a track through the crowd areas.
EventLab Island and the 2.0 tools
In September 2023 the game got EventLab 2.0. It is the biggest change the tool has had.
| Feature | What it does |
|---|---|
| EventLab Island | A flat concrete platform of 2 km by 2 km in the ocean, with a bigger prop budget than the Mexico map |
| Multi selection | Select many props at once, then move, rotate, clone or delete them together |
| Prefabs | Save a group of props as one piece, share it, and use prefabs from other creators |
| Custom flyers | Use your own photo as the cover of the event, not the automatic one |
| Time and weather | Set the time of day and the weather while you build, so you see the final look |
| New props | Basic shapes like cubes, spheres and wedges, plus surfaces like snow, ice, grass, tarmac and dirt |
EventLab Island has its own icon on the map. Select it, you are taken there, and you start building from the activation point.
Forza Horizon 6 has EventLab and share codes too, and my Forza Horizon 6 guide covers the new game.
If you want to build a full circuit from zero in Forza Horizon 5, use the island. On the Mexico map you fight with the terrain and with a smaller prop budget. On the island you have a flat surface and more room.
How I would build a track
I would treat it like a real circuit, because the same things make it good.
- Route first, props later. Drive the route, test it three or four times, and only then decorate. If the layout is boring, no amount of props will fix it.
- Give it a rhythm. A good lap has one or two hard braking zones, a fast section, and a slow corner before a straight so people can pass. Ten identical corners in a row is not a track.
- Make it wide where you want racing. Two cars need room side by side into the main braking zones.
- Set the car class. A layout that works in B class can be undriveable in S2. Pick one class and build for it.
- Test with AI or friends. You find the corner where everybody crashes only when there is traffic.
FAQ
How do I unlock EventLab in Forza Horizon 5?
Follow the story until you are given your first house, Casa Bella. After the cutscene, the Creative Hub tab with EventLab is open in the pause menu.
Where is EventLab in the menu?
In the pause menu, under the Creative Hub tab. To build your own event, drive to a race event, choose Solo and then Create Blueprint.
Do I need accolade points to unlock EventLab?
No. You only need Casa Bella, which the story gives you early. Accolade points open the Horizon Adventure chapters, not EventLab.
How do I get to EventLab Island?
It has its own icon on the map. Select it and the game takes you there. It arrived with EventLab 2.0 in September 2023.
How do I play an event with a share code?
Open EventLab from the Creative Hub tab, go to the search and enter the nine digit code.
Can I build an EventLab track anywhere on the map?
Almost. The Gran Caldera volcano and the crowd areas are blocked. For full freedom, use EventLab Island.
Can I earn credits in EventLab?
Yes, you get credits and XP for the events you finish, like in a normal race. For faster ways, see how to make money in Forza Horizon 5.