Is there a way to populate settlements without befriending them?

I've been doing a playthrough where I'm not doing the Minutemen quests or doing anything with settlements. However, I would like to see the settlements built up as if I was doing those quests and managing the settlements, since they are a cool part of the world.

Is there a way for me to get populated settlements without doing Preston's quests or doing any settlement management?

Solution 1:

No, there is no way to populate a settlement without meeting the requirements for the settlers to come.

Solution 2:

It is possible in a way, with the Nuka World DLC. Spoiler warning:

After taking over the whole park, you will get the option to invade the Commonwealth and claim settlements by force. When doing so, you will evict everyone living in that settlement and raiders will move in instead. They have different needs than settles - for example they don't like to be assigned to farming, it will give them a loss of happiness. They will need food, water and happiness, so there won't be more raiders joining unless such resources are available.

There is also an awesome, major mod called Sim Settlements, which allows you do build settlements in an entirely new way. It has the option to appoint a leader to a settlement, such as one of your companions. The leader will then ensure that the settlement builds itself and salvage resources automatically over time, to build further. The population will raise over time and you don't have to build it manually.