Best Value City Builder Games

The City Builder games that stretch a budget furthest: median reviewer playtime divided by current price. Pick your currency in the top bar to rank against your local prices.

All Indie Action Adventure Simulation RPG Strategy Co-op Open World Story Rich Casual Funny Survival Difficult Pixel Graphics PvP Horror Anime Puzzle Rogue-like Relaxing Turn-Based Strategy Local Co-Op Psychological Horror Hack and Slash Platformer MMO RTS Immersive Sim Post-apocalyptic Action Roguelike City Builder Life Sim Zombies Sports Racing Survival Horror Stealth Bullet Hell Dungeon Crawler Visual Novel JRPG Deckbuilding Grand Strategy Cyberpunk Tower Defense Clicker Fighting Open World Survival Craft Boomer Shooter Colony Sim Farming Sim Cozy Auto Battler Cooking Twin Stick Shooter Metroidvania 4X Souls-like Dating Sim MMORPG

By price

Any priceUnder $5Under $10Under $20Under $40
Price divided by median reviewer playtime — how much you pay per hour of gameplay. Lower is better. Reviewers tend to sink more hours in than the average owner, so treat this as an optimistic estimate. Free games are excluded because there's no price to divide by.
  1. 1RollerCoaster Tycoon: Deluxe$0.05/1hr
  2. 2Stronghold Crusader HD (2012)$0.06/1hr
  3. 3Kingdom Two Crowns$0.09/1hr
  4. 4Stronghold HD (2012)$0.10/1hr
  5. 5RimWorld$0.10/1hr
  6. 6Kenshi$0.10/1hr
  7. 7Sid Meier's Civilization III Complete$0.10/1hr
  8. 8Against the Storm$0.11/1hr
  9. 9Space Haven$0.11/1hr
  10. 10Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic$0.12/1hr
  11. 11Tropico 4$0.14/1hr
  12. 12Dyson Sphere Program$0.15/1hr
  13. 13RollerCoaster Tycoon 2: Triple Thrill Pack$0.16/1hr
  14. 14The Lost Village$0.17/1hr
  15. 15Factorio$0.17/1hr
  16. 16Planetbase$0.18/1hr
  17. 17The Guild II Renaissance$0.18/1hr
  18. 18Endzone - A World Apart$0.19/1hr
  19. 19Stronghold 2: Steam Edition$0.19/1hr
  20. 20Smalland: Survive the Wilds$0.20/1hr
  21. 21Age of Empires II (Retired)$0.20/1hr
  22. 22Empires of the Undergrowth$0.21/1hr
  23. 23Settlement Survival$0.23/1hr
  24. 24Cataclismo$0.23/1hr
  25. 25Tropico 5$0.23/1hr
  26. 26Northgard: Definitive Edition$0.24/1hr
  27. 27Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition$0.24/1hr
  28. 28Stronghold Crusader 2$0.24/1hr
  29. 29Per Aspera$0.24/1hr
  30. 30Timberborn$0.25/1hr
  31. 31HUMANKIND$0.27/1hr
  32. 32Captain of Industry$0.27/1hr
  33. 33Tropico 6$0.27/1hr
  34. 34OpenTTD$0.29/1hr
  35. 35Cities: Skylines$0.29/1hr
  36. 36Project Hospital$0.31/1hr
  37. 37Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition$0.31/1hr
  38. 38Rise of Nations: Extended Edition$0.32/1hr
  39. 39Ratopia$0.32/1hr
  40. 40Kingdoms Reborn$0.32/1hr
  41. 41Clanfolk$0.32/1hr
  42. 42Occupy Mars: The Game$0.33/1hr
  43. 43Norland$0.33/1hr
  44. 44Dawn of Man$0.34/1hr
  45. 45Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition$0.35/1hr
  46. 46Going Medieval$0.35/1hr
  47. 47Songs of Syx$0.37/1hr
  48. 48They Are Billions$0.38/1hr
  49. 49Sengoku Dynasty$0.38/1hr
  50. 50Fabledom$0.39/1hr
  51. 51Heart of the Machine$0.40/1hr
  52. 52Bellwright$0.41/1hr
  53. 53Yog-Sothoth’s Yard$0.42/1hr
  54. 54Colony Survival$0.42/1hr
  55. 55The Infected$0.43/1hr
  56. 56Dwarf Fortress$0.43/1hr
  57. 57Sid Meier’s Civilization VI$0.43/1hr
  58. 58Gladiator Guild Manager$0.43/1hr
  59. 59Banished$0.44/1hr
  60. 60Anno 1404 - History Edition$0.48/1hr
  61. 61Kingdom Eighties$0.49/1hr
  62. 62Craft The World$0.49/1hr
  63. 63Kingdoms and Castles$0.50/1hr
  64. 64Airport CEO$0.50/1hr
  65. 65ContractVille$0.51/1hr
  66. 66Mini Motorways$0.52/1hr
  67. 67Havendock$0.53/1hr
  68. 68TheoTown$0.53/1hr
  69. 69Flotsam$0.56/1hr
  70. 70Two Point Museum$0.57/1hr
  71. 71TerraScape$0.57/1hr
  72. 72The Wandering Village$0.58/1hr
  73. 73Nordhold$0.58/1hr
  74. 74Foundation$0.59/1hr
  75. 75Mad Games Tycoon 2$0.59/1hr
  76. 76SimCity 4 Deluxe Edition$0.60/1hr
  77. 77Cities: Skylines II$0.61/1hr
  78. 78Age of Empires: Definitive Edition$0.64/1hr
  79. 79Infection Free Zone$0.64/1hr
  80. 80Let's School$0.68/1hr
  81. 81Manor Lords$0.70/1hr
  82. 82Townscaper$0.70/1hr
  83. 83FANTASY LIFE i: The Girl Who Steals Time$0.71/1hr
  84. 84下一站江湖Ⅱ$0.71/1hr
  85. 85Tavern Master$0.72/1hr
  86. 86MMORPG Tycoon 2$0.72/1hr
  87. 87A Total War Saga: THRONES OF BRITANNIA$0.72/1hr
  88. 88Stronghold: Definitive Edition$0.74/1hr
  89. 89Cossacks 3$0.74/1hr
  90. 90Thronefall$0.77/1hr
  91. 91Farthest Frontier$0.82/1hr
  92. 92Diplomacy is Not an Option$0.83/1hr
  93. 93Ostriv$0.83/1hr
  94. 94Knights of Honor II: Sovereign$0.84/1hr
  95. 95Railway Empire 2$0.86/1hr
  96. 96Planet Zoo$0.88/1hr
  97. 97Parkitect$0.91/1hr
  98. 98Pharaoh: A New Era$0.94/1hr
  99. 99Gourdlets$0.96/1hr
  100. 100Pioneers of Pagonia$0.96/1hr

How the math works: we sample each game’s Steam reviewers, take the median of their total recorded playtime (lifetime hours, not hours at the time of review), and divide it by the game’s current price in your selected currency. Reviewers usually sink more hours in than the average owner, so the numbers run generous. Free games aren’t listed because there’s no price to divide by, and a game needs playtime data from at least 20 reviewers before it qualifies. All prices are Steam’s own regional prices, never exchange-rate conversions.