Best Value RTS Games Under $20

The RTS games on Steam games under $20 that deliver the most playtime per dollar: median reviewer hours divided by current price.

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 $40
Median reviewer playtime divided by price. Reviewers tend to sink more hours in than the average owner, so treat this as an optimistic estimate. Free games are excluded because there's no price to divide by.
  1. 1Hearts of Iron IV39 h/$
  2. 2Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition11 h/$
  3. 3Mechabellum9.9 h/$
  4. 4Survivalist: Invisible Strain8.9 h/$
  5. 5Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun6.7 h/$
  6. 6Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition6.6 h/$
  7. 7Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition6.5 h/$
  8. 8ENDLESS Space 26.4 h/$
  9. 9Total War: SHOGUN 26.4 h/$
  10. 10Victoria II6.4 h/$
  11. 11UBOAT6.3 h/$
  12. 12Dyson Sphere Program5.9 h/$
  13. 13Mindustry5.7 h/$
  14. 14Rise of Nations: Extended Edition5.3 h/$
  15. 15Halo Wars: Definitive Edition5.1 h/$
  16. 16Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition4.7 h/$
  17. 17Age of Empires: Definitive Edition4.7 h/$
  18. 18Rusted Warfare - RTS4.4 h/$
  19. 19Age of Empires II (Retired)4.4 h/$
  20. 20Tower Dominion4.2 h/$
  21. 21Brutal Legend4.0 h/$
  22. 22Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance3.6 h/$
  23. 23Warpips3.4 h/$
  24. 24Natural Selection 23.4 h/$
  25. 25Stronghold HD (2012)3.3 h/$
  26. 26Age of History 33.2 h/$
  27. 27Stronghold Crusader HD (2012)3.0 h/$
  28. 28Anno 1404 - History Edition3.0 h/$
  29. 29IXION3.0 h/$
  30. 30STAR WARS Empire at War - Gold Pack3.0 h/$
  31. 31Supreme Commander 23.0 h/$
  32. 32Tropico 42.9 h/$
  33. 33Kingdoms Reborn2.9 h/$
  34. 34Company of Heroes2.8 h/$
  35. 35Age of Mythology: Retold2.8 h/$
  36. 36Infection Free Zone2.8 h/$
  37. 37Emberward2.6 h/$
  38. 38Banished2.5 h/$
  39. 39Diplomacy is Not an Option2.4 h/$
  40. 40Company of Heroes 22.4 h/$
  41. 41112 Operator2.3 h/$
  42. 42Kingdom Rush Frontiers - Tower Defense2.2 h/$
  43. 43Aliens: Dark Descent2.2 h/$
  44. 44Gladiator Guild Manager2.1 h/$
  45. 45Stronghold Legends: Steam Edition2.0 h/$
  46. 46Planetbase2.0 h/$
  47. 47Kingdoms and Castles1.9 h/$
  48. 48Call to Arms1.8 h/$
  49. 49DG2: Defense Grid 21.8 h/$
  50. 50Command & Conquer Remastered Collection1.8 h/$
  51. 51Castle Story1.8 h/$
  52. 52Stronghold 2: Steam Edition1.7 h/$
  53. 53Sudden Strike 41.6 h/$
  54. 54The Wandering Village1.5 h/$
  55. 55Element TD 2 - Tower Defense1.5 h/$
  56. 56Tropico 51.5 h/$
  57. 57Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 21.4 h/$
  58. 58Dummynation1.3 h/$
  59. 59Stronghold: Definitive Edition1.1 h/$
  60. 60Border Pioneer1.0 h/$
  61. 61Cossacks 31.0 h/$
  62. 62Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Anniversary Edition (Classic)0.8 h/$
  63. 63Bad North: Jotunn Edition0.7 h/$
  64. 64Fly Corp0.7 h/$
  65. 65Ultimate Epic Battle Simulator 20.6 h/$
  66. 66Becastled0.5 h/$
  67. 67Door Kickers0.4 h/$

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.