Best Value RTS Games Under $40

The RTS games on Steam games under $40 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
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. 1Mechabellum$0.11/1hr
  2. 2Battlefleet Gothic: Armada 2$0.13/1hr
  3. 3Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance$0.15/1hr
  4. 4Supreme Commander 2$0.15/1hr
  5. 5Dyson Sphere Program$0.16/1hr
  6. 6Mindustry$0.18/1hr
  7. 7Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition$0.19/1hr
  8. 8Age of Empires II (Retired)$0.19/1hr
  9. 9Rusted Warfare - RTS$0.20/1hr
  10. 10Warpips$0.21/1hr
  11. 11Frostpunk$0.21/1hr
  12. 12Tower Dominion$0.24/1hr
  13. 13Total War: MEDIEVAL II – Definitive Edition$0.24/1hr
  14. 14Company of Heroes$0.25/1hr
  15. 15Victoria II$0.25/1hr
  16. 16DG2: Defense Grid 2$0.25/1hr
  17. 17Total War: ROME II - Emperor Edition$0.26/1hr
  18. 18Tropico 4$0.26/1hr
  19. 19Survivalist: Invisible Strain$0.27/1hr
  20. 20Airships: Conquer the Skies$0.27/1hr
  21. 21Planetbase$0.29/1hr
  22. 22Ultimate General: Civil War$0.29/1hr
  23. 23Kenshi$0.29/1hr
  24. 24Total War: ATTILA$0.30/1hr
  25. 25Gladiator Guild Manager$0.30/1hr
  26. 26They Are Billions$0.30/1hr
  27. 27STAR WARS Empire at War - Gold Pack$0.30/1hr
  28. 28From the Depths$0.31/1hr
  29. 29Sailing Era$0.31/1hr
  30. 30Anno 1404 - History Edition$0.31/1hr
  31. 31Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition$0.32/1hr
  32. 32Call to Arms - Gates of Hell: Ostfront$0.34/1hr
  33. 33Ultimate Admiral: Dreadnoughts$0.34/1hr
  34. 34Total War: SHOGUN 2$0.34/1hr
  35. 35Age of History 3$0.35/1hr
  36. 36Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II - Anniversary Edition (Classic)$0.36/1hr
  37. 37Aliens: Dark Descent$0.36/1hr
  38. 38Against the Storm$0.37/1hr
  39. 39Total War: EMPIRE – Definitive Edition$0.37/1hr
  40. 40Terra Invicta$0.38/1hr
  41. 41Lobotomy Corporation | Monster Management Simulation$0.39/1hr
  42. 42Banished$0.39/1hr
  43. 43Company of Heroes 2$0.40/1hr
  44. 44Stronghold Crusader HD (2012)$0.41/1hr
  45. 45Castle Story$0.41/1hr
  46. 46Tropico 5$0.42/1hr
  47. 47Kingdom Rush Frontiers - Tower Defense$0.42/1hr
  48. 48IXION$0.42/1hr
  49. 49Men of War: Assault Squad 2$0.42/1hr
  50. 50Kingdoms Reborn$0.42/1hr
  51. 51Colony Survival$0.43/1hr
  52. 52Age of Mythology: Extended Edition$0.43/1hr
  53. 53Rise of Nations: Extended Edition$0.44/1hr
  54. 54Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War III$0.46/1hr
  55. 55Sins of a Solar Empire II$0.46/1hr
  56. 56Border Pioneer$0.46/1hr
  57. 57Age of Empires III: Definitive Edition$0.47/1hr
  58. 58Stronghold 2: Steam Edition$0.48/1hr
  59. 59Going Medieval$0.48/1hr
  60. 60Dummynation$0.49/1hr
  61. 61Total War: THREE KINGDOMS$0.50/1hr
  62. 62Stronghold HD (2012)$0.51/1hr
  63. 63Command & Conquer Remastered Collection$0.52/1hr
  64. 64Dawn of Man$0.52/1hr
  65. 65Clanfolk$0.52/1hr
  66. 66Age of Mythology: Retold$0.53/1hr
  67. 67112 Operator$0.53/1hr
  68. 68Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion$0.55/1hr
  69. 69Kingdoms and Castles$0.58/1hr
  70. 70Foundation$0.58/1hr
  71. 71Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic$0.58/1hr
  72. 72Creeper World 4$0.58/1hr
  73. 73Door Kickers 2: Task Force North$0.59/1hr
  74. 74Wargame: Red Dragon$0.59/1hr
  75. 75Emberward$0.59/1hr
  76. 76Call to Arms$0.59/1hr
  77. 77Age of Darkness: Final Stand$0.60/1hr
  78. 78Total War: NAPOLEON – Definitive Edition$0.64/1hr
  79. 79A Total War Saga: TROY$0.65/1hr
  80. 80Farthest Frontier$0.66/1hr
  81. 81Infection Free Zone$0.69/1hr
  82. 82Age of Empires: Definitive Edition$0.71/1hr
  83. 83Norland$0.71/1hr
  84. 84UBOAT$0.72/1hr
  85. 85ENDLESS Space 2$0.72/1hr
  86. 86Northgard: Definitive Edition$0.75/1hr
  87. 87Last Train Home$0.78/1hr
  88. 88Stronghold: Definitive Edition$0.78/1hr
  89. 89Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War - Anniversary Edition (Classic)$0.82/1hr
  90. 90Planetary Annihilation: TITANS$0.82/1hr
  91. 91Cataclismo$0.86/1hr
  92. 92A Total War Saga: THRONES OF BRITANNIA$0.89/1hr
  93. 93Diplomacy is Not an Option$0.89/1hr
  94. 94Sudden Strike 4$0.90/1hr
  95. 95Cossacks 3$0.91/1hr
  96. 96Fly Corp$0.92/1hr
  97. 97Total War: ROME REMASTERED$0.92/1hr
  98. 98Empires of the Undergrowth$0.92/1hr
  99. 99Dune: Spice Wars$0.92/1hr
  100. 100The Crust$0.93/1hr

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.