Best Value City Builder Games Under $40

The City Builder 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. 1Sid Meier's Civilization III Complete$0.04/1hr
  2. 2The Guild II Renaissance$0.04/1hr
  3. 3RimWorld$0.11/1hr
  4. 4Factorio$0.14/1hr
  5. 5Tavern Master$0.16/1hr
  6. 6Settlement Survival$0.16/1hr
  7. 7RollerCoaster Tycoon: Deluxe$0.16/1hr
  8. 8ISLANDERS$0.19/1hr
  9. 9Factory Town Idle$0.21/1hr
  10. 10Dyson Sphere Program$0.21/1hr
  11. 11Planetbase$0.22/1hr
  12. 12Age of Empires II (Retired)$0.22/1hr
  13. 13Kenshi$0.25/1hr
  14. 14The Infected$0.30/1hr
  15. 15Dwarf Fortress$0.32/1hr
  16. 16Stronghold HD (2012)$0.32/1hr
  17. 17Bellwright$0.34/1hr
  18. 18Stronghold Crusader HD (2012)$0.35/1hr
  19. 19Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition$0.35/1hr
  20. 20RollerCoaster Tycoon 2: Triple Thrill Pack$0.35/1hr
  21. 21Cities: Skylines$0.35/1hr
  22. 22Colony Survival$0.35/1hr
  23. 23Captain of Industry$0.35/1hr
  24. 24Yog-Sothoth’s Yard$0.37/1hr
  25. 25Going Medieval$0.37/1hr
  26. 26Banished$0.39/1hr
  27. 27Knights of Honor II: Sovereign$0.39/1hr
  28. 28Rise of Nations: Extended Edition$0.40/1hr
  29. 29Space Haven$0.40/1hr
  30. 30ContractVille$0.42/1hr
  31. 31Airport CEO$0.43/1hr
  32. 32They Are Billions$0.43/1hr
  33. 33Project Hospital$0.43/1hr
  34. 34Cities: Skylines II$0.43/1hr
  35. 35Clanfolk$0.44/1hr
  36. 36Mad Games Tycoon 2$0.44/1hr
  37. 37Kingdoms Reborn$0.44/1hr
  38. 38Anno 1404 - History Edition$0.45/1hr
  39. 39Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic$0.46/1hr
  40. 40Timberborn$0.46/1hr
  41. 41Occupy Mars: The Game$0.46/1hr
  42. 42Mini Motorways$0.47/1hr
  43. 43TheoTown$0.47/1hr
  44. 44Songs of Syx$0.47/1hr
  45. 45OpenTTD$0.48/1hr
  46. 46Age of Empires IV: Anniversary Edition$0.48/1hr
  47. 47Border Pioneer$0.49/1hr
  48. 48Two Point Museum$0.50/1hr
  49. 49Against the Storm$0.51/1hr
  50. 50Parkitect$0.51/1hr
  51. 51Infection Free Zone$0.52/1hr
  52. 52Craft The World$0.55/1hr
  53. 53Cossacks 3$0.56/1hr
  54. 54Prison Architect$0.57/1hr
  55. 55Gourdlets$0.58/1hr
  56. 56Transport Fever 2$0.61/1hr
  57. 57Anno 2070$0.63/1hr
  58. 58SimCity 4 Deluxe Edition$0.66/1hr
  59. 59Kingdoms and Castles$0.66/1hr
  60. 60Kingdom Two Crowns$0.66/1hr
  61. 61Stronghold 2: Steam Edition$0.67/1hr
  62. 62Let's School$0.67/1hr
  63. 63Ostriv$0.68/1hr
  64. 64Ratopia$0.69/1hr
  65. 65The Tenants$0.69/1hr
  66. 66Sengoku Dynasty$0.69/1hr
  67. 67Dorfromantik$0.70/1hr
  68. 68Manor Lords$0.72/1hr
  69. 69Minami Lane$0.74/1hr
  70. 70Stronghold: Definitive Edition$0.76/1hr
  71. 71Foundation$0.76/1hr
  72. 72Northgard: Definitive Edition$0.78/1hr
  73. 73Diplomacy is Not an Option$0.78/1hr
  74. 74Dawn of Man$0.80/1hr
  75. 75Age of Empires: Definitive Edition$0.81/1hr
  76. 76Frostpunk 2$0.81/1hr
  77. 77Farthest Frontier$0.81/1hr
  78. 78IXION$0.82/1hr
  79. 79Cattails: Wildwood Story$0.83/1hr
  80. 80Per Aspera$0.84/1hr
  81. 81Buggos$0.87/1hr
  82. 82The Crust$0.87/1hr
  83. 83Doraemon Dorayaki Shop Story$0.87/1hr
  84. 84Tropico 6$0.89/1hr
  85. 85Railway Empire$0.89/1hr
  86. 86Thronefall$0.89/1hr
  87. 87Norland$0.90/1hr
  88. 88Empires of the Undergrowth$0.91/1hr
  89. 89Pharaoh: A New Era$0.94/1hr
  90. 90Tropico 5$0.95/1hr
  91. 91Two Point Hospital$1.01/1hr
  92. 92SUMMERHOUSE$1.02/1hr
  93. 93Stonehearth$1.02/1hr
  94. 94Flotsam$1.04/1hr
  95. 95TerraScape$1.04/1hr
  96. 96Academia : School Simulator$1.05/1hr
  97. 97A Total War Saga: THRONES OF BRITANNIA$1.07/1hr
  98. 98Dystopika$1.07/1hr
  99. 99The Universim$1.09/1hr
  100. 100Smalland: Survive the Wilds$1.11/1hr

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.