Best Value Simulation Games Under $40
The Simulation 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
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.
- 1BidKing$0.02/1hr169h48.66%32.94%
- 2Cornerpond$0.02/1hr158h87.54%97.16%
- 3Ropuka's Idle Island$0.03/1hr121h88.04%95.40%
- 4The NOexistenceN of Lilith$0.04/1hr52h86.84%98.05%
- 5Cookie Clicker$0.04/1hr128h95.30%96.42%
- 6The Guild II Renaissance$0.04/1hr46h84.33%83.49%
- 7Chill Pulse$0.04/1hr115h88.38%95.55%
- 8X4: Foundations$0.07/1hr145h81.17%79.90%
- 9Beasts of Bermuda$0.07/1hr268h77.07%68.98%
- 10Graveyard Keeper$0.08/1hr52h85.31%85.38%
- 11MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries$0.08/1hr96h84.84%84.77%
- 12Space Engineers$0.08/1hr254h88.57%88.84%
- 13Hexarchy$0.09/1hr21h84.52%81.92%
- 14Drug Dealer Simulator$0.10/1hr21h85.79%86.19%
- 15Rusty's Retirement$0.10/1hr71h91.95%96.71%
- 16Mechabellum$0.10/1hr104h84.07%83.74%
- 17Tiny Pasture$0.11/1hr56h88.28%92.48%
- 18Dragon Cliff$0.11/1hr92h86.61%88.66%
- 19Cruelty Squad$0.11/1hr18h92.84%96.04%
- 20Stardew Valley$0.11/1hr135h98.35%98.48%
- 21DSX$0.11/1hr71h77.80%69.52%
- 22RimWorld$0.11/1hr246h97.35%97.85%
- 23Eco$0.12/1hr186h82.48%80.73%
- 24Project Zomboid$0.13/1hr200h93.68%93.87%
- 25Spirit City: Lofi Sessions$0.13/1hr91h92.84%97.63%
- 26Touhou Mystia's Izakaya$0.13/1hr44h95.35%98.56%
- 27Factorio$0.14/1hr252h97.00%97.51%
- 28Bomber Crew$0.16/1hr15h86.54%87.57%
- 29ANEURISM IV$0.16/1hr31h81.59%76.20%
- 30Tavern Master$0.16/1hr19h88.92%92.13%
- 31Settlement Survival$0.16/1hr33h84.96%85.30%
- 32RollerCoaster Tycoon: Deluxe$0.16/1hr37h89.17%94.30%
- 33Oxygen Not Included$0.17/1hr149h95.96%96.73%
- 34Terra Invicta$0.17/1hr118h82.71%80.41%
- 35Farm Together 2$0.17/1hr154h87.84%93.72%
- 36Avorion$0.17/1hr148h87.96%90.04%
- 37FTL: Faster Than Light$0.17/1hr59h93.96%95.11%
- 38Garry's Mod$0.17/1hr57h96.78%96.87%
- 39Elite Dangerous$0.18/1hr112h77.96%77.31%
- 40Placid Plastic Duck Simulator$0.18/1hr11h93.38%97.58%
- 41SpaceCraft$0.18/1hr131h80.89%65.33%
- 42Naval Action$0.18/1hr108h65.44%52.20%
- 43From the Depths$0.19/1hr134h87.36%89.25%
- 44Farming Simulator 19$0.19/1hr95h93.36%94.47%
- 45Definitely Not Fried Chicken$0.19/1hr20h82.72%73.15%
- 46BeamNG.drive$0.19/1hr129h96.98%97.27%
- 47The Long Dark$0.19/1hr103h88.64%88.94%
- 48The Isle$0.20/1hr100h80.52%80.14%
- 49People Playground$0.20/1hr49h98.04%98.46%
- 50Motorsport Manager$0.20/1hr98h88.91%91.71%
- 51Survivalist: Invisible Strain$0.20/1hr59h85.33%86.78%
- 52Factory Town Idle$0.21/1hr24h85.56%90.90%
- 53Miscreated$0.21/1hr146h70.51%65.95%
- 54Amber Isle$0.21/1hr30h84.57%82.78%
- 55Kerbal Space Program$0.21/1hr48h94.89%95.57%
- 56Punch Club 2: Fast Forward$0.21/1hr24h84.17%82.48%
- 57Dyson Sphere Program$0.21/1hr94h96.22%97.46%
- 58Planetbase$0.22/1hr69h82.28%79.73%
- 59Farming Simulator 22$0.22/1hr92h91.94%92.70%
- 60Scrap Mechanic$0.22/1hr132h91.40%91.93%
- 61Card Survival: Fantasy Forest$0.22/1hr100h84.00%75.90%
- 62Conan Exiles Enhanced$0.22/1hr181h79.48%79.02%
- 63Satisfactory$0.22/1hr179h96.83%97.26%
- 64Stormworks: Build and Rescue$0.22/1hr112h89.71%90.51%
- 65Your Only Move Is HUSTLE$0.23/1hr22h94.36%96.49%
- 66Barotrauma$0.23/1hr77h93.10%94.02%
- 67Stationeers$0.23/1hr154h86.15%87.73%
- 68Empyrion - Galactic Survival$0.23/1hr87h79.91%78.45%
- 69Coral Island$0.23/1hr129h87.82%88.87%
- 70Hero's Adventure: Road to Passion$0.24/1hr76h84.63%84.51%
- 71Rocksmith 2014 Edition REMASTERED LEARN & PLAY$0.24/1hr42h87.10%87.96%
- 72Bear and Breakfast$0.24/1hr29h86.51%89.46%
- 73Feed the Cups$0.24/1hr66h79.39%70.79%
- 74Stranded: Alien Dawn$0.24/1hr50h84.51%84.35%
- 75Elin$0.24/1hr82h88.96%93.39%
- 76Kenshi$0.25/1hr122h94.73%95.57%
- 77Besiege$0.25/1hr12h93.52%95.14%
- 78Bus Simulator 18$0.25/1hr12h82.69%81.04%
- 79My Garage$0.25/1hr79h86.52%90.30%
- 80Soulmask$0.26/1hr117h79.59%77.18%
- 81Esports Godfather$0.27/1hr75h86.73%90.67%
- 82Noita$0.27/1hr75h94.11%95.15%
- 83Survival: Fountain of Youth$0.27/1hr63h85.11%85.50%
- 84Motor Town: Behind The Wheel$0.27/1hr74h89.25%93.78%
- 85Software Inc.$0.27/1hr85h89.01%94.23%
- 86(the) Gnorp Apologue$0.27/1hr26h89.75%94.87%
- 87Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion$0.28/1hr72h90.04%93.16%
- 88Hell Let Loose$0.28/1hr45h81.97%81.77%
- 89Papa's Freezeria Deluxe$0.28/1hr21h92.97%99.25%
- 90Football, Tactics & Glory$0.28/1hr88h85.61%87.15%
- 91Pax Dei$0.28/1hr106h69.80%56.55%
- 92鬼谷八荒 Tale of Immortal$0.28/1hr70h56.81%55.56%
- 93Cyber Manhunt$0.29/1hr12h89.51%92.44%
- 94Little Witch in the Woods$0.29/1hr52h87.26%89.04%
- 95Wargame: Red Dragon$0.29/1hr103h87.32%88.52%
- 96Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator$0.29/1hr27h91.46%92.93%
- 97Cauldron$0.29/1hr51h85.93%93.21%
- 98Sailing Era$0.30/1hr83h82.78%78.47%
- 99The Infected$0.30/1hr53h84.68%84.32%
- 100Farming Simulator 25$0.30/1hr99h86.74%87.06%
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.