Games Like Cities: Skylines II

Cities: Skylines is a modern take on the classic city simulation. The game introduces new game play elements to realize the thrill and hardships of creating and maintaining a real city whilst expanding on some well-established tropes of the city building experience.

Why similar: City Builder 41.4%, Building 11.7%, Management 7.3%, Simulation 6.8%, Moddable 6.6% ★

Why You'll Like It: The original is still the closest match, with the same road-based zoning, traffic management, public services, and highly moddable sandbox city-building.

Build a soviet republic from an impoverished country into a rich industrial superpower in a city builder with intricate production chains and a fully simulated global economy. Manage the lives of your citizens from education to work and party loyalty to criminal activity.

Why similar: City Builder 31.9%, Building 12.8%, Economy 11.8%, Management 9.8%, Moddable 8.4% ★

Why You'll Like It: It offers an even denser simulation of infrastructure, transit, utilities, industry, and citizen needs for players who love the systems side of city building.

SimCity 4 Deluxe Edition includes the bestselling SimCity 4 and the all-new SimCity 4 Rush Hour Expansion Pack. Create the most massive region of cities ever, with a farming town, bedroom community, high-tech commercial center, and industrial backbone.

Why similar: City Builder 31.4%, Building 13.9%, Economy 12.8%, Sandbox 10.9%, Management 10.3%

Why You'll Like It: It remains one of the best pure city-building alternatives thanks to its deep zoning, utilities, traffic, budgeting, and large-scale urban planning.

Highrise City offers a new spin on City Simulations & Tycoon games expanding the economy and resource management aspect. Experience a modern take on the genre enriched with a complex resource based economy system.

Why similar: City Builder 36.6%, Building 12%, Sandbox 11.4%, Economy 9.7%, Simulation 8.6%

Why You'll Like It: This is a large-scale city builder with modern urban expansion, road planning, and layered supply chains that echo Skylines II's economy-focused growth.

The classic transport simulation genre has a new gold standard with Transport Fever 2. Discover a whole new world by navigating transport routes through land, water and air. May progress and prosperity find their way!

Why similar: City Builder 25.1%, Transportation 14.2% ★, Management 10.1%, Economy 9.4%, Simulation 8.2%

Why You'll Like It: While more transport-focused than zone-focused, its road, rail, and transit networks directly shape city growth in a very Skylines-adjacent way.

Create your own Nation, build cities and bring prosperity to your people. Citystate II is a unique city-builder featuring realistic economics and complex political options. Slums or skyscrapers, experiment and bring about your vision of the ideal society.

Why similar: City Builder 35.8%, Economy 13.9%, Building 13.4%, Management 9.6%, Sandbox 8.9%

Why You'll Like It: It combines city building with taxes, public policy, services, and economic management for players who want more governance layered into urban growth.

Build cities, shape a world.Cities XL Platinum lets you design, build and link up cities of all shapes and sizes around the Cities XL planet!Build more impressive cities than ever before! Cities XL Platinum offers a huge variety of over 1,000 buildings and constructions (including 50 brand new structures), that you can freely place on...

Why similar: City Builder 56.7%, Simulation 14.4%, Sandbox 8.6%, Management 8%, Strategy 3.9%

Why You'll Like It: Its focus on realistic modern city layouts, districts, transport, and services makes it a natural older-school alternative to Skylines II.

Build and manage your dream city in this captivating simulation game. Create unique urban landscapes and enjoy compatibility with the mobile versions. Unleash your creativity and shape the metropolis of your dreams.

Why similar: City Builder 36.1%, Building 14.5%, Moddable 13.3% ★, Sandbox 12.1%, Management 10.7%

Why You'll Like It: It captures the classic zone-and-build feel with roads, transit, services, and mod support in a surprisingly deep city-building sandbox.

The Regional City Builder: Let's Build Something New.

Why similar: City Builder 39.8%, Building 12.8%, Management 11.5%, Simulation 10%, Economy 7.8%

Why You'll Like It: It leans hard into commuting patterns, land value, traffic, and macro growth, making it a strong fit if you enjoy the simulation side of urban planning.

Urbek is a city building game where you can build your own neighbourhoods: from nightlife district to industrial district. Don't exhaust your natural resources before you have an educated population to build more efficient structures.

Why similar: City Builder 34.1%, Building 14.7%, Economy 11.6%, Management 10.7%, Sandbox 10.4%

Why You'll Like It: This one emphasizes organic neighborhood development, service coverage, and city layout in a more abstract but still deeply planning-driven way.

Design and run your own railroads for the real world. Solve global transportation dilemmas. Unleash your inner railway engineer and transit policy manager.

Why similar: City Builder 22.6%, Transportation 16.2% ★, Economy 12.5%, Building 12.4%, Management 10%

Why You'll Like It: This is a serious transit-planning sandbox where building efficient regional rail networks provides the same problem-solving appeal as optimizing a big city.

Anno 1800™ – Lead the Industrial Revolution! Welcome to the dawn of the Industrial Age. The path you choose will define your world. Are you an innovator or an exploiter? A conqueror or a liberator? How the world remembers your name is up to you.

Why similar: City Builder 53.3%, Economy 13.8%, Simulation 8.1%, Strategy 5.7%, Sandbox 5.7%

Why You'll Like It: Its satisfying blend of city expansion, production chains, logistics, and citizen-class management scratches the same strategic building itch.

Foundation is a grid-less, laidback medieval city-building game with a focus on organic development, monument construction and resource management.

Why similar: City Builder 47.6%, Building 9%, Economy 8%, Sandbox 7.8%, Management 7.3%

Why You'll Like It: Its freeform building style and focus on services, production, and organic town growth make it a strong sandbox city-builder despite the medieval theme.

Sweet Transit is a unique city builder where the railway is king. Build and automate the dream supply chain for your citizens, giving them all they need to expand quaint villages into bustling cities. Progress from steam power to diesel and beyond in this advanced train-driven experience.

Why similar: City Builder 24.4%, Transportation 11.9% ★, Building 10.4%, Economy 9.8%, Moddable 9.7% ★

Why You'll Like It: It ties settlement growth directly to transport planning, creating a satisfying loop of infrastructure expansion and urban development.

Cities in Motion 2 is the sequel to the popular mass transit simulation game Cities in Motion. Build, manage and lead your transportation network to provide cities with their ever changing needs. CIM2 introduces new features including multiplayer game modes, day and night cycles, timetables and dynamic cities.

Why similar: City Builder 28.1%, Transportation 18.6% ★, Simulation 13.5%, Management 12.5%, Sandbox 8.5%

Why You'll Like It: From the same studio, it focuses on buses, metros, and traffic flow inside a living city, making it ideal if transit design is your favorite part of Skylines II.

El Presidente is back! Prove yourself once again as a feared dictator or peace-loving statesman on the island state of Tropico and shape the fate of your very own banana republic through four distinctive eras.

Why similar: City Builder 45.5%, Economy 13.6%, Management 10.5%, Simulation 8.3%, Sandbox 7.6%

Why You'll Like It: It delivers city layout, infrastructure, economy, and public-service balancing in a more characterful but still systems-heavy urban management format.

Create an extrasolar efficiency utopia from scratch! In this sci-fi city builder you need to start mining operations, plan production, and lay down transportation routes to ensure a smooth supply chain.

Why similar: City Builder 27.9%, Transportation 13.1% ★, Building 11.1%, Economy 10.1%, Sandbox 8.8%

Why You'll Like It: Its futuristic city-building revolves around road logistics, supply chains, and traffic flow, which makes it feel surprisingly close to the planning side of Skylines II.

Build and manage an international airport!

Why similar: City Builder 19.6%, Moddable 12.3% ★, Building 11.1%, Transportation 10.1% ★, Management 9.3%

Why You'll Like It: If your favorite part of Skylines II is designing efficient infrastructure, this applies that same service-flow and layout thinking to a complex airport.

Manor Lords is a medieval strategy game featuring in-depth city building, large-scale tactical battles, and complex economic and social simulations. Rule your lands as a medieval lord – the seasons pass, the weather changes, and cities rise and fall.

Why similar: City Builder 44.4%, Simulation 9.8%, Building 8.1%, Economy 7.5%, Sandbox 6.4%

Why You'll Like It: Its grounded town planning, road layout, logistics, and regional economy make it a great pick if you enjoy watching a settlement function as a living system.

Create a 21st century micro-nation and experiment with economic and political ideals. Futuristic skyscrapers or spreading slums, the Nation relies on your economic and city planning skills.

Why similar: City Builder 40.8%, Building 11.1%, Economy 10.7%, Simulation 9.4%, Management 7.4%

Why You'll Like It: The original already blended zoning, taxation, public policy, and macroeconomics in a way that overlaps nicely with Skylines II's management side.

In this city-building game, you will lead a group of survivors in their search for a new home. Manipulate the landscape, manage limited supplies, plant crops, hunt wildlife, gather resources, and develop trade routes to build a bustling and unique town.

Why similar: City Builder 43.2%, Building 17%, Management 11.4%, Sandbox 9%, Simulation 6.5%

Why You'll Like It: Its broad management toolkit, infrastructure decisions, and production web make it a solid mid-weight alternative for city-builder fans.

Protect and guide your people as you forge a town from untamed wilderness at the edge of the known world. Harvest raw materials, hunt, fish and farm to survive. Produce crafted items to trade, consume, equip and fight with as you battle for your survival against the elements and outside threats.

Why similar: City Builder 38.7%, Building 21.4%, Economy 13.6%, Management 10.2%, Resource Management 6.4%

Why You'll Like It: It offers detailed supply chains, desirability, housing, and public health systems for players who like balancing urban needs over time.

A city builder with simulated citizens, set in a procedurally-generated world map. Grow your kingdom through the eras from a tiny medieval hamlet into a prosperous global empire! Cooperate or compete in real-time with your friends in multiplayer mode.

Why similar: City Builder 54.3%, Management 10.7%, Economy 10.4%, Building 8.8%, Simulation 4.9%

Why You'll Like It: This blends city-building and economic expansion with a broad management focus that rewards careful placement and long-term growth planning.

Humans are long gone. In a world struck by droughts and toxic waste, will your lumberpunk beavers do any better? A sandbox city-building game featuring ingenious animals, vertical architecture, water physics, and terraforming. Contains high amounts of wood.

Why similar: City Builder 46.1%, Building 15.2%, Sandbox 12.1%, Management 11.3%, Simulation 6.4%

Why You'll Like It: Although its setting is different, its infrastructure planning, resource loops, and city layout challenges create a similarly absorbing sandbox management rhythm.

Manage transportation for commuters in four of the world's greatest cities - Vienna, Helsinki, Berlin, and Amsterdam

Why similar: City Builder 27.5%, Simulation 18%, Management 15.8%, Transportation 13.1% ★, Economy 9.7%

Why You'll Like It: It narrows in on public transport management, but its city-scale network design will still appeal to players who love optimizing urban movement.

In this city-building strategy game, you control a group of exiled travelers who decide to restart their lives in a new land. They have only the clothes on their backs and a cart filled with supplies from their homeland. The townspeople of Banished are your primary resource.

Why similar: City Builder 58.2%, Simulation 8.8%, Sandbox 8%, Strategy 5.5%, Building 4.9%

Why You'll Like It: This is a pure settlement-management game built around labor, resources, housing, and careful long-term planning rather than combat or story.

Ostriv is a city-building game that puts you in a role of a governor of an 18th century Ukrainian town to challenge your creative skills and management abilities.

Why similar: City Builder 36.2%, Building 12.2%, Economy 9.7%, Management 9.4%, Sandbox 8.7%

Why You'll Like It: It delivers a realistic, hands-on town simulation with organic growth, production planning, and a strong sense of building a believable place.

Build an industrial empire on a remote island. Mine resources, reshape terrain with excavators, grow food, construct factories, lay train tracks, and trade with the outside world. Research 100+ technologies to advance from basic metal smelting all the way to nuclear power and space flight.

Why similar: City Builder 25.7%, Economy 15.7%, Building 13.4%, Management 11.5%, Resource Management 11%

Why You'll Like It: It is more industrial than urban, but its interconnected logistics, terrain shaping, and economic simulation appeal to the same systems-minded builders.

Build and customise thrilling roller coasters and incredible water slides, manage the ultimate theme park experience, and share your epic creations. Are you ready to ride the wave?

Why similar: City Builder 30%, Building 16.1%, Sandbox 13.2%, Economy 11%, Simulation 10.7%

Endzone is a post-apocalyptic survival city builder, where you start a new civilization with a group of people after an ecological disaster. Build them a new home and ensure their survival in a shattered world, threatened by constant radiation, toxic rain, sandstorms and droughts.

Why similar: City Builder 55.4%, Building 9.4%, Simulation 7.5%, Sandbox 6.1%, Strategy 5.9%

Why You'll Like It: This brings city-building into a harsher survival setting while keeping the core appeal of infrastructure, citizen needs, and long-term settlement planning.

Build an idyllic 19th century Mediterranean town and help it flourish into a prosperous city. Freely place and customise each element to create the perfect home for your growing population in this cozy city builder from the creators of Station to Station.

Why similar: City Builder 41.1%, Building 13.9%, Economy 10.2%, Sandbox 8.6%, Management 8.4%

Planet Coaster® - the future of coaster park simulation games has arrived! Surprise, delight and thrill incredible crowds as you build your coaster park empire - let your imagination run wild, and share your success with the world.

Why similar: Building 21.2%, City Builder 14%, Management 13.3%, Sandbox 13.1%, Simulation 11.3%

Subway Builder is a hyperrealistic transit simulation game. Build a new subway system from the ground up while dealing with real-world constraints and costs. Craft the subway system your city deserves.

Why similar: City Builder 34.5%, Building 13.2%, Simulation 10.4%, Management 9.8%, Strategy 6.7%

Transport Fever is a railroad-focused tycoon game. Players start in 1850 and build up a thriving transport company. As an emerging transport tycoon, the player constructs stations, airports, harbors and makes money by connecting areas requiring transport services. Build up your own Empire!

Why similar: City Builder 25.3%, Transportation 11.9% ★, Building 11.5%, Economy 10.5%, Sandbox 9.2%

Develop, expand, and advance your city in a society survival game set 30 years after an apocalyptic blizzard ravaged Earth. In Frostpunk 2, you face not only the perils of never-ending winter, but also the powerful factions that watch your every step inside the Council Hall.

Why similar: City Builder 65.4%, Resource Management 9.8%, Strategy 8.1%, Management 6.7%, Simulation 6.2%

Build your own Jurassic World. Nurture generations of dinosaurs with the series debut of juveniles, create and manage sprawling prehistoric parks around the globe, and let your imagination roar with powerful new creative options.

Why similar: City Builder 33.5%, Sandbox 13.2%, Simulation 10.8%, Economy 10.8%, Management 10.4%

Shape the Roman Empire in this genre-defining strategic builder game. Build cities while expanding your influence through Roman provinces. Govern using your economic prowess, diplomatic skills, or military might.

Why similar: City Builder 38.2%, Building 13.1%, Economy 12.1%, Sandbox 11.1%, Simulation 8.6%

Build & Manage Your Airport. An International Hub or a Regional Masterpiece -- it's up to you. Buy more land to scale out, or escalators to scale up with MULTIPLE FLOORS. You're in full control in this modern business management tycoon!

Why similar: City Builder 33.6%, Building 14.6%, Economy 13.9%, Management 11.4%, Sandbox 10.9%

Build a world for wildlife in Planet Zoo. From the developers of Planet Coaster and Zoo Tycoon comes the ultimate zoo sim. Construct detailed habitats, manage your zoo, and meet authentic living animals who think, feel and explore the world you create around them.

Why similar: City Builder 24.5%, Building 15.5%, Management 14.3%, Sandbox 10.9%, Economy 9.8%

The glory of Rome is at your fingertips in this city-building game where you must appease the gods, enact laws, and develop complex supply chains to meet the needs of your citizens.

Why similar: City Builder 28.9%, Building 12.1%, Economy 11.2%, Moddable 10.6% ★, Sandbox 9.5%

Don the coat of a clever entrepreneur, take over a small railway company in the early 1800s and turn your steam engines into the workhorses of the economy. Grow your company into the largest railway company of the continent and outsmart your competitors.

Why similar: City Builder 24.1%, Transportation 14.7% ★, Economy 11.6%, Building 11.5%, Management 10.2%

Design, build, and manage the world’s largest and most diverse cities in Cities XXL. Bigger and better than ever before with a more powerful game engine and new interface, become the mayor of your very own sprawling metropolis.

Why similar: City Builder 38.8%, Building 13%, Economy 11.3%, Management 8.2%, Simulation 7.8%

Build your own bus depot from scratch and create your personal bus routes in City Bus Manager. Play in your own hometown or any famous city in the world with real map data. Buy buses, maintain them, take care of your staff and lead your bus company to become the #1 in town!

Why similar: Economy 27%, Management 22.8%, Simulation 17.9%, Sandbox 14.3%, Strategy 6.2%

It’s the year 1850, and there are great times ahead! Establish a transport company and be its manager. Build infrastructure such as railways and stations, purchase transportation vehicles and manage lines. Fulfill the people’s needs and watch cities evolve dynamically.

Why similar: City Builder 21.2%, Economy 14.4%, Simulation 13.3%, Management 13.2%, Sandbox 8.8%

City Tales is a medieval city builder, allowing you to unleash your creativity and shape vast cities that break outside a traditional grid. Plan each district for your citizens needs and aid your companions in their tales, creating a city to be proud of!

Why similar: City Builder 38.5%, Building 17.2%, Economy 14.3%, Management 10.6%, Simulation 9.3%

Endzone 2 is a post-apocalyptic survival colony builder, where you embark to secure humanity's survival after a cataclysmic disaster. Discover and repopulate the last habitable grounds, while the survival of your people hinges on your wits, foresight, and resilience in a harsh and unforgiving world.

Why similar: City Builder 34.9%, Building 13.2%, Economy 11.8%, Sandbox 11.6%, Management 8%

Mini Motorways is a strategy simulation game about designing the road map for a growing city. Build a traffic network, one road at a time, to create a bustling metropolis. Redesign your roads and place your motorways to get everyone where they need to go. How long can you keep the city moving?

Why similar: City Builder 20.6%, Transportation 16.6% ★, Management 15.7%, Simulation 13.6%, Building 12.4%

Design and build the most efficient metro stations known to man! Excavate. Expand. Set staff priorities. And manage the commuter flow. Overcrowd is a 2.5D management/tycoon/simulator set below the bustling city of Lubdon Town.

Why similar: City Builder 30.8%, Building 13.8%, Management 11.7%, Sandbox 9.8%, Transportation 9.6% ★

Jurassic World Evolution 2 is the much-anticipated sequel to Frontier’s highly successful Jurassic World Evolution. This bold new era in the Jurassic World Evolution game franchise builds upon the ground-breaking and immersive 2018 management simulation.

Why similar: City Builder 24.6%, Building 19.7%, Management 13.2%, Sandbox 13.2%, Economy 9%

Voxel Tycoon is a management sim set in an infinite voxel world. Mine resources and process them into goods in your custom factories. Set up supply chains and passenger routes with a huge fleet of trains, trucks, and buses, and turn small towns into prosperous megacities with a thriving economy!

Why similar: Transportation 16.5% ★, City Builder 15.5%, Economy 12.4%, Management 11.3%, Building 10.5%

Establish a home for your industrious mice under the oppressive paw of your cat overlords in this city builder featuring complex simulations, intricate production chains, and the age-old rivalry between cat and mouse.

Why similar: City Builder 28.1%, Building 12.3%, Economy 11.3%, Moddable 10.9% ★, Sandbox 9.5%

The award-winning sci-fi city builder is back - remastered, expanded and even more stunning. Colonize Mars and survive the process, from exploration and infrastructure to welcoming colonists and achieving long-term stability. Are you ready? Mars is waiting.

Why similar: City Builder 32.9%, Building 11.6%, Economy 11.2%, Moddable 10.2% ★, Management 8.3%

Ancient Cities is a realistic, survival city builder in an immersive procedural environment. Lead the fate of your tribe through ancient times!

Why similar: City Builder 33.2%, Moddable 12.9% ★, Economy 10%, Management 9.1%, Building 8.3%

Place yourself at the heart of the Jurassic franchise and build your own Jurassic World. Bioengineer dinosaurs that think, feel and react intelligently to the world around them and face threats posed by espionage, breakouts and devastating tropical storms in an uncertain world where life always finds a way.

Why similar: Building 23.6%, City Builder 20.6%, Management 14.7%, Sandbox 11.7%, Simulation 10.3%

The 20th century heralds the new age of electrification for the railroad, and a new opportunity to make your fortune. Build your corporation carefully, as you deploy modern electric and diesel locomotives, lay new tracks, transport goods and passengers, and stay ahead of the competition.

Why similar: City Builder 22.1%, Building 14.3%, Transportation 12.4% ★, Economy 12.2%, Sandbox 10.4%

Park Beyond is a theme park simulation game that gives you the freedom to create and manage the Parks of your Dreams! Whether you love to manage finances and visitor experience, or just create fun and cozy parks, the game has something in store just for you!

Why similar: Building 20.8%, Management 16.3%, Sandbox 15.2%, City Builder 14.6%, Simulation 12.1%

Project Highrise is a skyscraper construction and management sim...

Why similar: Building 25.2%, Management 22.5%, Simulation 14.6%, City Builder 11.6%, Sandbox 8.8%

Curate and manage incredible museums! Explore to discover amazing artifacts. Design and refine the layout, keep staff happy, guests entertained, donations plentiful… and children off the exhibits

Why similar: City Builder 34.3%, Building 17%, Sandbox 11.3%, Economy 9.9%, Simulation 9.8%

From barren land to towering metropolis, every decision you make shapes the destiny of your city. Industrial flow, global trade, surging land values, and growing wealth, offers deep management gameplay, perfect for players who love strategic city-building and economic simulation.

Why similar: City Builder 40.6%, Building 17.2%, Economy 15.8%, Sandbox 12.7%, Simulation 10%