Prison Architect on Steam - User reviews, Price & Information

Quick menu

Only the world’s most ruthless Warden can contain the world’s most ruthless inmates. Design and develop your personalized penitentiary in Prison Architect.

Prison Architect is a simulation, building and sandbox game developed by Double Eleven and Introversion Software and published by Paradox Interactive.
Released on October 06th 2015 is available on Windows, MacOS and Linux in 15 languages: English, French, Italian, German, Korean, Polish, Portuguese - Brazil, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish - Spain, Dutch, Japanese, Swedish, Traditional Chinese and Turkish.

It has received 72,330 reviews of which 64,439 were positive and 7,891 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.8 out of 10. 😎

The game is currently priced at 24.99€ on Steam, but you can find it for 1.10€ on Gamivo.

The Steam community has classified Prison Architect into these genres:

Simulation Building Sandbox Base-Building Colony Sim Strategy Management City Builder 2D Top-Down Multiplayer Resource Management Economy Singleplayer Moddable Capitalism Funny Replay Value Indie Casual

Media & Screenshots

Get an in-depth look at Prison Architect through various videos and screenshots.

System requirements

These are the minimum specifications needed to play the game. For the best experience, we recommend that you verify them.

Windows

OS:Windows® 10 Home 64 Bit
Processor:Intel Core2 Duo 2.4Ghz or Higher / AMD 3Ghz or Higher
Memory:6 GB RAM
Graphics:Nvidia 8600 / Radeon equivalent (2009 era)
Hard Drive:400 MB HD space

MacOS

Processor:2009 era Macbook Pro, Core2 Duo processor
Memory:6 GB RAM
Hard Drive:400 MB HD space

Linux

OS: Ubuntu 18 or later
Processor: Intel Core2 Duo 2.4Ghz or Higher / AMD 3Ghz or Higher
Memory: 6 GB RAM
Graphics: Nvidia 8600 / Radeon equivalent (2009 era)
Hard Drive: 500 MB HD space

User reviews & Ratings

Explore reviews from Steam users sharing their experiences and what they love about the game.

May 2025

Great with mods, base game is a bit buggy though. Unfortunately the game has been discontinued.

Oct. 2024

Overall it's a pretty good game, however it's obvious that Paradox has left important and notable updates aside instead adding irrelevant content and features with little to none bug fixes (and this game has a considerable ammount of bugs, specially in the campaign). Meanwhile, relevant additions usually come in the form of DLCs, which some of them should have been just normal updates (so nothing new coming from Paradox after all), and now that Paradox seems to be focusing on Prison Architect 2, it seems that this game will just get completely abandoned. From my personal experience, this game is fun at the beginning, but after some days it might get repetitive and boring, especially Escape Mode (in which by just using a lighter you can escape any prison), however it has a certain replayability as this is the type of game you'll be leaving and coming back to over the months or even years. I'd say this game is fun and worth giving a try, however don't expect more content or updates being added, and the upcoming Prison Architect 2 might be more worth it after all, who knows.

Aug. 2024

Prison Architect is one of those games, kind of like the sims, with which you occasionally have the brief moments of clarity where you realize that you're wasting your time scheduling and organizing the lives of simulated people and you get the sudden urge to do something productive in real life like build some furniture or take a cooking class. Thankfully these moments pass and you can go back to playing the game.

July 2024

Spent hours making an escape-proof prison. Inmates escaped within minutes. New career in security, maybe?

June 2024

This is a fun game. It's challenging. Although there are times where the simulation seems to be not performing tasks for unknown reasons, you can typically figure it out after some time. I'd say the biggest challenge in this game is just getting a fully functioning prison that can house 50 inmates without constant danger and incidents. You have to really balance how fast you expand and build. It's a lot of trial and error. Every addition to your prison needs a few days of time to settle in before you add more rooms and things to do. Be careful with taking on too much! And focus on security, patrols and informants. Don't forget to play the game within the game, or everything will turn to chaos. Have fun. I love all of you, forever.

Similar games

View all

Founders' Fortune A fantasy village builder focusing on creative building, colonist psychology and base defense. Handle resources, farming, production, tools, diplomacy, families, trading, defense, and research, as well as the wishes, expectations, thoughts, and equipment of every villager.

Similarity 84%

Price -98% 0.38€

Rating 7.7

Release 18 Dec 2020

View

Empires of the Undergrowth Command swarms of warriors at an unprecedented scale of warfare in this blend of RTS and base-building. Lead ant colonies against the many fearsome threats of the insect world, while building intricate nests, developing pheromone-based tactics, and evolving to meet growing dangers.

Similarity 84%

Price -77% 7.09€

Rating 9.2

Release 07 Jun 2024

View

Blacksmith Master Manage your own medieval smithy in Blacksmith Master and supervise the entire process from mining ores and gems to designing and selling finished products. Forge everything from weapons and armor to tools and cooking utensils to fund your craft and become the Blacksmith Master.

Similarity 83%

Price -57% 8.73€

Rating 8.0

Release 15 May 2025

View

Workers & Resources: Soviet Republic 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.

Similarity 83%

Price -66% 13.75€

Rating 8.9

Release 20 Jun 2024

View

Academia : School Simulator Design, build, and manage a high school with terrific teachers and fantastic facilities or simply let your students poop in the bushes? Academia : School Simulator is a management/tycoon game where you get to decide!

Similarity 82%

Price 19.99€

Rating 8.2

Release 28 Jan 2021

View

Against the Storm A dark fantasy city builder where you must rebuild civilization in the face of apocalyptic rains. As the Queen’s Viceroy, lead humans, beavers, lizards, foxes, and harpies to reclaim the wilderness and secure a future for civilization's last survivors.

Similarity 82%

Price -94% 2.04€

Rating 9.3

Release 08 Dec 2023

View

First Feudal Become a real medieval feudal lord: start with a small village and build it up into an enormous impenetrable castle. You will have to repel enemy raids: hide behind thick walls, lure your enemies into strategically placed traps, and even lead your loyal peasants into battle.

Similarity 79%

Price 18.49€

Rating 7.3

Release 08 Apr 2021

View

Techtonica Techtonica is a first-person factory automation game with a gripping mystery about mining your way out from the depths of an alien planet. Explore bioluminescent caves, mold destructible terrain, construct a massive subterranean factory. Dig your way toward answers & discover the secrets of Calyx.

Similarity 78%

Price 28.99€

Rating 6.6

Release 07 Nov 2024

View

Clanfolk Clanfolk is a colony sim set in the Scottish Highlands. Harness your environment to survive - fish, gather, hunt, and farm as you prepare for the winter. Build an inn, trade with other clans, have children and marry them off - live life and prosper across the generations.

Similarity 78%

Price -73% 8.19€

Rating 8.8

Release 14 Jul 2022

View

Catizens Inspired by RimWorld and The Sims, Catizens is a colony management simulation game where you watch over unique cats with quirky personalities, as you help them build and grow their settlement while exploring new lands, facing off against wildlife and overcoming the challenges of each environment.

Similarity 78%

Price -97% 0.64€

Rating 7.8

Release 14 Nov 2024

View

SimCasino Modern Casino Tycoon Simulation in full 3D glory. Build the casino. Set the odds. Expand into a luxury hotel/casino or go cheap & extract max profits. Keep the vault secure at all times, and beware of criminals & cheaters!!

Similarity 78%

Price -40% 14.75€

Rating 7.1

Release 16 Nov 2021

View

Another Brick in The Mall Design, build and manage a giant shopping center. Open shops, supermarkets, restaurants, movie theaters, bowling alleys and more. Hire and manage the best staff for the job and milk your customers for all they're worth!

Similarity 77%

Price 14.99€

Rating 8.0

Release 30 Apr 2020

View

More games like Prison Architect

Frequently Asked Questions

Prison Architect is currently priced at 24.99€ on Steam.

Prison Architect is currently not on sale. You can purchase it for 24.99€ on Steam.

Prison Architect received 64,439 positive votes out of a total of 72,330 achieving a rating of 8.77.

😎

Prison Architect was developed by Double Eleven and Introversion Software and published by Paradox Interactive.

Prison Architect is playable and fully supported on Windows.

Prison Architect is playable and fully supported on MacOS.

Prison Architect is playable and fully supported on Linux.

Prison Architect is a single-player game.

There are 12 DLCs available for Prison Architect. Explore additional content available for Prison Architect on Steam.

Prison Architect is fully integrated with Steam Workshop. Visit Steam Workshop.

Prison Architect does not support Steam Remote Play.

Prison Architect is enabled for Steam Family Sharing. This means you can share the game with authorized users from your Steam Library, allowing them to play it on their own accounts. For more details on how the feature works, you can read the original Steam Family Sharing announcement or visit the Steam Family Sharing user guide and FAQ page.

You can find solutions or submit a support ticket by visiting the Steam Support page for Prison Architect.

Data sources

The information presented on this page is sourced from reliable APIs to ensure accuracy and relevance. We utilize the Steam API to gather data on game details, including titles, descriptions, prices, and user reviews. This allows us to provide you with the most up-to-date information directly from the Steam platform.

Additionally, we incorporate data from the SteamSpy API, which offers insights into game sales and player statistics. This helps us present a comprehensive view of each game's popularity and performance within the gaming community.

Last Updates

Steam data	04 June 2025 11:27
SteamSpy data	10 June 2025 05:28
Steam price	15 June 2025 04:43
Steam reviews	13 June 2025 00:06

If you'd like to dive deeper into the details about Prison Architect, we invite you to check out a few dedicated websites that offer extensive information and insights. These platforms provide valuable data, analysis, and user-generated reports to enhance your understanding of the game and its performance.

SteamDB - A comprehensive database of everything on Steam about Prison Architect
SteamCharts - Analysis of Prison Architect concurrent players on Steam
ProtonDB - Crowdsourced reports on Linux and Steam Deck Prison Architect compatibility