Best Automation games on Steam
Unlike generic lists, our strategy game recommendations use a rigorous analysis of Steam user reviews to identify and feature only the best, community-validated automation games. For those who prefer not to search, lists of the most played, top deals and best free automation games are available at the bottom of the page.
Filters & Lists
Autonauts vs Piratebots
Create, automate and defend an impenetrable base. Assemble and command a Bot army to combat an entire Piratebot invasion. Build, program and battle your way through five different zones.
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.
Good Company
Good Company is an in-depth management sim about building a trail-blazing tech corporation. Assemble complex production lines, manage employee logistics, and sell high-quality products on the market to become the best company in the whole county!
Freshly Frosted
Place conveyor belts to solve puzzles in the world's most adorable donut factory!
The Last Clockwinder
A VR puzzle-automation game. Create intricate clockwork contraptions out of your own clones and restore life to an ancient tree using automation, a collection of rare plants from across the galaxy and a team of clockwork gardeners.
Captain of Industry
Land your crew of survivors on an abandoned island and survive! Mine raw materials, grow food, build factories, manufacture products, research new tech, and trade with others. Become an industrial superpower! But this is no easy task, you will be put to the test to keep your settlement alive.
Trimps
A text-based incremental idle game with a ridiculous amount of unique content. Automate old stuff as you unlock new stuff to keep things interesting for hours and hours, no spam clicking necessary! Trimps is everything you love about your favorite games, distilled to their purest form.
Idle Spiral
This is a beautiful "Idle", "Incremental" game based on spirals and mathematics. Your goal is to make the spiral grow farther and farther from the origin. The game is very simple, but it is very deep and can be enjoyed for a long time!
Dungeon Alchemist
Dungeon Alchemist is mapmaking software for tabletop RPG's that enables you to make amazing, high-quality maps in seconds!
Poop Clicker
Have you always wanted to be a king, but all the kingdoms are already taken? Try to be the Poop King in the Poop Clicker game! A magical unicorn, sweet corn and others will help you with this! Unlock special upgrades, but take your time, because haste makes waste!
Smart Factory Tycoon: Beginnings
This is a free version of Smart Factory Tycoon, a game inspired by Little Big Workshop introducing the first productions. Smart Factory Tycoon is a tycoon management game where you design your dream factory with robots, plan all steps of production, research new technologies and become a tycoon!
Kubifaktorium
Build, manage and grow a thriving colony in Kubifaktorium. The game features different biomes to explore, plenty of resources to exploit, complex machinery to build and interesting production chains to master.
Melvor Idle
Inspired by RuneScape, Melvor Idle takes the core of what makes an adventure game so addictive and strips it down to its purest form! This is a feature-rich, idle/incremental game combining a distinctly familiar feel with a fresh gameplay experience. Maxing 20+ skills has never been more zen.
Factory Town
Build, automate, and optimize a giant factory on 3D terrain using conveyor belts, trains, chutes, pipes, and airships. Sell your goods to nearby villages to expand their borders, increase happiness, and unlock even better technology!
JUNKPUNK
JUNKPUNK is a factory management, base building, exploration game where a New World Robotics ship has crash landed. You and any survivors must restore this ruined planet and prepare it for habitable life. Craft, build, explore, discover, and grow to terraform the planet.
Turing Complete
Learn CPU architecture with puzzles
The Signal State
Set in a post-apocalyptic future, The Signal State puts your logic skills to the test with complex puzzles inspired by modular synthesizers. Repair machines, rebuild an abandoned farm, and be part of a revolution that will change the fate of agriculture once and for all.
Timberborn
Humans are long gone. In a world struck by droughts and toxic waste, will your lumberpunk beavers do any better? A city-building game featuring ingenious animals, vertical architecture, water physics, and terraforming. Contains high amounts of wood.
Idle Monster TD
An endless Tower Defense game of epic Monsters vs evil War Machines. Unlock and upgrade tons of unique elemental Monsters (Water, Air, Earth, and Fire) to defend your home from an infinite swarm of robots. Strategize the most effective placement of Monsters to synergize their elemental abilities.
Crypto Mining Simulator
Realistic Mining simulator with custom builds mechanics! A lot of GPUs, CPUs, Motherboards, RAMs, SSDs, PSUs and more! Build your dream farm with 1000+ GPUs!
Voxel Tycoon
Voxel Tycoon — a management sim set in the infinite voxel world. Mine resources and process them into goods on 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!
GolfTopia
DESIGN, BUILD and MANAGE your own futuristic golf course. Keep 200 persistent visitors fed, hydrated, and happy. Defend your creation from a growing infestation of weeds with robotic workers and defensive turrets. Evolve your course into a mega resort where nobody wants to go home, EVER!Most played automation games on Steam
Take a look at the top automation games that are currently attracting the largest player bases on the Steam platform, as of April 30th 2025.
1. Factorio
Factorio is a game about building and creating automated factories to produce items of increasing complexity, within an infinite 2D world. Use your imagination to design your factory, combine simple elements into ingenious structures, and finally protect it from the creatures who don't really like you. Factorio is a automation, base-building and resource management game developed and published by Wube Software LTD.. Released on August 14th 2020 has received 213,390 reviews of which 206,974 were positive and 6,416 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.6 out of 10. The game has hit the top spot as the #1 most played automation game, thanks to its 13,456 peak concurrent players over the last day.
9.6
206,974
6,416
13,456
players
2. Satisfactory
Satisfactory is a first-person open-world factory building game with a dash of exploration and combat. Play alone or with friends, explore an alien planet, create multi-story factories, and enter conveyor belt heaven! Satisfactory is a base-building, automation and open world game developed by Coffee Stain Studios and published by Coffee Stain Publishing. Released on September 10th 2024 has received 229,040 reviews of which 222,475 were positive and 6,565 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.6 out of 10. While seeing 12,693 players online at once in the last 24 hours, this game is currently ranked #2 among automation games based on player count.
9.6
222,475
6,565
12,693
players
3. Dyson Sphere Program
Build the most efficient intergalactic factory in space simulation strategy game Dyson Sphere Program! Harness the power of stars, collect resources, plan and design production lines and develop your interstellar factory from a small space workshop to a galaxy-wide industrial empire. Dyson Sphere Program is a automation, space and base-building game developed by Youthcat Studio and published by Gamirror Games. Released on January 20th 2021 has received 84,667 reviews of which 82,683 were positive and 1,984 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.6 out of 10. While seeing 1,702 players online at once in the last 24 hours, this game is currently ranked #3 among automation games based on player count.
9.6
82,683
1,984
1,702
players
4. AdVenture Capitalist
Welcome, eager young investor, to AdVenture Capitalist! Arguably the world's greatest Capitalism simulator! AdVenture Capitalist is a clicker, idler and capitalism game developed and published by Hyper Hippo Games. Released on March 30th 2015 has received 58,982 reviews of which 51,815 were positive and 7,167 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.7 out of 10. With 1,322 concurrent players in the last 24 hours, the game currently holds the #4 spot among the most played automation games.
8.7
51,815
7,167
1,322
players
5. Mindustry
An open-ended factory management game with RTS and tower defense elements. Mindustry is a base-building, resource management and tower defense game developed and published by AnukenDev. Released on September 26th 2019 has received 21,635 reviews of which 20,742 were positive and 893 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.4 out of 10. With 919 concurrent players in the last 24 hours, the game currently holds the #5 spot among the most played automation games.
9.4
20,742
893
919
players
6. Trimps
A text-based incremental idle game with a ridiculous amount of unique content. Automate old stuff as you unlock new stuff to keep things interesting for hours and hours, no spam clicking necessary! Trimps is everything you love about your favorite games, distilled to their purest form. Trimps is a idler, strategy and free to play game developed and published by Greensatellite. Released on May 02nd 2022 has received 1,265 reviews of which 1,154 were positive and 111 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.6 out of 10. With 813 concurrent players in the last 24 hours, the game currently holds the #6 spot among the most played automation games.
8.6
1,154
111
813
players
7. Captain of Industry
Land your crew of survivors on an abandoned island and survive! Mine raw materials, grow food, build factories, manufacture products, research new tech, and trade with others. Become an industrial superpower! But this is no easy task, you will be put to the test to keep your settlement alive. Captain of Industry is a base-building, automation and resource management game developed and published by MaFi Games. Released on May 31st 2022 has received 6,505 reviews of which 6,139 were positive and 366 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.1 out of 10. With 778 concurrent players in the last 24 hours, the game currently holds the #7 spot among the most played automation games.
9.1
6,139
366
778
players
8. Rusty's Retirement
A relaxing idle-farming simulator that sits at the bottom of your screen while you do other things. Rusty's Retirement is a farming sim, idler and automation game developed and published by Mister Morris Games. Released on April 26th 2024 has received 12,482 reviews of which 12,106 were positive and 376 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.4 out of 10. With 591 concurrent players in the last 24 hours, the game currently holds the #8 spot among the most played automation games.
9.4
12,106
376
591
players
9. The Perfect Tower II
The Perfect Tower II is a mix between an incremental and a tower defense game. Build a town, manage resources and explore a variety of mini-games and tons of upgrades. Fully automate your game and watch numbers going up! The Perfect Tower II is a strategy, idler and tower defense game developed and published by Fire Sword Studios. Released on February 26th 2021 has received 3,598 reviews of which 3,169 were positive and 429 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.5 out of 10. With 543 concurrent players in the last 24 hours, the game currently holds the #9 spot among the most played automation games.
8.5
3,169
429
543
players
10. Bitburner
Bitburner is a programming-based incremental game. Write scripts in JavaScript to automate gameplay, learn skills, play minigames, solve puzzles, and more in this cyberpunk text-based incremental RPG. Bitburner is a programming, idler and automation game developed by Fulcrum Games, Hydroflame and over 250 github contributors and published by Fulcrum Games. Released on December 10th 2021 has received 6,560 reviews of which 6,241 were positive and 319 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.2 out of 10. With 508 concurrent players in the last 24 hours, the game currently holds the #10 spot among the most played automation games.
9.2
6,241
319
508
players
Best deals on automation games on Steam
Discover fantastic savings with the best discounts on a variety of automation games available on Steam right now, updated on April 30th 2025. Looking for even more deals? Use the search filters to explore a wider range of discounted automation games.
1. Last Call BBS
Boot up your Z5 Powerlance and dial into Last Call BBS, the last game from Zachtronics! The Barkeep’s loaded up his retro computer with a full set of puzzle games for you to download and play. No need to worry about copy protection, they’re all fully cracked and ready to enjoy! Last Call BBS is a puzzle, retro and automation game developed and published by Zachtronics. Released on August 03rd 2022 has received 1,384 reviews of which 1,280 were positive and 104 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.8 out of 10. Featuring a massive 95% discount, this game currently holds the #1 spot in the best deals for automation category.
8.8
1,280
104
-95%
20.00€
1.00€
2. Autonauts vs Piratebots
Create, automate and defend an impenetrable base. Assemble and command a Bot army to combat an entire Piratebot invasion. Build, program and battle your way through five different zones. Autonauts vs Piratebots is a simulation, strategy and automation game developed by Denki and published by Curve Games. Released on July 28th 2022 has received 480 reviews of which 380 were positive and 100 were negative resulting in a rating of 7.5 out of 10. Thanks to its incredible 95% discount, this game is now the #2 best deal in automation games.
7.5
380
100
-95%
20.00€
1.00€
3. Autonauts
In Autonauts you must build, create, and automate. Start by establishing a colony, crafting bots and teaching them via Scratch-style programming to build an ever evolving autonomous paradise of agriculture, industry and enlightenment. Autonauts is a simulation, programming and automation game developed by Denki and published by Curve Games. Released on October 17th 2019 has received 4,758 reviews of which 4,258 were positive and 500 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.6 out of 10. Thanks to its incredible 90% discount, this game is now the #3 best deal in automation games.
8.6
4,258
500
-90%
20.60€
2.06€
4. shapez
shapez is an easy-going, minimalistic factory building game about the automation of shapes through extraction and satisfying production lines. Adapt to increasingly complex shapes and grow your factory across an infinitely expanding map. Your only limitation is your creativity! shapez is a automation, base-building and resource management game developed by Tobias Springer and published by tobspr Games and Doyoyo Games. Released on June 07th 2020 has received 13,549 reviews of which 13,038 were positive and 511 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.4 out of 10. Currently offered at a significant 88% discount, this title has earned the #4 position in the best deals for automation games.
9.4
13,038
511
-88%
9.83€
1.18€
5. Automachef
Welcome to Automachef, a resource management puzzler where you design kitchens, program machinery and watch your genius come to life! It’s time to engineer tomorrow’s kitchen, today! Automachef is a simulation, indie and automation game developed by Rhombico Games and published by Team17 Digital Ltd. Released on July 23rd 2019 has received 860 reviews of which 619 were positive and 241 were negative resulting in a rating of 6.9 out of 10. Currently offered at a significant 86% discount, this title has earned the #5 position in the best deals for automation games.
6.9
619
241
-86%
15.21€
2.13€
6. Return from Core
Dig, explore, build, farm, automate, and meet charming Monster Girls in this sandbox RPG. Build your camp, plant crops, set up automated production lines and prepare for an unforgettable adventure! Return from Core is a crafting, survival and automation game developed by Tanxun Studio and published by 2P Games and Shochiku. Released on December 15th 2023 has received 993 reviews of which 733 were positive and 260 were negative resulting in a rating of 7.1 out of 10. Currently offered at a significant 63% discount, this title has earned the #6 position in the best deals for automation games.
7.1
733
260
-63%
16.46€
6.09€
7. Mindustry
An open-ended factory management game with RTS and tower defense elements. Mindustry is a base-building, resource management and tower defense game developed and published by AnukenDev. Released on September 26th 2019 has received 21,635 reviews of which 20,742 were positive and 893 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.4 out of 10. Currently offered at a significant 60% discount, this title has earned the #7 position in the best deals for automation games.
9.4
20,742
893
-60%
9.99€
3.99€
8. SHENZHEN I/O
BUILD CIRCUITS. WRITE CODE. RTFM. SHENZHEN I/O is a programming, automation and puzzle game developed and published by Zachtronics. Released on November 17th 2016 has received 4,137 reviews of which 3,934 were positive and 203 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.1 out of 10. Currently offered at a significant 58% discount, this title has earned the #8 position in the best deals for automation games.
9.1
3,934
203
-58%
14.69€
6.17€
9. The Crust
Automate a lunar base as you become the savior of humanity exploring the future on the moon. Mine, craft, research, and trade resources with Earth in this gripping narrative basebuilder. The Crust is a early access, base-building and space game developed by VEOM Studio and published by Crytivo. Released on July 15th 2024 has received 2,521 reviews of which 1,944 were positive and 577 were negative resulting in a rating of 7.5 out of 10. Currently offered at a significant 52% discount, this title has earned the #9 position in the best deals for automation games.
7.5
1,944
577
-52%
29.15€
13.99€
10. Astro Colony
Explore endless Universe and create the most efficient constellation of colonies. Build conveyor systems to automate production. Take care of Astronauts and their needs! Establish new colonies as part of intergalactic simulation. Astro Colony is a base-building, automation and early access game developed and published by Terad Games. Released on November 07th 2022 has received 2,223 reviews of which 1,828 were positive and 395 were negative resulting in a rating of 7.9 out of 10. Currently offered at a 50% discount, this title has earned the #10 position in the best deals for automation games.
7.9
1,828
395
-50%
19.50€
9.75€
Free automation games on Steam
Check out this fantastic list of free-to-play automation games you can enjoy on Steam right now, updated on April 30th 2025. Looking for even more free titles? Use the search filters to explore a wider range of free to play automation games.
1. AdVenture Capitalist
Welcome, eager young investor, to AdVenture Capitalist! Arguably the world's greatest Capitalism simulator! AdVenture Capitalist is a clicker, idler and capitalism game developed and published by Hyper Hippo Games. Released on March 30th 2015 has received 58,982 reviews of which 51,815 were positive and 7,167 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.7 out of 10. With 1,322 active players enjoying it for free, this strategy game has reached the #1 spot among the top free automation games on Steam.
8.7
51,815
7,167
1,322
players
2. Trimps
A text-based incremental idle game with a ridiculous amount of unique content. Automate old stuff as you unlock new stuff to keep things interesting for hours and hours, no spam clicking necessary! Trimps is everything you love about your favorite games, distilled to their purest form. Trimps is a idler, strategy and free to play game developed and published by Greensatellite. Released on May 02nd 2022 has received 1,265 reviews of which 1,154 were positive and 111 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.6 out of 10. Thanks to its free to play tag and a daily player base of 813, this automation game has secured the #2 spot in the ranking of free automation games on Steam.
8.6
1,154
111
813
players
3. The Perfect Tower II
The Perfect Tower II is a mix between an incremental and a tower defense game. Build a town, manage resources and explore a variety of mini-games and tons of upgrades. Fully automate your game and watch numbers going up! The Perfect Tower II is a strategy, idler and tower defense game developed and published by Fire Sword Studios. Released on February 26th 2021 has received 3,598 reviews of which 3,169 were positive and 429 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.5 out of 10. Thanks to its free to play tag and a daily player base of 543, this automation game has secured the #3 spot in the ranking of free automation games on Steam.
8.5
3,169
429
543
players
4. Bitburner
Bitburner is a programming-based incremental game. Write scripts in JavaScript to automate gameplay, learn skills, play minigames, solve puzzles, and more in this cyberpunk text-based incremental RPG. Bitburner is a programming, idler and automation game developed by Fulcrum Games, Hydroflame and over 250 github contributors and published by Fulcrum Games. Released on December 10th 2021 has received 6,560 reviews of which 6,241 were positive and 319 were negative resulting in an impressive rating of 9.2 out of 10. Attracting a solid base of 508 players due to its free access, this strategy game has achieved the #4 position in the best free automation games on Steam.
9.2
6,241
319
508
players
5. Alpha League
Alpha League is a free-to-play, hero based Auto Chess. In Alpha League, simply pick and build your favorite hero in a Roguelike fashion with 12 different combat genres, and then battle the other 7 Bots or Players to be the winner. Alpha League is a auto battler, turn-based tactics and roguelite game developed and published by Beaveroid Entertainment. Released on February 22nd 2024 has received 1,229 reviews of which 1,031 were positive and 198 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.0 out of 10. Attracting a solid base of 257 players due to its free access, this strategy game has achieved the #5 position in the best free automation games on Steam.
8.0
1,031
198
257
players
6. CivIdle
CivIdle is an idle/incremental game that allows you to lead your own civilization through thousands of years from ancient times to the modern era. Expand your territory, explore a vast tech tree, build various wonders, and trade with global players: empire must grow and numbers must go up! CivIdle is a early access, idler and base building game developed by FishPond and published by Fish Pond Studio. Released on February 16th 2024 has received 606 reviews of which 456 were positive and 150 were negative resulting in a rating of 7.2 out of 10. Attracting a solid base of 231 players due to its free access, this strategy game has achieved the #6 position in the best free automation games on Steam.
7.2
456
150
231
players
7. Incremental Adventures
Lead your heroes in their neverending adventures! A minimalistic Idle game where combat is fully automated. It's up to you to make the most of that automation to reach extremely high numbers! Incremental Adventures is a idler, automation and text-based game developed and published by Gniller. Released on August 11th 2020 has received 774 reviews of which 605 were positive and 169 were negative resulting in a rating of 7.4 out of 10. Attracting a solid base of 109 players due to its free access, this strategy game has achieved the #7 position in the best free automation games on Steam.
7.4
605
169
109
players
8. Industry Idle
Industry Idle is an idle game that combines factory building, resource management and market trading. Design & build your base, expand & scale up your productions, improve & optimize your economy. Plus all the incremental game goodies: offline earnings, prestige to unlock more powerful upgrades. Industry Idle is a automation, idler and resource management game developed by FishPond and published by Fish Pond Studio. Released on September 13th 2024 has received 1,354 reviews of which 1,054 were positive and 300 were negative resulting in a rating of 7.5 out of 10. The game currently holds the #8 spot among the most played free automation games on Steam.
7.5
1,054
300
51
players
9. Prospector: The First Contract
As the Prospector in this Prologue chapter, you will be taking on your first contract. Explore new planets, gather resources, build your fully automated base, and ship materials to distant colonies. Prospector: The First Contract is a open world survival craft, sandbox and survival game developed by Loonworks Games and published by HypeTrain Digital. Released on July 12th 2024 has received 496 reviews of which 457 were positive and 39 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.6 out of 10. The game currently holds the #9 spot among the most played free automation games on Steam.
8.6
457
39
1
players