Best Building indie games under $20
These are the best building indie games you can buy for under $20. indielist lists 83 paid building games with a list price at or below $20, ranked by Steam review count so the most-validated picks lead. The average list price here is $15.74, and the cheapest is Cookie Clicker at $4.99. The most reviewed is Terraria with 1,218,154 Steam reviews. Beyond the budget end, this wider list adds 66 mid-price picks between $10 and $20 that a stricter under-$10 list leaves out. Every price is the tracked Steam list price, not an estimate, and each game links to a white-box sales estimate you can open and audit rather than a black-box number. This is a value list: a sensible price crossed with real player validation, so you can find a building game that is actually good, not just affordable. Free-to-play titles are excluded here; this is about paid games that punch above their price.
Games
83
Avg list price
$15.74
Cheapest
$4.99
- T
Terraria
2011 · Action
$9.99 1,218,154 reviews · 97% positive
- G
Garry's Mod
2006 · Casual
$9.99 1,072,116 reviews · 97% positive
- S
Stardew Valley
2016 · Indie
$14.99 870,552 reviews · 98% positive
- A
ARK: Survival Evolved
2017 · Action
$14.99 579,791 reviews · 83% positive
- T
The Forest
2018 · Action
$19.99 572,957 reviews · 96% positive
- V
Valheim
2021 · Action
$19.99 453,292 reviews · 94% positive
- P
Project Zomboid
2013 · Indie
$19.99 344,149 reviews · 94% positive
- R
Raft
2022 · Adventure
$19.99 318,498 reviews · 93% positive
- P
People Playground
2019 · Action
$9.99 293,591 reviews · 98% positive
- S
Schedule I
2025 · Action
$19.99 276,252 reviews · 98% positive
- S
Starbound
2016 · Action
$14.99 120,582 reviews · 90% positive
- M
My Summer Car
2025 · Indie
$14.99 105,569 reviews · 95% positive
- S
Scrap Mechanic
2016 · Action
$19.99 104,965 reviews · 92% positive
- C
Cookie Clicker
2021 · Casual
$4.99 85,892 reviews · 96% positive
- D
Dyson Sphere Program
2021 · Indie
$19.99 82,756 reviews · 97% positive
- S
Supermarket Simulator
2025 · Casual
$19.99 77,801 reviews · 92% positive
- W
WorldBox - God Simulator
2021 · Indie
$19.99 49,191 reviews · 95% positive
- C
Core Keeper
2024 · Action
$19.99 48,849 reviews · 93% positive
- F
Forager
2019 · Action
$19.99 43,580 reviews · 90% positive
- S
Stranded Deep
2022 · Adventure
$19.99 43,274 reviews · 74% positive
- P
PC Building Simulator
2019 · Indie
$19.99 41,949 reviews · 94% positive
- G
Graveyard Keeper
2018 · Adventure
$19.99 38,701 reviews · 85% positive
- B
Banished
2014 · Indie
$19.99 37,741 reviews · 90% positive
- S
Stacklands
2022 · Casual
$7.99 29,610 reviews · 96% positive
- D
Dinkum
2025 · Adventure
$19.99 28,794 reviews · 92% positive
- F
Fields of Mistria
2024 · Indie
$13.99 28,045 reviews · 98% positive
- H
Hydroneer
2020 · Adventure
$14.99 27,976 reviews · 86% positive
- N
Necesse
2025 · Action
$14.99 27,331 reviews · 93% positive
- G
Gas Station Simulator
2021 · Casual
$19.99 27,184 reviews · 88% positive
- M
Mindustry
2019 · Strategy
$9.99 26,869 reviews · 96% positive
- F
Forts
2017 · Action
$14.99 24,805 reviews · 92% positive
- D
Darkwood
2017 · Action
$14.99 24,331 reviews · 95% positive
- M
Mini Motorways
2021 · Casual
$9.99 23,962 reviews · 96% positive
- T
Tiny Glade
2024 · Casual
$14.99 23,876 reviews · 97% positive
- T
Thronefall
2024 · Action
$12.99 23,080 reviews · 96% positive
- T
Townscaper
2021 · Casual
$5.99 21,532 reviews · 95% positive
- D
Dungeon Defenders
2011 · Action
$14.99 18,870 reviews · 93% positive
- T
Travellers Rest
2020 · Adventure
$17.99 17,470 reviews · 88% positive
- M
Mini Metro
2015 · Indie
$9.99 16,532 reviews · 96% positive
- G
Gold Mining Simulator
2017 · Indie
$19.99 16,185 reviews · 73% positive
- S
shapez
2020 · Casual
$9.99 15,505 reviews · 96% positive
- S
Subsistence
2016 · Action
$13.99 13,700 reviews · 72% positive
- T
Tavern Master
2021 · Simulation
$14.99 13,010 reviews · 92% positive
- C
Cosmoteer: Starship Architect & Commander
2022 · Simulation
$19.99 12,655 reviews · 94% positive
- T
The Quinfall
2026 · Massively Multiplayer
$9.99 12,515 reviews · 52% positive
- L
Luma Island
2024 · Adventure
$19.99 12,379 reviews · 84% positive
- K
Kingdom Rush 5: Alliance TD
2024 · Indie
$19.99 11,324 reviews · 88% positive
- K
Kingdom Rush Frontiers - Tower Defense
2016 · Strategy
$9.99 10,451 reviews · 97% positive
- P
Planetbase
2015 · Indie
$14.99 10,342 reviews · 80% positive
- A
Ale & Tale Tavern
2024 · Action
$14.99 9,935 reviews · 89% positive
- (
(the) Gnorp Apologue
2023 · Casual
$6.99 9,716 reviews · 95% positive
- S
Spaceflight Simulator
2022 · Indie
$14.99 9,224 reviews · 97% positive
- T
Tank Mechanic Simulator
2020 · Action
$19.99 9,185 reviews · 88% positive
- A
Aviassembly
2025 · Simulation
$9.99 8,889 reviews · 97% positive
- W
while True: learn()
2019 · Indie
$12.99 8,119 reviews · 91% positive
- S
Settlement Survival
2022 · Simulation
$19.99 7,934 reviews · 86% positive
- K
Kingdom Rush Origins - Tower Defense
2018 · Indie
$14.99 7,818 reviews · 96% positive
- F
Fireworks Mania - An Explosive Simulator
2020 · Action
$14.99 7,771 reviews · 97% positive
- L
Let's School
2023 · Casual
$19.99 7,256 reviews · 93% positive
- O
Opus Magnum
2017 · Indie
$19.99 6,950 reviews · 97% positive
- S
Streamer Life Simulator 2
2026 · Indie
$19.99 6,814 reviews · 82% positive
- M
My Dream Setup
2023 · Casual
$5.99 6,672 reviews · 91% positive
- B
Becastled
2025 · Indie
$19.99 5,554 reviews · 82% positive
- G
gogh: Focus with Your Avatar
2025 · Casual
$11.99 5,000 reviews · 91% positive
- L
Let's Build a Zoo
2021 · Simulation
$19.99 4,063 reviews · 89% positive
- T
Tinkerlands
2025 · Action
$12.99 3,872 reviews · 86% positive
- E
Emberward
2024 · Action
$14.99 3,707 reviews · 97% positive
- C
Cepheus Protocol
2020 · Action
$19.99 3,610 reviews · 76% positive
- J
Juno: New Origins
2023 · Indie
$19.99 3,451 reviews · 89% positive
- R
REKA
2024 · Adventure
$19.99 3,362 reviews · 83% positive
- S
SUMMERHOUSE
2024 · Casual
$4.99 3,283 reviews · 93% positive
- E
Element TD 2 - Tower Defense
2021 · Indie
$14.99 3,204 reviews · 90% positive
- O
Outpath
2023 · Adventure
$14.99 3,027 reviews · 93% positive
- F
Flyout
2023 · Indie
$19.99 2,216 reviews · 83% positive
- B
Builder Simulator
2022 · Adventure
$19.99 2,153 reviews · 72% positive
- B
Beltmatic
2024 · Casual
$6.99 2,110 reviews · 94% positive
- O
Obenseuer
2018 · Indie
$19.99 1,625 reviews · 94% positive
- T
The Last Starship
2026 · Indie
$19.99 1,544 reviews · 75% positive
- M
Microcivilization
2026 · Indie
$17.99 1,386 reviews · 80% positive
- S
Small Spaces
2025 · Casual
$12.99 1,383 reviews · 89% positive
- B
Badlands Crew - Drive, Command, Conquer
2025 · Action
$18.99 1,193 reviews · 79% positive
- A
Aquarist
2024 · Casual
$15.99 1,115 reviews · 84% positive
- H
House Flipper - Garden DLC
2019 · Casual
$14.99 894 reviews · 66% positive
Frequently asked questions
- What are the best building indie games under $20?
- indielist lists 83 paid building indie games priced at or below $20, ranked by Steam reviews, led by Terraria (1,218,154 reviews). The cheapest is Cookie Clicker at $4.99.
- How is this "under $20" list built?
- By a data filter, not opinion: a paid building game qualifies if its tracked Steam list price is at or below $20. The list is ranked by review count and updates as prices and the catalog change. Free-to-play games are excluded.