The best Cities Skylines maps are hard to pick because of just how many there are, which includes those that were introduced as DLC. Whether you’re playing the normal mode or the sandbox one, there is so much to do in each of the maps. And thanks to good game design, they all have their own strengths and weaknesses.
Even though Sim City dominated the city-building genre for a very long time, Cities: Skylines came at the perfect time and gave players an experience that was far better than what EA was offering with their controversial launches. And fans of the genre have never been happier since Cities: Skylines is actively updated with more content and ports even to this day.
So, what are the best Cities Skylines maps that you can play right now? Let’s take our personal and the community’s opinions in account and determine the winners.
Table of Contents
The Best Cities Skylines Maps
There are many factors for what makes a good map in Cities: Skylines. These things include how much creativity a map allows, how good it looks, what its theme is, and how it’s geographically designed.
One important thing to mention is that there are many great community maps that are available on the Steam Workshop. But since they are only available on the PC version of the game, we’ll be leaving them out. If you do play on PC though, make sure to head over to see the dozens of amazing mods! (We recommend MrMyagi and SanditeSpartan117)
1. Azure Gulf (Sunset Harbor DLC)
Azure’s Gulf is one of the best City Skylines maps because it comes with a beautiful piece of land. There are many natural resources that the player can use. And it’s built in a way that you can easily set up transportation and other things related to urban life too.
Of course, wanting to build a paradisiac city with only 65% buildable area is not everyone’s cup of tea. But every map in the game exists for different preferences, so it’s not exactly a con.
Thus, Azure Gulf is a great map that is easy on the eyes and features a lot of customization for players to mess around with.
2. Lavender Lake (Green Cities DLC)
Where Azure Gulf provides a bit of ease, Lavender Lake is the opposite. This map gives you many resources to use, but as the name implies, it has a lake that you need to take care of.
So, you’ll have to manage things like your sewage, water supply, and the quality of the lake itself – all the while you expand your city and become larger. And then finally, you might run into a river that can become your new source of sewage dumping.
It’s a nice little challenge that makes the city-building experience slightly more intense than usual.
3. Eden Valley (Green Cities DLC)
Eden Valley is arguably one of the most customizable and best City Skylines maps. First of all, it has a great 79% buildable area that is on flat land. Then, we have the fact that it has lakes both on its east and west sides.
So, players have great resources both in terms of land and water, and there’s a lot to build on too. It’s a great map that allows players to go all out in their creativity, and it looks pretty good too with its greenery.
4. Arid Plains (Mass Transit DLC)
Arid Plains is a very popular map, but it’s a pretty good choice especially for new players. It has four rail connections that can be used both for passengers and cargo, and it comes with a bunch of other resources too.
The map has a straight river that is pretty easy to utilize in your city-building ventures. And then you can expand it along the river to set up your harbors around oil deposits – which is what most players like to do.
All in all, it’s an interesting map that has an interesting start and focuses on trains.
5. Green Plains (Base Game)
We went over several DLC maps, so let’s take a moment to get into a great map that is on the base game. Green Plains comes with a pre-built highway which is pretty helpful to start off with once you begin to expand your city. And it comes with three rivers too which take care of your sewage and water needs.
It’s a great map for newcomers because there’s a lot to utilize without having to build it first. But it’s also great for veterans as they can take the existing resources to new heights!
6. Snowy Coasts (Snowfall DLC)
Enough of rivers and greenery, let’s talk about snow. The map looks beautiful, and it has tons of ice that you have to work your way around. It has 68% buildable area and is surrounded by forests. So, you can be as creative as you want Plus, there’s a chance of seeing the Northern Lights on this map!
Of course, you do have water bodies which will help you keep the water and sewage needs going. So, it’s not a limited map by any means despite all the snow.
These are our picks for the best Cities Skylines Maps! The game has a large number of maps and all of them are good in their own ways. So, a different map might be better for your preferences – so make sure to always experiment a little!
While you’re still here, make sure to check out many of our other helpful guides too.
