How to Make Money in City Skylines

Cities Skylines How to Make Money Guide

Cities Skylines is not a very challenging game. In its late stages, it turns into a relaxing city planning experience. However, in the earlier stages, you may suffer from the lack of Cities Skylines money to build the things you want. Learn how to make money in Cities Skylines and play without lacking cash all the time (and I don’t mean real money you’re spending on all these DLCs).

Actively Using Cities Skylines Budget Sliders

That’s one of the things you have to do first. When you’ve placed your first power plant you have to realize that you won’t be using its full capacity for a long time. So if you don’t cut expenses, that money will be simply lost. This also works for schools, healthcare facilities, and so on. 

You just need to increase budgets as your city grows. Increasing power funding above 100% will let you avoid the necessity to buy another power plant for some time.

How to Make Money Cities Skylines from Taxes

In the beginning, you have 9% tax set. And the first time you need to do is to raise this value to 11-12% once this option is unlocked. People will still be coming to your city when you place residential zones but in this way, you’re going to get more money. You can always set lower values if you’re not satisfied with the growth speed. Probably, that’s the best way to make money cities skylines.

Cities Skylines Budget Guide – Use High Density

In Cities Skylines high density zoning isn’t available right away. So don’t miss the milestone when you’ve unlocked this option. Build more high-density residential areas and make them develop to higher levels. That’s a great source of income and your City Skylines budget will be growing fast!

Cities Skylines Money Tips on Taking Loan

The loan is a very seductive option. It actually makes sense but you need to understand that by accepting it you’ll increase your regular expenses because you’ll need to pay interests.  If you accept the loan you need to make sure you’re investing this cash into the growth of your city. You need to increase your income thanks to this money. Try to avoid buying things for your joy, only smart investments are recommended.

How to Make Money in City Skylines Thanks to Growing Population

As your city grows and reaches new milestones you’re getting significant monetary bonuses. This means on the earliest stages you need to focus on achieving these milestones.

Use Only Those Buildings Which Are Necessary

It’s always lucrative to build a big hospital or a police station for your citizens as soon as you unlock it. But in the vast majority of cases, it’s too much for a small city. Check out the weekly upkeep costs and make sure you really need this or that building. But keep in mind that usually, smaller things such as police stations will cost you more than one police headquarters building. 

Multi-Level City Is Expensive

Going underground and overground is not the best idea for a small town. In the earliest stages, you don’t need that – your traffic is not that heavy to invest in tunnels and bridges. Build them later when you have a stable income.

Cities Skylines Making Money on Industries

Creating a powerful industrial sector is a great option to make some money. I have a detailed guide on managing your industries here.

I hope this Cities Skylines income guide will help you enjoy your playthrough.