Civilization 7 Leaders Tier List

Civilization 7 introduces some major changes to the series. Most notably, as the game progresses through ancient, exploration and modern age, we present age mechanics who will exchange your civilizations for new civilizations. However, the leader’s choices will stick to you throughout the game.

Although they do not offer as many traits and units as civilizations, leaders still have the powerful ability to create some excellent combinations when mixed and matched. To help you, we created this tier list of all our leaders and highlighted their strengths and weaknesses. This should help you choose who you want to be the face of your empire, while building your future in the present day.

Civilization 7 Leader Tierist

S layer – Confucius, King of the King of Zelcus, Conqueror of the Ashoka World, Augustus

Layer A – Ashoka World Renouncer, Benjamin Franklin, Sharremanu, Harriet Tubman, Hatshepsut, Himiko Haishama, Isabela, Joserlisar, Maciaveli, Turungtrak, Zelkis Akemin

Layer B – Amina, Catherine the Great, Friedrich Oblich, Ibn Batuta, Lafayette, Emperor Napoleon, Napoleon Revolution, Tecumseh, Queen Himiko, Washington

Layer C – Friedrich, Pachakti

S-layer leader

S-Tia: Ashoka, World Conqueror

• +1 production for every five excess happiness in the city.
• +10% production in a village not founded by you.
• Declaring formal war gives celebration. +5 combat strength against districts for all units during the celebration.

Ashoka, the world conqueror, is to keep your own citizens happy while terrifying other civilizations. Happiness is a very strong yield and will provide continuous benefits as long as you can maintain a strong flow of excess happiness. A village not founded by you and excessive happiness will bring extra production. This means that you can create many units and maintain a strong foundation to promote war effort. Also, declaring a formal war gives you an automatic celebration. This gives you instant +5 combat strength for districts and all units. This allows the enemy to be placed on their hind legs as soon as war is declared.

With all the excessive happiness, you can get one or two extra celebrations during the war, so you will experience an era of extreme military power. The only thing you manage is that you take over the settlement from your fellow citizens and deal with the uncertainty they bring. However, if you can manage it and keep everyone happy, Ashoka, the World Conqueror, is one of the most powerful leaders in the game.

S-Tia: Augustus

• +2 production in all town capitals. You can purchase buildings with the town’s culture.
• +50% gold to buy town buildings.

Augustus has earned a lot of profit from relatively simple styles of play. He is all about setting up as many towns as possible, moving on to the settlements. Interestingly, his value would be to not upgrade the town to a city. It saves him the money, but he gets a great bonus in gold and production to maintain as many towns as possible.

He can turn the capital into a great power, and everything in his town feeds his central base. On top of that, he can buy buildings cheaply in town and cultural buildings. This can really be supplemented, not only gives him a huge amount of production and culture, but also saves him money along the way. It’s a nicely rounded style of play with great benefits and easy to understand goals. Just go out there and calm down a lot of towns or force them to take them.

S-Tia: Confucius

• +25% growth rate for cities.
• +2 science from specialists.

Confucius is a master at expanding his city. Urban Nature +25% growth rate is strong, especially early on when land acquisition is important. It can expand boundaries much faster than your opponent and absorb as much important resources as possible. And you can do it without the pain of going to war.

He also gained +2 science from the specialist making him more likely to become one of the best producers of science in the game. This could make him particularly strong. Especially in the final game where his specimens are stacked, he has access to much more advanced technology than other civilizations. He may help a little in protecting his land, so pairings of powerful civilizations, or making strong allies, can go far. But other than that, it’s not often that Confucius will stop him from gobbling all the lands he can.

S-Tier: King of Kings, Xerxes

• +3 combat strength for units attacking on neutral or enemy territory.
• When you first get a settlement, you will earn 100 cultures and money for each age. +10% gold in all settlements has increased even more in settlements you did not establish.
• +1 payment limit per age.

The Zelx of Kings is as easy as it gets. He has one specialist – attacking other players and stealing their reconciliation. It’s not complicated or expensive, but it’s definitely effective, especially if you’re looking for a military victory.

He benefits from being an invader in all circumstances and gaining free combat strength. He is also encouraged to take over as many settlements as his restrictions allow, but he has even gotten a higher settlement limit. To do so, he not only follows the path of military heritage, but also gains culture and money, and burns more military purposes.

Leader of the layers

A-Tia: Ashoka, world renouncer

• +1 food in the city for every 5 excess happiness.
• 10% food in all settlements during the celebration.
• All buildings earn +1 happiness for all improvements.

Not as militarily creepy as Ashoka’s World Conqueror’s version, but the world’s abandoners certainly don’t sniff. The other versions are about turning happiness into military forces, but this version of Ashoka is all about turning happiness into populations.

This changes the play from taking over as many settlements as the units to seizing land and establishing districts. This could be great for the right hand, especially those who know how to manage the construction of large populations and cities. It can also bypass the fear of taking over the settlement. So there is a debate that the world’s abandoners are either powerful or even stronger. That said, it requires a little more finesse and does not receive a strong production bonus. In any case, as long as your population is happy, if you choose to go to the world’s renouncer route, your boundaries should expand.

Layer A: Benjamin Franklin

• +1 science per age of urban production buildings.
• Production aimed at construction of +50% of the product.
• +1 science per age will make an active effort that you are started or supported.
• Two efforts of the same type can be activated at once.

Benjamin Franklin is an exceptional and versatile leader if you’re planning on going down the science route of the game. His speciality is in science and production. This means that not only can you quickly study many technologies, but you can quickly create the product of your labor.

His characteristics create a great feedback loop around the production building, where building production buildings can be done quickly, and each one can get extra science. He also benefits from having good relationships with the people around him, and by making an effort, he can further promote his science generation.

Layer A: Charlemagne

• Military and scientific buildings are receiving quarterly happiness. When you enter the celebration, you will earn 2 free cavalry units when unlocked.
• +5 combat strength for cavalry units during celebration.

Military and science are always a powerful combination, allowing you to be at the forefront of new war technology and pushing forward its benefits. Charlemagne recommends promoting military and scientific buildings to support some powerful happiness features.

As long as he can keep the population happy, he can enter the celebration on a continuous basis, which gives him a free cavalry unit. That’s going on, but these already strong early and in-game units have gained even more strength. It’s a very horse-centric strategy, but engraving on your fellow civilization is a very powerful tactic in the early parts of the game. He may struggle more in the present day with things like tanks and planes being introduced, but he should be established by then in a very strong empire.

A-Tia: Harriet Tubman

• +100% impact towards the initiation of spying.
• Get 5 war support in every war declared against you.
• The unit ignores penalties for moving out of vegetation.

Harriet Tubman is undoubtedly one of the most stealth choices in civilization7. She can cause real trouble for other civilizations by messing around with them through spying means and allowing others to be confused or steal.

Even if you are captured and angered powerful forces, the five war support you gain when war is declared against you should allow you to crush victory. On top of that, her army is agile, capable of ignoring vegetation, difficult to pinpoint when she is defending, tricky and painful to deal with.

A-Tier: Hatshepsut

• +1 culture of all imported resources.
• + 15% production towards urban buildings adjacent to navigable rivers and amazing construction.

Hatshepsut has access to the extremely powerful spikes of the culture. She will have a good relationship and help to establish trade routes for imported resources. She gets a +1 culture for each, so every time she enters trade with another civilization, it gives her a great boost to the culture.

She is also a common building, not only one of the best things to create wonders. This makes her extremely strong on the heritage path of early culture. She needs to take advantage of navigable rivers, but this is not a difficult requirement to satisfy, as most cities need to be present in one anyway.

A-Tia: Himiko, Hishaman

• +2 Happiness around age of the building of happiness.
• + 50% production for the construction of a building of happiness.
• +20% culture, but -10% science, these effects double in celebration.

Himiko is probably the best culture producer of Civilization 7. Her traits are very strong, and her mixture with happiness is strong. Construction of a happy building is faster thanks to the production bonus, and the happy building becomes stronger with age. She also doubles during the celebration and feeds more happiness.

However, there are drawbacks. She is also -10% passive in science and doubles in celebrations. This requires recognition and avoiding handicap. That being said, as long as you use your efforts or compensate for the loss of science with buildings and resources, these potential culture peaks far outweigh the negative science narf.

A-Tia: Isabella

• Every time you discover natural wonders, earning 300 gold, doubled whether natural wonders are in distant lands.
• + 100% extra tile yield from natural wonders.
• 50% gold for purchasing naval units, and -1 gold maintenance costs for naval units.

Isabella can absolutely catapult herself early if she can find natural wonders. 300 gold is a great boon, especially in ancient times, if discovered early enough. This allows you to purchase units or buildings that should move forward quite a bit if done at the right time. If she can incorporate the wonders of nature into her boundaries, she will get a massive tile yield and again, become so powerful that you can do it.

That said, this of course depends on ensuring your discoveries and natural wonders. She could be victim of the unfortunate map placement. Without the wonders of nearby nature early on, she would not be making much profit. That being said, no matter what, she should have a strong navy by purchasing water-based units and maintaining them without any issues.

A-Tia: Joserizal

• When you earn rewards from story events, you earn an additional 20 cultures and money for each age.
• There will be additional story events.
• +50% celebration period.
• +50% happiness for celebrations.

Jose Rizal is a celebratory master. The 50% celebration period and +50% happiness against the tandem of the celebration is very strong. This will help him to make a profit on a massive scale, especially when he moves in the direction of culture. He will celebrate frequently and make them active for longer. That’s great.

He also gets a big boost from culture and money due to the story events he is involved in, and thankfully they happen to him more frequently than Siving. These probably won’t rock the game on their own, but they’re great decorations for the festive synergy he’s available to.

A-Tia: Machiavelli

• +3 impact per age.
• Once your diplomatic action proposal is accepted, you will win 50 gold per age or 100 gold when rejected.
• Ignore the relational requirements for declaring formal war.
• You can collect military forces of city-states that are not Suzelin.

Machiavelli is a great option for those who want to be proactive and cheated. He has a powerful synergy of influence and money, and has always threatened him. He may not attack every second, but his ability to ignore the requirements of relations to declare war means that even allies are not safe from stabbing in the back.

Even at his apparent level of power, thanks to his ability to acquire a lot of money from diplomatic actions created by his influence, he could become deceptive, allowing him to quickly purchase meaningful military forces. In addition to that, he has a very powerful ability to collect units from city-states where he is not a supreme power. He is not optimal to take on a strong army and must be considered in his actions, but he has excellent smash and glove playstyle, even at the expense of his friends.

A-Tia: Trung Trac

• Earn 3 levels of freedom to your first Army Commander.
• +20% Commander experience.
• +10% science in cities in tropical spaces. This bonus will be doubled in the formal war you declare.

Trung Trac is a master who utilizes a powerful new Army Commander unit. These units allow you to command multiple units at once, while offering powerful bonuses. They aren’t necessarily the strongest from the beginning, but the more levels you get, the more determinants they become. Not only does Trung Trac gain experience as a 20% commander, but her commander will spawn at three levels of freedom. This gives you a fairly substantial spike in military force that can influence war. Once her commander becomes truly powerful and earns multiple accolades, her army becomes the most powerful on the map.

She also greatly boosts the science of tropical spaces. It is supported by a whopping 20% ​​during the war, charging formidable science and military combos. That said, she relies on maps as she needs access to those tropical tiles.

Layer A: Xerxes, Achemenid

• +1 trade route restrictions with all other leaders.
• Create a trade route or road and 100 gold per age.
• +1 culture and gold per age of unique buildings and unique improvements.

Xerxes, Achaemenid, have access to a wide variety of yields and benefits. The 100 gold and 50 cultures that come from creating trade routes and roads are excellent, and setting up multiple setups at about the same time can provide both large spikes. There’s a great synergy here, given that he also has access to one extra trade route for each leader.

It was only helped by his buffs for a unique building and culture of improvement and money. Undoubtedly, this is both quantities, and is very strong when used properly.

B-layer leader

B-tier: Amina

• +1 resource capacity for the city.
• +1 gold for each age of each resource assigned to the city.
• +5 combat strength for all units in the plain or desert.

Amina is definitely a decent leader who does well with resources. Resources are powerful in Civilization 7, so having more access is not a bad thing. Although it has a capacity of +1, +1 gold for each age of each resource allocated to a city is a great gold generator.

Of course, you need to focus on your game plan as you will need to access as many resources as possible while you house them. Her units gain +5 combat strength on all units in the plains and deserts, but in proper circumstances it can come with the clutch.

B-tier: Catherine Great

• +2 cultures by age exhibited amazing works. Building slots with excellent pieces will earn additional slots.
• Cities that settled in the tundra acquired science equal to the proportion of culture per turn.

Catherine the Great is generally a great producer of culture. Viewing excellent works is part of the cultural legacy path, so trying to run as fast as possible will help you access and view extra slots. The cultural boost to do so will feed more wonderful pieces and create a great feedback loop.

That said, she can get into a bit of a situation. Her city is in the tundra. That being said, if you can’t settle in the tundra, or if their barrenness leads to hurting you in terms of resources, she may be a little difficult to take advantage of.

Layer B: Friedrich, diagonal

• The Army Commander begins with a recognition of merit and grants them additional command radii.
• When building science buildings, you acquire infantry units.

The oblique version of Friedrich is likely his better option, but he is still far from the best in the game. That’s not to say he’s not without merit. The Army Commander is a powerful unit, and the praise of Merit provides the most powerful effect of them. Starting with one of them is a good way to boost your army early on. Additional command radii are as powerful as buffs and debuffs, and can affect more units.

He can also acquire infantry forces when building science buildings. This is a great incentive to put your gold and production into them. That said, he has no access to science, influence and culture enthusiasts. Even in a scientifically focused civilization, he is likely to fall behind other experts, which means that he will hurt his survival rate a little.

B-tier: Ibn Beaten

• Earn two wildcard attribute points after the first Civic of any age.
• +1 site for all units.
• Earn a unique effort called the Trade Map, where you can gradually see the explored areas of other leaders.

Ibn Battuta could become a powerful civilization if done correctly, but he is very versatile, but his strengths may not be obvious to those who don’t know how to harness the attribute points. Getting two of these after the first Civic of each age means he is flexible and able to set himself up in the situations he finds. It said that flexibility could be a little more cumbersome for new players, with more choice and complexity.

Similarly, his visibility of the map given from stealing other explored areas and extra sights from the units are powerful with experienced hands. However, its value may not be clear to those who are not very familiar with how to use the information. He brings a lot to the table and is extremely flexible. Make sure you know how to use it.

B-Tier: Lafayette

• It acquires a unique effort called reform and grants additional social policy slots. Supporting this effort gives other leaders additional social policy slots.
• Leading to policy, not policy, but combat strength +1 for all traditions.
• +1 culture and happiness for each age of the village doubled in distant lands.

Lafayette has access to some great traits, but they are not the most eye-catching on their own. He is great to be able to use reforms to obtain additional social policy slots and helps to provide increased yields. The +1 combat strength he gained from tradition has nothing to smell. That said, even a policy focused on yields may struggle to keep up with more professional leaders.

But +1 to age-specific culture and happiness, doubled in distant lands, is a completely unconditional buff. It’s good to have it. All this will come together to make him a good civilization. A great choice of good traits, but nothing is completely persuasive in its own right here.

Layer B: Napoleon, Emperor

• You will gain unique sanctions called the Continental System, which reduces the limits on target leaders’ trade routes to all other leaders. It causes large relationship penalties and costs money to reject.
• +8 gold per age for all leaders you are unfriendly or hostile.
• You can refuse your efforts for free.

Napoleon, the Emperor is for those who like small things. He benefits from being a troll and earns a very good +8 gold for all leaders he is unfriendly or hostile. If he’s bothering everyone, that’s a big deal. His sanctions in the continental system ruin the trading capabilities of other civilizations, making it a great option to carve out their neighbors.

The difficulty lies in managing what you dislike. This means it can be very difficult to get into the effort or even protect boundaries with the people around you. Of course, it paints a huge target on your back. It’s a dangerous game as he does not military-wise offer buffs to his units. So, if you’re a jerk to everyone, make sure you have an army that backs up it, just in case the consequences of your actions catch up with you.

B-tier: Napoleon, innovative

• +1 transfer for all land units.
• Defending enemy units provides a culture equivalent to 50% of combat strength.

Napoleon, the revolutionary, is an interesting leader. All his land units earn a +1 move. This is not only useful when trying to pass through both wide areas, but can be agile when piloting around enemy units.

But how you take advantage of his other traits will determine whether you will do well with him or not. Cultures equal to 50% of the enemy’s combat strength can be very spikey to defend, giving many cultures if you realize you’ll defend multiple times per turn. However, to make the most of this, you need to realize you are in this position relatively often. In other words, you’ll want to provoke your enemy, but you’ll want to hold your position. It’s a very unique playstyle and can be a bit troubling for some. However, if used well, it can be a major source of culture. Expect to place other resources to maintain your army when you take continuous hits.

B-tier: Tecumseh

• +1 food and production per age in all city-state settlements where you are the suzerain.
• +1 combat strength for all units in all city-states you are Suzelin.

Tecumseh can be very good, but it will take time and setup. He is all about becoming the supreme power of a city-state. If you can get three or four of these, it’s a big bonus to food and production, as well as combat strength.

The problem is that becoming a supreme party has many influences and he does not have the inherent characteristics that will help him. Therefore, he will need a good combination with civilization, policy, buildings/districts to promote this. Plus, it takes time to get the necessary influence and you’re sure these conditions should come under your wings. However, if you have infrastructure, the rewards are pure and consistent value.

B-tier: Himiko, Queen of WA

• Earn a unique effort called Wei’s Friend. This can be done in the Alliance to give you and your ally +25% science.
• +4 science per age of all leaders you are friendly or friendly.
• We can support your efforts for free.

Himiko, Queen of Washington, is the opposite of Emperor Napoleon. She is a best friend of everyone, and if you can keep it, you will enjoy great benefits. +4 science per age of all leaders you are friendly or kind is only helped by friends of Wei Endeavor. Hang it some allies. It is the production of serious science.

However, you need to be a little careful. Make sure no one comes at the cost of your garrison. Don’t get caught thinking that everyone is your friend, as your technological advancement and sunny attitude may jealous others. When they want what you have, it can quickly go out the window.

C-layer leader

C-Tier: Friedrich, Baroque

• Get a great job when you first win a settlement.
• When building cultural buildings, you acquire infantry units.

Friedrich and Baroque have two properties, neither of which have any particularly strong or different properties. Getting a great job to film a settlement for the first time is decent, but it’s unlikely to help you win the game. In the field of very strong leadership traits, this simply feels “great.”

Acquiring infantry forces when building cultural buildings is also useful and can help promote military ambitions, but cannot make up for the lack of yield bonuses here. When it comes to culture and your military, there are many more powerful options.

C-tier: PachaCuti

• All buildings earn a +1 food adjacency bonus on the mountains.
• Professionals adjacent to the mountains do not sacrifice happiness maintenance

Pachakti is not a bad leader. In fact, in some games he can be an exception. The problem is that if the map doesn’t like you, he can’t do anything either. To be good, you need mountains. If he can settle close to them, he will get good access to a fair amount of food, with few drawbacks from experts. That’s really good, especially when combined with civilizations that use mountains.

The problem is that it is a strict requirement. Without mountains, he will not offer others, so if you appear on the map with no one around you, you will be unlucky. Of course, you can start over and move on the map slider before choosing him, but if you want a neutral experience to start and play on a regular map, you’ll find yourself rolling the dice at the start.

Patrick is a freelance journalist with over 13 years of experience who loves to go deep into the game and get into the system. His four-digit time in both Overwatch 2 and Destiny 2 is proof of it.