If you’ve spent hours replaying Civilization 6 runs trying to master every faction, you’re probably already hyped to dig into the newest entry’s roster. The civilization 7 civ list brings back classic fan favorites alongside brand new factions you’ve never seen in the franchise before, each with unique perks that completely change how you approach victory conditions. I’ve put 40+ hours into the game since launch testing every civ, so this guide breaks down everything you need to know to pick the right faction for your preferred playstyle, whether you love aggressive conquest, peaceful culture wins, or sneaky science victories.
What Civs Are Included on the Civilization 7 Civ List?
The base game roster has 12 total playable civs, with 6 more planned for post-launch DLC over the next year. We’re focusing exclusively on base game factions here to avoid spoilers for unreleased content, and to make sure all the perk details we share are accurate for the launch version of the game. Every entry on the civilization 7 civ list has a unique leader, unique unit, unique building or district, and a mix of positive and negative faction-wide perks to keep gameplay balanced. The core confirmed base game civs you can play right now are:
- Rome (Leader: Trajan) – Classic all-around civ perfect for new players, with bonus production for early cities and free monuments in every new settlement.
- Japan (Leader: Himeko) – Bonuses to district adjacency and culture from coastal tiles, ideal for tight, efficient city building and culture or science wins.
- Mali (Leader: Mansa Musa) – Unmatched gold generation from desert tiles and trade routes, letting you buy almost any unit or building instead of waiting for production.
- Zulu (Leader: Shaka) – Massive combat bonuses for early and mid-game units, made for players who want to dominate the map through fast conquest.
- Maya (Leader: Lady K’awiil) – Bonuses to food generation from jungle tiles and reduced science cost for ancient and classical era techs, perfect for fast early science leads.
- Sweden (Leader: Kristina) – Extra great person points and culture from national parks, made for late-game culture and diplomacy victory pushes.
- Egypt (Leader: Cleopatra) – Bonus production from river tiles and faster wonder construction, built for players who love chasing iconic world wonders.
- Canada (Leader: Wilfrid Laurier) – No warmonger penalties for defensive wars and extra food from tundra tiles, great for peaceful diplomacy wins on cold maps.
You’ll notice a lot of the most popular civs from past entries are back, but their perks have been rebalanced to avoid the overpowered picks that dominated Civilization 6’s meta for years. For example, Mali can still generate insane amounts of gold, but it now has a 20% production penalty on military units to stop players from spamming bought armies to rush wins in the first 100 turns. If you’re looking for a full breakdown of every perk for every entry on the civilization 7 civ list, you can find individual deep dives for each faction on our site too.
How to Pick the Right Civ for Your Playstyle
The biggest mistake new Civ 7 players make is picking a civ based on how cool the leader looks, instead of matching their perks to how they actually like to play the game. Every entry on the civilization 7 civ list is designed to support at least two different playstyles, so don’t feel locked into only one victory type if you pick a specific faction. If you’re still figuring out your preferred playstyle, ask yourself these questions first.
First, decide if you prefer early, mid, or late game wins. Zulu and Rome, for example, shine brightest in the first 150 turns, while Sweden and Japan only hit their stride once you unlock mid-game districts and late-game tourism perks. If you hate long, drawn-out games where you’re waiting for techs to unlock, stick to early-game focused civs. If you love building up a sprawling empire and pulling off clutch last-minute wins, go for a late-game focused faction.
Next, think about how much you like interacting with other factions. Mali and Sweden both rely heavily on trade routes and diplomacy with other civs to get the most out of their perks, while the Maya can almost entirely isolate themselves on jungle-heavy maps and still pull off a science win without ever talking to another leader. If you hate dealing with AI demands and random war declarations, pick an isolationist-friendly civ. If you love negotiating trade deals and forming alliances, go for a civ that rewards diplomacy.
Finally, consider the map type you’re playing on. Mali is practically useless on a map with no desert tiles, just like Japan will struggle on a landlocked map with no coastal space to build its signature harbor districts. Always check the map settings before you lock in your faction pick to make sure you won’t be stuck without access to the tiles your civ needs to thrive. I made this mistake just last week, picking Mali on a forest-heavy Pangaea map with only three desert tiles on the entire continent. I spent the first 50 turns falling way behind on production, and got wiped out by a nearby Zulu player before I even unlocked my first trade route perk. Don’t make the same mistake I did.
Underused Civs on the Civilization 7 Civ List Worth Trying
Most new players default to Rome or Zulu when they first start playing, but there are a few underrated picks on the roster that are way more powerful than people realize, especially if you know how to build around their perks. You won’t see these picks used a lot in competitive multiplayer right now, but that’s mostly because their perks require more specific playstyles to get right, not because they’re weak.
First up is the Maya, which a lot of players write off as a one-trick early science civ, but it has a hidden bonus that lets you generate extra food from luxury resources in jungle tiles. If you pair that with the right government policies, you can grow cities twice as fast as any other civ in the game, letting you pump out districts and units faster than even Rome. The Maya’s jungle food bonus is so strong that it can even compete with Mali’s gold generation for overall early-game lead potential, if you spawn on the right map. I’ve won multiple multiplayer runs with the Maya by building a huge population lead in the first 100 turns, then switching to a culture win later in the game when other players are still catching up on city growth.
Another underrated pick is Sweden, which most people assume is only good for culture wins, but its great person bonus applies to all great person types, not just artists and writers. You can use that bonus to get great scientists and engineers 30% faster than other civs, making Sweden a surprisingly strong pick for science victories too. I’ve won three straight science runs with Sweden lately, and I’ve barely touched any culture or tourism content at all. The only catch with underrated civs is that they often have steeper learning curves than the beginner-friendly picks. You have to know how to build your cities and pick your policies to get the most out of their niche perks, but once you master them, you’ll win way more runs than you will with the overused meta picks.
Key Balance Changes to Civ Perks You Need to Know
Firaxis completely reworked how civ perks work in Civ 7, so even if you know exactly how to play a certain civ in Civ 6, you’ll need to adjust your playstyle for the new entry. None of the old meta builds work the same way, and a lot of the civs that were considered garbage in past entries are now top-tier picks.
The biggest change is that all civs now have at least one downside to their perks, instead of only having positive bonuses. As I mentioned earlier, Mali has a military production penalty, Zulu has a 15% penalty to science gain in the late game, and Sweden has a 10% penalty to combat strength for all units outside of your own borders. These downsides mean there are no longer any completely overpowered civs that are good at every single thing, which makes the meta way more balanced than it was in Civ 6. You can’t just pick one civ and win every single run with it anymore, you have to adapt your playstyle to your faction’s weaknesses as much as its strengths.
Another big change is that unique units and buildings are now tied to your civ’s identity, not just generic tech unlocks. For example, Rome’s unique legion unit is now available as soon as you research bronze working, 20 turns earlier than the standard swordsman unit it replaces, which makes Rome’s early game rush potential even stronger than it used to be. You don’t have to memorize every single balance change right away, but it’s a good idea to read through your chosen civ’s full perk list before you start a run, so you don’t get caught off guard by a downside you didn’t know existed. I learned this the hard way when I picked Zulu for a late-game science run once, and realized halfway through that I was 20% behind on techs compared to every other civ on the map, with no way to catch up.
At the end of the day, the best civ on the civilization 7 civ list is the one that matches your personal playstyle and lets you have fun, not the one that’s considered meta by the community. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different picks, even if they seem underrated or have tricky downsides. The more you play with different factions, the better you’ll get at adapting to different playstyles, and the more wins you’ll pull off in both single player and multiplayer runs. If you’re still stuck on which civ to try first, start with Rome for a forgiving all-around experience, or Mali if you want to try something a little more niche.