Civilization 7 introduces a few massive changes to the series, most notably the Ages mechanic that has you swap out your civilization for a new one as the game progresses through Antiquity, Exploration, and Modern Ages. Your choice of leader, though, sticks with you throughout the entire game.

While they don’t provide as many traits and units as Civilizations, Leaders still have powerful abilities that can create some excellent combinations when mixed and matched. To help you out, we’ve created this tier list of every Leader and highlighted their strengths and weaknesses. This should help you choose who you want to be the face of your empire as you build your future all the way into the Modern Age.

Civilization 7 Leader Tier List

S-Tier – Confucius, Xerxes King of Kings, Ashoka World Conquerer, Augustus

A-Tier – Ashoka World Renouncer, Benjamin Franklin, Charlemagne, Harriet Tubman, Hatshepsut, Himiko High Shaman, Isabella, Jose Rizal, Machiavelli, Trung Trac, Xerxes The Achaemenid

B-Tier – Amina, Catherine The Great, Friedrich Oblique, Ibn Battuta, Lafayette, Napoleon Emperor, Napoleon Revolution, Tecumseh, Himiko Queen of Wa

C-Tier – Friedrich Baroque, Pachacuti

S-Tier Leaders

S-Tier: Ashoka, World Conquerer

• +1 Production for every 5 excess Happiness in Cities.
• +10% Production in Settlements not founded by you.
• Declaring a Formal War grants a Celebration. +5 Combat Strength against Districts for all Units during a Celebration.

Ashoka, World Conquerer is all about keeping your own citizens happy while terrorizing other civilizations. Happiness is a very strong yield, and as long as you can keep a strong flow of excess Happiness, you will get continual benefits. Settlements not founded by you and excess Happiness result in extra Production meaning you can make a lot of Units and maintain a strong base to fuel your war efforts. Also, declaring a Formal War grants you an automatic Celebration. This gives you an instant +5 Combat Strength against Districts and All Units. This makes you excellent at putting your enemy on the back foot immediately once a war is declared.

With all the excess Happiness, you can likely get one or two extra Celebrations during a war, so you go through periods of extreme military power. The only thing to manage is, as you take over Settlements from your fellow civs, dealing with the unrest they bring. However, if you can manage that and keep everyone happy, Ashoka, World Conquerer is one of the strongest leaders in the game.

S-Tier: Augustus

• +2 Production in the Capital for every Town. Can purchase Culture Buildings in Towns.
• +50% Gold towards purchasing Buildings in Towns.

Augustus gets a lot of benefits from a relatively straightforward style of play. He is all about going wide with his Settlements and establishing as many Towns as possible, be that through settling or conquest. Interestingly though, his value comes in not upgrading Towns to City. That saves him Gold, but he gets a nice bonus to Gold and Production for maintaining as many Towns as possible.

He can turn his Capital into a powerhouse, with all of his towns feeding his central base. On top of he can buy buildings cheaper in Towns, and has access to buying Culture buildings. This can really add up, both giving him immense amounts of Production and Culture, but also saving him money along the way. It’s a nicely rounded style of play with great benefits and an easy-to-understand goal. Just get out there and settle lots of Towns – or take them by force.

S-Tier: Confucius

• +25% Growth Rate in Cities.
• +2 Science from Specialists.

Confucius is a master when it comes to expanding his Cities. The natural +25% Growth Rate in Cities is just powerful, especially early on when land-grabbing is important. You can expand your borders much faster than your opponents, absorbing key Resources before they can. And you can do it without the pain of going to war.

He also has ease becoming one of the best producers of Science in the game thanks to getting +2 Science from Specialists. This can make him particularly potent, especially in the end game where his Specilasits stack up, and he has access to much more advanced Technology than other civilizations. He may need a little help defending his lands, so a strong Civilization pairing, or making a powerful ally can go far. Outside of that though, there’s not a lot that’s going to stop Confucius from gobbling up all the land he can, all while being one of the most technologically advanced.

S-Tier: Xerxes, King of Kings

• +3 Combat Strength for Units that are attacking in neutral or enemy territory.
• Gain 100 Culture and Gold per Age upon capturing a Settlement for the first time. +10% Gold in all Settlements, increased even further in Settlements not founded by you.
• +1 Settlement limit per Age.

Xerxes, King of Kings is as straightforward as it gets. He has one specialty – attacking other players and taking their Settlements. It’s not complicated or highbrowed, but it is undoubtedly effective, especially if you are looking for a Military Victory.

He benefits from being the aggressor in every situation, getting free combat strength, that doesn’t require anything to activate past initiating fights in foreign territory. He’s also incentivized to take over as many Settlements as his limits will allow, though he even gets a higher Settlement limit. For doing so, not only is he advancing the Military Legacy Path, he gains Culture and Gold further fueling his military aims.

A-Tier Leaders

A-Tier: Ashoka, World Renouncer

• +1 Food in Cities for every 5 excess Happiness.
• +10% Food in all Settlements during Celebration.
• All buildings gain a +1 Happiness adjacency for all Improvements.

While not as militarily spooky as the World Conquerer version of Ashoka, the World Renouncer is certainly nothing to sniff at. While the other version is about turning Happiness into military might, this version of Ashoka is all about turning Happiness into population.

This changes the play from trying to take over as many Settlements with your units, into going for a land grab and establishing Districts. This can be excellent in the right hands, especially those who know how to manage big populations and city construction. You can also bypass the unrest of taking over Settlements, so there is an argument the World Renouncer is as strong or even stronger. That said, it requires a little more finesse and doesn’t receive the powerful production bonuses. Either way though, as long as your population is happy, your borders should be expanding if you choose to go the World Renouncer route.

A-Tier: Benjamin Franklin

• +1 Science per Age on Production Buildings in CIties.
• +50% Production towards constructing Production Buildings.
• +1 Science per Age active Endeavors you started or supported.
• Can have two Endeavors of the same type active at a time.

Benjamin Franklin is an exceptional and versatile Leader if you intend to go down the Science route in your game. What’s nice is his specialties are in Science and Production, meaning not only can you research a lot of Technology quickly, but you can then make the product of your labor soon after too.

His traits create a nice feedback loop around Production Buildings where constructing Production Buildings can be done fast, and he then gets extra Science for each one. He also benefits from having good relations with those around him, and can further his Science generation by entering into Endeavors.

A-Tier: Charlemagne

• Military and Science Buildings receive a Happiness adjacency for Quarters. Gain 2 free Cavalry Units, once unlocked, when entering a Celebration.
• +5 Combat Strength for Cavalry Units during a Celebration.

Military and Science are always a powerful combination, allowing you to be on the cutting edge of new warfare Technologies, and then pressing that advantage. Charlemagne is encouraged to push for Military and Science buildings to help prop up some powerful Happiness traits.

As long as he can keep his population happy, he can continually enter Celebrations, which in turn gives him free Cavalry Units. While that’s going on too, these already strong early and mid-game units gain even more strength. It’s a very horse-centric strategy, but stampeding over your fellow Civilizations is a very strong tactic in the early parts of the game. While he may struggle more in the Modern Age once the likes of Tanks and Planes are introduced, he should be established with a very strong empire by then.

A-Tier: Harriet Tubman

• +100% Influence towards Initiating Espionage Actions.
• Gain 5 War Support on all wars declared against you.
• Units ignore movement penalties from Vegetation.

Harriet Tubman is undoubtedly one of the stealthiest choices in Civilization 7. Influence can be a powerful yield, and Harriet can wield it perhaps most powerfully of all. She can cause some real trouble for other Civilizations by messing with them through means of Espionage, allowing you to disrupt or steal advantages from others.

Even if you get caught and anger a powerful force, the 5 War Support you get when a war is declared against you is an enormous drain on them, that should allow you to grind out a victory. On top of that, her armies are nimble, and able to ignore vegetation, making her hard to pin down, tricksy, and a pain to deal with when she’s defending.

A-Tier: Hatshepsut

• +1 Culture for every imported Resource.
• +15% Production towards the construction of Buildings and Wonders in Cities adjacent to Navigable Rivers.

Hatshepsut can get access to really strong spikes in Culture. It benefits her to have good relationships and establish Trade Routes for imported Resources. She gets +1 Culture for each one, so every time she enters into a trade with another civilization, it gives her a nice boost of Culture.

She’s also one of the very best at producing Wonders, but also, Buildings in general. This makes her very strong in the early Culture Legacy Paths. While she needs to be utilizing a Navigable River, most cities should be on one anyway, so this is not a difficult requirement to satisfy.

A-Tier: Himiko, High Shaman

• +2 Happiness per Age on Happiness Buildings.
• +50% Production towards constructing Happiness Buildings.
• +20% Culture but -10% Science, and these effects are doubled while in a Celebration.

Himiko is perhaps the best producer of Culture in Civilization 7. Her traits are very powerful, and the mixture it has with Happiness is a potent one. Constructing Happiness Buildings is fast thanks to the production bonus, and the Happiness Buildings only get stronger with age. She also gets a ridiculous +20% passive boost to Culture, which doubles during Celebrations, further feeding into Happiness.

However, it comes with drawbacks. She also has a -10% passive to Science, which also doubles during a celebration. This will require you to be aware of your handicap and work around it. That said, as long as you either utilize Endeavors or compensate for the Science loss with Buildings and resources, these potential peaks of Culture boosts far outweigh the negative Science nerf.

A-Tier: Isabella

• Gain 300 Gold every time you discover a Natural Wonder, doubled if the Natural Wonder is in Distant Lands.
• +100% additional tile yields from Natural Wonders.
• +50% Gold towards purchasing Naval Units, and -1 Gold maintenance cost for Naval Units.

Isabella can absolutely catapult herself early on if she can find a Natural Wonder. Especially in the Antiquity Age, if found early enough, 300 Gold is a massive boon. This allows her to buy units or buildings that should put her quite a bit ahead if done at the right time. If she is able to incorporate the Natural Wonder into her borders too, she will get massive tile Yields, making it again, very powerful the earlier you can do it.

That said, this of course is dependent on your finding and securing the Natural Wonders. She can fall victim to unlucky map placement. If there’s no nearby Natural Wonder early on, then she’s not going to be getting many benefits. That said, no matter what, she should have a strong Navy, by buying water-based Units and maintaining them with no problem.

A-Tier: Jose Rizal

• When gaining rewards from Narrative Events, gain an additional 20 Culture and Gold per Age.
• Has additional Narrative Events.
• +50% Celebration duration.
• +50% Happiness towards Celebrations.

Jose Rizal is a master of Celebrations. The 50% Celebration Duration and +50% Happiness towards Celebrations tandem is very strong. This can help him make massive gains with powerful Celebration effects, especially if he moves in the direction of Culture. He will have Celebrations often and have them active for longer. That’s excellent.

He also gets nice boosts of Culture and Gold for the Narrative Events he participates in and thankfully they happen more frequently to him than over civs. While these likely won’t sway a game on their own, they are a nice garnish on the Celebration synergy available to him.

A-Tier: Machiavelli

• +3 influence per Age.
• Gains 50 Gold per Age when your Diplomatic Action proposals are accepted or 100 Gold when they are rejected.
• Ignore Relationship requirements for declaring Formal Wars.
• Can Levy Military Units from City-States you are not Suzerin of.

Machiavelli is a great option for those who like to get positively devious. He has a powerful synergy of Influence and Gold that makes him a threat at all times. While he may not be on the offensive every second, his ability to ignore Relationship Requirements to declare wars means even allies aren’t safe from a stab in the back.

Even his apparent power level can be deceptive, as thanks to his ability to gain a lot of Gold from Diplomatic Actions made with his Influence, he can buy meaningful military force quickly. On top of that, he has the very powerful ability to levy units from City-States he isn’t Suzerain of. He’s not best at taking on strong armies and has to be considered in his actions, but he excels at a smash-and-grab playstyle, even at the expense of his friends.

A-Tier: Trung Trac

• Gain 3 free Levels on your first Army Commander.
• +20% Commander experience.
• +10% Science in Cities in Tropical Spaces. This bonus is doubled while in a Formal War you declare.

Trung Trac is the master of utilizing the powerful new Army Commander units. These units let you command multiple units at once while providing them with powerful bonuses. While they aren’t necessarily the strongest to begin with, the more levels they get, the more of a deciding factor they become. Trung Trac not only gets 20% Commander Experience, but her Commanders spawn with three free levels. This can make for some pretty sizeable spikes in military power that can influence wars. If her Commanders get really powerful and get multiple Commendations too, her armies will be some of the most powerful on the map.

She also gets a nice boost to Science on Tropical Spaces, a whopping 20% boostwhen at war, supercharging the formidable Science and Military combo. That said, it’s map-dependent, as she will need access to those Tropical tiles.

A-Tier: Xerxes, The Achaemenid

• +1 Trade Route limit with all other leaders.
• +50 Culture and 100 Gold per Age when you create a Trade Route or Road.
• +1 Culture and Gold per Age on Unique Buildings and Unique Improvements.

Xerxes, The Achaemenid has access to a nice variety of yields and benefits. The 100 Gold and 50 Culture he gets from creating Trade Routes and Roads are excellent and can provide you with massive spikes of both if you set up multiple around the same time. Considering he gets access to one extra Trade Route too for each Leader, there is a nice synergy here.

That’s only helped by his buff to Culture and Gold on Unique Buildings and Improvements. Make no mistake, this is a massive amount of both, and when utilized properly, it’s very, very strong.

B-Tier Leaders

B-Tier: Amina

• +1 Resource Capacity in Cities.
• +1 Gold per Age for each Resource assigned to Cities.
• +5 Combat Strength on all Units in Plains or Desert.

Amina is definitely a decent Leader who does well with Resources. Resources are powerful in Civilization 7, so having access to more is not a bad thing. While the +1 capacity is nice to have, the +1 Gold per Age for each Resource assigned to Cities is an excellent Gold generator.

Of course, you will need to get access to as many Resources as possible while housing them too, so that is where your game plan should be focused. Her Units getting a +5 Combat Strength on all Units in Plains or Desert is a bit situational, but it could come in clutch in the right circumstances.

B-Tier: Catherine the Great

• +2 Culture per Age on displayed Great Works. Building with Great Works slot gain 1 additional slot.
• Cities settled in Tundra gain Science equal to a percentage of their Culture per turn.

Catherine the Great is generally a great producer of Culture. Displaying Great Works is a part of the Culture Legacy Path, so her getting access to extra slots to display them can be useful when trying to run through that as fast as possible. The Culture boost for doing so will also feed more Great Works, making a nice feedback loop.

That said, she can be a little situational. Her cities being on Tundra do make for excellent Science output in tandem with her Culture generation. That said, if you can’t settle on Tundras or their barrenness ends up hurting you in terms of resources, she can be a little trickier to utilize.

B-Tier: Friedrich, Oblique

• Army Commanders start with the Merit Commendation, granting them additional Command Radius.
• Gain an Infantry Unit when you construct a Science Building.

The Oblique version of Friedrich is likely his better option, though he’s still far from the best in the game. That isn’t to say he isn’t without merit though. Army Commanders are strong Units and the Merit Commendations provide the most powerful effects among them. Starting with one of those is a good way to boost your army’s power early on. The additional Command Radius is as powerful as any buffs and debuffs, allowing you to affect more Units.

He also can get an Infantry Unit when constructing a Science Building, which is a nice incentive to put your Gold and Production into those. That said, he has no access to Science, Influence, or Culture buffs. Even for a scientific-focused Civilization, he can end up hurting his viability a bit as he will likely lag behind other specialists.

B-Tier: Ibn Battuta

• Gain 2 Wildcard Attribute Points after the first Civic in every Age.
• +1 Sight for all Units.
• Gain a unique Endeavor called Trade Maps that allows you to gradually see other Leaders’ Explored area.

Ibn Battuta could become a powerful Civilization if played correctly, though he is so versatile, his strengths may not be apparent to those not sure how to utilize Attribute Points. Getting 2 of these after the first Civic in each Age means that he is flexible, and can spec himself into the situation he finds himself in. That said, with that flexibility comes more choice and complexity that might be a little unwieldy for new players.

Likewise, his visibility of the map granted from stealing other Explored areas and the extra sight from units is something that can be powerful in experienced hands. However that value might not be apparent to those less versed in how to make use of that information. He brings a lot to the table and is very flexible. Just be sure you know how to utilize that.

B-Tier: Lafayette

• Gain a unique Endeavor called Reform, which grants an additional Social Policy slot. Supporting this Endeavor also grants the other leader an additional Social Policy Slot.
• +1 Combat Strength for every Tradition, but not Policy, slotted into Government.
• +1 Culture and Happiness per Age in Settlements, doubled in Distant Lands.

Lafayette has access to some nice traits, though they aren’t the most eye-catching in isolation. Him being able to use Reform to get additional Social Policy Slots is nice, and can help provide yield boosts. The +1 Combat Strength he gets from Traditions too is nothing to sniff at. That said, even with yield-focused policies, he may struggle to keep up with more specialised Leaders.

The +1 to Culture and Happiness per Age, which is doubled in Distant Lands, is a completely unconditional buff though. That’s nice to have. This all comes together to make him a good Civilization, with a nice selection of good traits, though nothing here is entirely compelling here on its own.

B-Tier: Napoleon, Emperor

• Gain a unique Sanction called Continental System that reduces the Trade Route limit of the targeted Leader to all other Leaders. Causes massive Relationship penalty, and costs more to reject.
• +8 Gold per Age for every Leader you are Unfriendly or Hostile with.
• Can reject endeavors for Free.

Napoleon, Emperor is for those who like being a bit of a brat. He gets benefits from being a troll, gaining a very good +8 Gold for every Leader he is Unfriendly or Hostile with. That can be a lot if he’s annoying everyone. His Continental System Sanction messes with other civilizations’ ability to trade, making it an excellent option to tick off his neighbors.

The difficulty comes in managing that dislike. This means it will be very hard to enter into Endeavors, or even keep Open Borders with those around you. Of course, it will also paint an enormous target on your back. Since he provides no buffs to his Units militarily, that’s a dangerous game. So, if you’re going to be a jerk to everyone, make sure you have the army to back it up just in case the consequences of your actions catch up to you.

B-Tier: Napoleon, Revolutionary

• +1 Movement for all Land Units.
• Defending an enemy unit provides Culture equal to 50% percent of its Combat Strength.

Napoleon, Revolutionary is an interesting Leader. All of his land units get +1 movement which is helpful when trying to both traverse large areas, as well as being nimble when maneuvering around enemy units.

However, how you utilize his other trait is likely going to be what decides if you do well with him or not. Culture equal to 50% of enemy Combat Strength when defending can be very spikey, giving you a lot of Culture if you find yourself defending multiple times per turn. However, to make the best of this, you need to find yourself in this position relatively often. That means you’re going to want to be provoking enemies, but holding your ground. It’s a pretty unique playstyle and may be a bit awkward for some. But if used well, it could be a big source of Culture. Just expect to be putting other resources into maintaining your army as you continually take hits.

B-Tier: Tecumseh

• +1 Food and Production per Age in Settlements for every City-State you are Suzerain of.
• +1 Combat Strength for all your Units for every City-State you are Suzerin of.

Tecumseh has the potential to be very good, but it will need time and setup. He is all about becoming the Suzerain of City-States. If you can rack up three or four of these, that’s a significant bonus to Food and Production, as well as Combat Strength.

The issue is that becoming a Suzerain takes a lot of Influence and he doesn’t have an inherent trait that helps. So he will need a good pairing with a Civilization, Policy, and Buildings/Districts to facilitate this. On top of that, it will just take time for you to get the Influence you need and convince these states they should come under your wing. However, if you have the infrastructure for it, the rewards can be pure and consistent value.

B-Tier: Himiko, Queen of Wa

• Gain a unique Endeavor called Friend of Wei that can be performed in an Alliance to grant you and your ally +25% Science.
• +4 Science per Age for every Leader you are Friendly or Helpful with.
• Can support Endeavors for free.

Himiko, Queen of Wa is the opposite of Napoleon, Emperor. She is all about being everyone’s best friend, and if you can maintain that, you will reap enormous benefits. The +4 Science per Age for every Leader you’re Friendly or Helpful with is only helped by the Friend of Wei Endeavor. Multiply that by several allies, and that’s serious Science production.

However, you do have to be a little careful with it too. Make sure being nice to everyone doesn’t come at the cost of your defensive military. Your Technological advances and sunny demeanor may make others jealous, so don’t get caught out thinking everyone is your friend. That can go out the window quickly when they want what you have.

C-Tier Leaders

C-Tier: Friedrich, Baroque

• Gain a Great Work when you capture a Settlement for the first time.
• Gain an Infantry Unit when you construct a Culture Building.

Friedrich, Baroque has two traits and neither is particularly strong or distinct. Gaining a Great Work for capturing a Settlement for the first time is decent, but is unlikely to outright help you win games. In a field of very strong Leader traits, this feels merely ‘fine’.

Gaining an Infantry Unit when building a Culture Building is also useful, and can help fuel your military ambitions, but it’s not exactly going to make up for having no yield bonuses here. There are just many stronger options when it comes to Culture and your Military.

C-Tier: Pachacuti

• All Buildings gain a +1 Food adjacency bonus for Mountains.
• Specialists adjacent to Mountains do not cost Happiness maintenance

Pachacuti is not a bad Leader. In fact, in some games, he can be exceptional. The problem is, he can also do next to nothing if the map hasn’t favored you. To excel, you need Mountains. If he can settle near them, then he will get good access to a good amount of Food and have little drawback from Specialists. That can be really good, especially when paired with Civilizations that utilize Mountains too.

The problem is, that’s a strict requirement. Without Mountains, he provides little else, so if you spawn on a map with none around you, you’re out of luck. Of course, you can start over, or move the map sliders in your favor before picking him, but if you want a neutral experience where you start and play on a normal map, know you’re rolling the dice when you start.

Patrick is a a freelance journalist with over 13 years of experience who loves going deep on games and getting into their systems. His four-figure hours into both Overwatch 2 and Destiny 2 are a testament to that.