Power in Cities Skylines keeps your city running. Without it, the citizens will quickly leave your city. There are over a dozen power sources in Cities Skylines, but which one is the best? In this post you will find out.

In order to keep your buildings functional in the city, they need a constant power supply. There are many electricty sources available in Cities Skylines, all of which have their advantages and disadvantages.

For example, the electricity generated by wind turbines depends on the wind speed on the map, but does not require any further input of resources. In comparison, the coal power plant constantly produces the same amount of electricity, but requires a regular supply of coal to operate normally.

In order to rank the power sources in your city by costs, you can sort them by initial costs and operational costs. Placing the buildings costs money at first, but keeping them operational also costs money.

Best Power Source By Construction Cost (Initial Cost)

Power Source Power Output in MW Construction Cost in $ per MW
Fusion Power Plant 16.000 62,5
Nuclear Power Plant 640 312,5
Solar Updraft Tower 240 375
Oil Power Plant 120 416,7
Coal Power Plant 40 475
Solar Power Plant 160 500
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Plant 480 520,8
Advanced Wind Turbine 20 600
Wave Power Plant 20 700
Wind Turbine 8 750
Geothermal Power Plant 80 812,5

Best Power Source By Upkeep Cost (Maintenance)

Power Source Power Output in MW Upkeep in $ per MW
Fusion Power Plant 16.000 0,5
Solar Power Plant 160 7,5
Wave Power Plant 20 8
Solar Updraft Tower 240 9,3
Advanced Wind Turbine 20 10
Wind Turbine 8 10
Nuclear Power Plant 640 12,5
Geothermal Power Plant 80 13
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Plant 480 13,3
Coal Power Plant 40 14
Oil Power Plant 120 16

Other Power Sources

Hydro Power Plant

The Hydro Power Plant is a dam with turbines. At the maximum output of 1.600 MW, the Hydro Power Plant costs $2/MW upkeep, which theoretically makes it extremely efficient.

However, such values ​​are difficult to achieve, as it is not easy in Cities Skylines to find such a good spot for a dam that can produce such values.

Garbage Disposal Buildings

Some garbage disposal buildings in Cities Skylines are also able to produce electricity when operating.

The Incineration Plant generates up to 12 MW and the Waste Processing Complex up to 40 MW of power. Another monument that exists since the Green Cities DLC is the Ultimate Recycling Plant, which produces up to 60 MW.

Buildings Have No Power

If some buildings in your city do not receive electricity, they are shown in red in the electricity overview.

Buildings with no power in Cities Skylines
Buildings without power in Cities Skylines. Here, the power line was built too short.

But why are these buildings without power? This can be due to several problems:

  • Building is not connected to the power grid
  • Power source is not connected to the power grid
  • Electricity production is too low
  • Different power grids are not connected to each other
  • No resources to generate electricity (wind, coal, oil)
Cities Skylines