Best niches
All pricesPairs that hit $100k+ beyond the oddsFree until launch
Lens checkHolds in 3 of 3. Standard: the yardstick. West-facing view: holds. Without the breakout: holds. Last 18 months: holds.
Open free previewTicker: price and year-over-year change for 40 genres. Price is the median estimated first-year revenue of indie paid launches. The same figures are on the Genres page.
Niches 1 Oct
Of 2,257 niches with 100+ launches at any price, Without the breakout, 798 beat the 1 in 16 base rate. Price moves the odds most: 1 in 192 under $5, 42 in 100 at $20 to $40.798 of 2,257 niches beat the 1 in 16 base rate.798 beat the base rate.
Cohort median $606
Every tag pair (two tags on the same game), screened by how often its indie launches earned $100k or more in their first year. Pick your price first: price moves the odds more than the tags do.
Indie paid Steam launches 6 to 30 months old, data 1 Oct 2026. A hit is an estimated first year of $100k+. The revenue estimate is soft: about 5 to 8 in 100 launches overall.
Pairs that hit $100k+ beyond the oddsFree until launch
Lens checkHolds in 3 of 3. Standard: the yardstick. West-facing view: holds. Without the breakout: holds. Last 18 months: holds.
Open free previewThe Without the breakout lens is computed across all prices only for now, so this list reads All prices. Pick Standard to read $10 to $20.
2,257 of 5,145 niches have 100+ launches at any price, Without the breakout. Sorted by chance of $100k+, highest first.
| Rank# | Niche | Chance of $100k+ | Typical year | Top 1 in 10 | Launches | Markers | Pin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All games at any price, Without the breakoutthe base rate: the row to beat | 1 in 161,804 of 29,637 | $606 | not computed | 29,637 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Base Building + Colony Sim33 in 100 earned $100k+, from 100 launches | 33 in 10033 hits | $27,623 | not computed | 100 | none | Pin Base Building + Colony Sim | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
33 in 100 earned $100k+, from 100 launches at any price, Without the breakout. That is about 5.4 times the base rate. Base rate at any price, Without the breakout: 1 in 16 (1,804 of 29,637 launches earned $100k+). Typical first year $27,623. Top 1 in 10 is not computed for lenses yet. Lens check, all pricesHolds in 3 of 3. Standard: the yardstick. West-facing view: holds. Without the breakout: holds. Last 18 months: holds. No warning markers: no single game holds half the money, the sample is 50+ launches and the audience split is small.
Grey: under 30 launches at that price, written as a count. Odds compare best within one price. Its two tags alone, at any price, Without the breakout
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| 2 | Base Building + Management32 in 100 earned $100k+, from 142 launches | 32 in 10045 hits | $14,874 | not computed | 142 | none | Pin Base Building + Management | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Base Building + Sandbox31 in 100 earned $100k+, from 166 launches | 31 in 10052 hits | $8,568 | not computed | 166 | Audience | Pin Base Building + Sandbox | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Base Building + Crafting29 in 100 earned $100k+, from 146 launches | 29 in 10042 hits | $18,453 | not computed | 146 | 1-hit | Pin Base Building + Crafting | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5 | City Builder + Management28 in 100 earned $100k+, from 137 launches | 28 in 10039 hits | $9,097 | not computed | 137 | 1-hit | Pin City Builder + Management | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 6 | City Builder + Sandbox28 in 100 earned $100k+, from 138 launches | 28 in 10039 hits | $8,496 | not computed | 138 | 1-hit | Pin City Builder + Sandbox | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | Base Building + City Builder27 in 100 earned $100k+, from 147 launches | 27 in 10040 hits | $9,410 | not computed | 147 | 1-hit | Pin Base Building + City Builder | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | City Builder + Colony Sim27 in 100 earned $100k+, from 122 launches | 27 in 10033 hits | $7,080 | not computed | 122 | none | Pin City Builder + Colony Sim | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 9 | Base Building + Survival27 in 100 earned $100k+, from 168 launches | 27 in 10045 hits | $9,903 | not computed | 168 | none | Pin Base Building + Survival | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10 | Base Building + Exploration27 in 100 earned $100k+, from 127 launches | 27 in 10034 hits | $4,857 | not computed | 127 | Audience | Pin Base Building + Exploration | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 11 | Crafting + Open World26 in 100 earned $100k+, from 123 launches | 26 in 10032 hits | $10,722 | not computed | 123 | 1-hit | Pin Crafting + Open World | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 12 | City Builder + Resource Management26 in 100 earned $100k+, from 105 launches | 26 in 10027 hits | $6,678 | not computed | 105 | 1-hit | Pin City Builder + Resource Management | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 13 | Base Building + Simulation26 in 100 earned $100k+, from 180 launches | 26 in 10046 hits | $7,433 | not computed | 180 | 1-hit | Pin Base Building + Simulation | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 14 | Management + Sandbox26 in 100 earned $100k+, from 243 launches | 26 in 10062 hits | $10,522 | not computed | 243 | none | Pin Management + Sandbox | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 15 | Building + Crafting25 in 100 earned $100k+, from 177 launches | 25 in 10045 hits | $4,857 | not computed | 177 | none | Pin Building + Crafting | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 16 | Open World + Sandbox25 in 100 earned $100k+, from 213 launches | 25 in 10054 hits | $8,234 | not computed | 213 | none | Pin Open World + Sandbox | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 17 | Co-op + First-Person25 in 100 earned $100k+, from 158 launches | 25 in 10040 hits | $7,502 | not computed | 158 | Audience | Pin Co-op + First-Person | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 18 | Exploration + Multiplayer25 in 100 earned $100k+, from 155 launches | 25 in 10039 hits | $8,498 | not computed | 155 | none | Pin Exploration + Multiplayer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 19 | Online Co-Op + Simulation25 in 100 earned $100k+, from 128 launches | 25 in 10032 hits | $12,561 | not computed | 128 | none | Pin Online Co-Op + Simulation | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 20 | Historical + Simulation25 in 100 earned $100k+, from 101 launches | 25 in 10025 hits | $5,178 | not computed | 101 | 1-hit | Pin Historical + Simulation | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 21 | Building + Management25 in 100 earned $100k+, from 267 launches | 25 in 10066 hits | $7,828 | not computed | 267 | none | Pin Building + Management | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 22 | Exploration + Online Co-Op25 in 100 earned $100k+, from 134 launches | 25 in 10033 hits | $9,346 | not computed | 134 | none | Pin Exploration + Online Co-Op | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 23 | Multiplayer + Survival25 in 100 earned $100k+, from 114 launches | 25 in 10028 hits | $4,731 | not computed | 114 | Audience | Pin Multiplayer + Survival | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 24 | Online Co-Op + PvE24 in 100 earned $100k+, from 111 launches | 24 in 10027 hits | $7,485 | not computed | 111 | none | Pin Online Co-Op + PvE | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 25 | Crafting + Exploration24 in 100 earned $100k+, from 195 launches | 24 in 10046 hits | $4,248 | not computed | 195 | none | Pin Crafting + Exploration | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Under 30 launches a chance is written as a count ("3 of 12"), never as odds. Typical year is the middle launch's first-year earnings. Lenses, the one-hit share and the audience split are measured across all prices. A game counts in every pair its tags make.
Ticker: 30 upcoming games dated within 90 days, with wishlist rank, release date and followers. The same list is on the Upcoming page.