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The guide

13 Idle Mining Games, From Idle Miner Tycoon to Two-Hour Steam Gems

Idle mining games for 2026: 13 picks from Mr.Mine and Idle Miner Tycoon to short Steam diggers, with prices, review scores, lengths and honest caveats.

Source-checked guideMaintained by Maxwell PrehodaHow we choose

The best idle mining game for most players is Mr.Mine: free in the browser, 92% positive on Steam, with a drill you upgrade through layer after layer of discoveries. On a phone, Idle Miner Tycoon is the giant of the genre and Idle Obelisk Miner is the deeper pick. If you want something short and finished, Digseum and Space Rock Breaker are $2.99 each and among the best-reviewed games on Steam. Thirteen picks in all, below.

Mining games split into two kinds. Tycoon miners are about managers, shafts and cash multipliers. Digger miners are about going deeper: each layer has harder rock and better ore, and you smelt, upgrade and push down again. Both are here, labelled. Every game is from the IncrementalGames.org catalog; prices and features were checked on Steam and the App Store in November 2026, and Steam review percentages come from the catalog's counts.

01

Mr.Mine: best for the classic dig-deeper idle game, free

Platform: Browser, Steam · free-to-play

Mr.Mine has you manage a team of miners and upgrade a drill to idle your way down through the mines, finding buildings with their own mechanics, treasures and mysteries along the way. The Steam page lists over 100 drill upgrades and Super Miners with special abilities, and the catalog records offline progress.

Playsaurus first released it in 2012, where it was played more than 10 million times, and remastered it for Steam in 2020. It is free in the browser at mrmine.com and free on Steam for Windows and Mac, where it is 92% positive from about 18,700 reviews as of November 2026.

Pick it first if you want discovery more than spreadsheets. The point is finding out what is in the next layer.

Watch out for: Steam lists in-app purchases, and the catalog records no ending, so it keeps going as long as you do.

Read the profile →Play in the browser ↗Steam page ↗

02

Idle Miner Tycoon: best for the mobile mining empire most people mean

Platform: Mobile · free-to-play

Kolibri Games' Idle Miner Tycoon is the tycoon kind of mining game: build mine shafts, hire managers so they run without you, and grow a mining empire across many mines. The catalog rates it 85% idle, and it is the reason "idle miner" is a search term at all.

It is free on iPhone with 4.7 stars from about 867,000 ratings as of November 2026, and on Android. The App Store listing says you can start the game in offline mode.

Pick it if you want the most polished version of the tycoon loop on your phone.

Watch out for: It is a big free-to-play mobile game, so expect purchases and boosts. The catalog records capped offline earnings, so long absences stop paying after a while.

Read the profile →App Store ↗

03

Idle Obelisk Miner: best for upgrade-tree fans on a phone

Platform: Mobile · free-to-play

Idle Obelisk Miner is the digger kind: mine rocks, craft bars and push through many upgrade trees, lots of them locked behind milestones. You build stats to defeat the Obelisk, which unlocks rewards and new content, and bombs from the workshop add power and utility. You can play actively or let it run.

It is free on iPhone with 4.9 stars from about 3,780 ratings as of November 2026, and the listing was updated in October 2026. The catalog records offline progress.

Pick it if Idle Miner Tycoon feels too shallow and you want a mobile miner built like a PC incremental.

Watch out for: It is free to play. Check the in-app purchases section of the listing before you commit.

Read the profile →App Store ↗

04

Keep on Mining!: best for hover-to-mine with a big skill tree

Platform: Steam · paid

Keep on Mining! is a short incremental where you hover your cursor over rocks to mine them, and any rock inside the mining area spawns pickaxes that mine for you. Ores become bars, bars buy upgrades in a large skill tree, and each level gives a talent point for talent cards. An automatic mine adds idle gains.

It costs $4.99 on Steam for Windows and $3.99 on iPhone, and the Steam version is 91% positive from about 3,090 reviews as of November 2026. A sequel, Keep on Mining! - Worlds, adds many worlds and a 200-plus node skill tree.

Pick it if you want a satisfying, low-effort mining loop you can finish in a few evenings.

Watch out for: It is short by design, and the catalog marks it dormant, so do not expect new content. The sequel is the place for more.

Read the profile →Steam page ↗App Store ↗

05

Digseum: best for a $3 dig-and-display game you finish in an evening

Platform: Steam · paid

Digseum is about digging up ancient relics and building the greatest museum ever. You excavate at more than 12 sites, find over 50 relics, display them to attract visitors, and spend the money on museum and excavation upgrades in a skill tree, to a lo-fi soundtrack by Loyalty Freak.

The Steam page promises a short and sweet experience of about 2.5 hours. It costs $2.99 on Windows and is 98% positive from about 5,540 reviews as of November 2026, the best score on this list.

Pick it when you want a complete mining game in one sitting.

Watch out for: It is about two and a half hours long. That is the design, not a flaw, but it is not a long-term idler.

Read the profile →Steam page ↗

06

Space Rock Breaker: best for shooting asteroids into a Plinko machine

Platform: Steam · paid

Space Rock Breaker is a short incremental where you mine asteroids with guns, missiles and lasers, then process the ore through an upgradable Plinko machine for profit. Credits upgrade your ship and weapons, lootboxes give bonuses, and deeper space holds more valuable ores.

It costs $2.99 on Windows with full controller support and is 96% positive from about 2,560 Steam reviews as of November 2026.

Pick it if you want mining with more action and a gambling-flavoured twist to the payout.

Watch out for: It is short, and the in-game lootboxes are part of the upgrade loop. Steam lists no in-app purchases, but expect randomness in your upgrades.

Read the profile →Steam page ↗

07

To The Core: best for drilling through a whole solar system

Platform: Steam · paid

To The Core is an incremental about drilling planets for resources. You travel the solar system, pick planets with different resources, and drill as much as you can before the fuel runs out. Each planet is tougher than the last, so you spend resources on drill durability, fuel and the rest.

It costs $7.99 on Windows and is 93% positive from about 4,680 Steam reviews as of November 2026.

Pick it if you like the dig-deeper loop and want a space frame for it. Our idle space games guide has more in that direction.

Watch out for: Fuel limits make it run-based. Steam lists no cloud saves.

Read the profile →Steam page ↗

08

Rock Bottom: best for pickaxe runs where every upgrade sticks

Platform: Steam, Browser · paid

Rock Bottom is an incremental mining game about swinging a pickaxe through procedurally generated caves full of ores and hidden treasures. You smelt ore into bars, spend them in a sprawling skill tree of permanent upgrades, and go deeper with each run, through layers like the Sunken Canopy.

It released on July 14, 2026 for $7.99 on Windows with full controller support and is 94% positive from about 1,810 Steam reviews as of November 2026. A free demo is on itch.io.

Pick it if you like roguelite runs. Our roguelite incremental games guide covers more of that style.

Watch out for: It is active: you swing the pickaxe yourself. It does not progress while closed.

Read the profile →Steam page ↗Free demo on itch.io ↗

09

Idle Deepcore: best for pixel-art machines that dig to the planet's core

Platform: Steam, Browser, Mobile · paid

Idle Deepcore starts with a pickaxe and a few hundred clicks, then hands the work to machines: jackhammers, steam drills, seismic hammers, excavators and mechanical worms, up to the Annihilator. You build furnaces from a stone kiln to a fission furnace, smelt ores into ingots, and dig from the surface down to the molten core and, the iPhone listing says, beyond into orbit.

It costs $4.89 on Steam for Windows and is free on iPhone. The Steam version is 85% positive from about 390 reviews as of November 2026, and the iOS listing says the machines keep mining while you are away.

Pick it if you want the classic "click until the machines take over" arc with a smelting layer.

Watch out for: It is a smaller release with fewer reviews, so expect rough edges, and the iPhone version is free to play.

Read the profile →Steam page ↗App Store ↗

10

You Know The Drill: best for upgrading one drill into a war machine

Platform: Steam · paid

You Know The Drill has you harvest ores, power up and dig further with each run, turning a humble drill into what the store page calls a high-powered mining machine armed to the teeth. The catalog tags it as a mining roguelite.

It released on June 4, 2026 for $4.99 on Windows and Linux, and is 92% positive from about 1,040 Steam reviews as of November 2026.

Pick it if you want quick runs and visible power growth, and Rock Bottom's pickaxe swinging sounds like too much work.

Watch out for: The store description is brief, so watch the trailer first to see if the run pace suits you.

Read the profile →Steam page ↗

11

Sixty Four: best for an abstract cube factory that automates itself

Platform: Steam · paid

Sixty Four, by solo developer Oleg Danilov, is a clicker that becomes more idle with every machine you unlock, until full automation. You start with a simple machine that produces cubes, then combine cubes to unlock new machinery and resources in what the store page calls an extraordinary world.

It costs $5.99 on Windows and Mac and is 75% positive from about 1,510 Steam reviews as of November 2026.

Pick it if you want the most unusual-looking game on this list and like watching a clicker turn into a self-running machine.

Watch out for: Reviews are more mixed than for the other games here, and the opening is click-heavy before automation arrives.

Read the profile →Steam page ↗

12

Deep Town: Mining Idle Games: best for mining plus a crafting town above ground

Platform: Mobile · free-to-play

Deep Town has you manage idle mines and use the cash to grow a town above ground, where crafting buildings make jewellery, grow plants and run production lines from smelting to chemistry. Bots automate collection and boost buildings while you are busy.

It is free on iPhone with 4.8 stars from about 11,600 ratings as of November 2026, and the listing says no internet connection is needed.

Pick it if you like production chains as much as digging.

Watch out for: The App Store listing was last updated in February 2025 and the catalog marks it dormant, so do not expect new content.

Read the profile →App Store ↗

13

Idle Planet Miner: best for space mining with smelting and crafting chains

Platform: Mobile · free-to-play

Idle Planet Miner, from Tech Tree Games (the studio behind The Tower), puts you in charge of a space mining company. You upgrade mining planets, smelt and craft ore into more valuable items, tap to smash asteroids for rare ore, hire managers, research projects and upgrade your mining ship.

It is free on iPhone with 4.7 stars from about 10,100 ratings as of November 2026, and the listing was updated in October 2026. The catalog records offline progress and rates it 80% idle.

Pick it if you want a long-running mobile miner with more crafting than Idle Miner Tycoon.

Watch out for: It is free to play and the listing mentions competing against other miners, so some parts lean on events and leaderboards.

Read the profile →App Store ↗

How to choose an idle mining game

Pick the kind of mining first, then the length.

01

Tycoon or digger

If you want managers and multipliers, choose Idle Miner Tycoon or Idle Planet Miner, and see our idle tycoon games guide for more. If you want to go deeper layer by layer, choose Mr.Mine, Idle Obelisk Miner, Idle Deepcore or Deep Town. If you want runs with permanent upgrades, choose Rock Bottom, You Know The Drill or To The Core.

02

Short and finished or long and open

Finished in an evening: Digseum (about 2.5 hours on its Steam page), Space Rock Breaker and Keep on Mining!. Weeks or more: Mr.Mine, Idle Miner Tycoon, Idle Obelisk Miner and Idle Planet Miner, none of which the catalog records as ending. Our how long to beat page has hours for many more.

03

Match it to your platform and budget

Free on a phone: Idle Miner Tycoon, Idle Obelisk Miner, Deep Town, Idle Planet Miner and Idle Deepcore. Free on PC: Mr.Mine in the browser or on Steam. Under $5 on Steam: Digseum, Space Rock Breaker, Keep on Mining!, Idle Deepcore and You Know The Drill. Mac builds are listed for Mr.Mine and Sixty Four; Linux for You Know The Drill.

Start digging tonight

Open Mr.Mine in your browser now; it is free and you will know in half an hour whether the dig-deeper loop is for you. If you want something you can finish, buy Digseum for $2.99 and clear it in an evening.

Still not sure? The finder matches you to a game by platform, length and how idle you want it.

Find your mining game in two minutes →

Common questions

What is the best idle mining game?

On PC, Mr.Mine is the best-known and is free in the browser, with 92% positive Steam reviews from about 18,700. On a phone, Idle Miner Tycoon is the most played, with about 867,000 App Store ratings. Digseum has the highest Steam score on this list at 98%.

What is the difference between idle miner and mining incremental games?

Idle miner games like Idle Miner Tycoon are tycoon games: you manage shafts and managers for cash. Mining incrementals like Mr.Mine, Idle Obelisk Miner and Idle Deepcore are about going deeper, with harder rock, rarer ore and smelting.

Is Mr.Mine free?

Yes. Mr.Mine is free in the browser at mrmine.com and free on Steam, where the store page lists in-app purchases.

Are there short mining games on Steam?

Yes. Digseum's Steam page promises about 2.5 hours, and Space Rock Breaker and Keep on Mining! are both described by their developers as short incremental games.

Which mining games work without internet?

The Deep Town App Store listing says no internet connection is needed, and the Idle Miner Tycoon listing says you can start in offline mode. See our offline idle games guide for more.

Sources