There is a simple version of this and a complete version, and both are below in that order.

Short answer

The direct answer is above the fold; the reasoning underneath is there for when the direct answer does not fit your situation.

  • Try the straightforward approach before the elaborate one.
  • Test it yourself where testing is cheap.
  • Keep a save or backup from before you start — it costs nothing and occasionally saves an evening.

Each Civilization entry reshuffles the rules enough that habits from the last one quietly stop working. Testing this yourself takes a few minutes and settles it definitively. Edge cases are genuinely rare, which is why the simple answer is usually the correct one.

When the usual advice fails

Nothing here assumes a particular playstyle beyond wanting the thing to work. The mechanic behind it is simpler than the discussion around it suggests. Most of the disagreement online comes from people describing different versions of Civilization. There is no hidden trick here that the game is keeping from you.

Nothing here depends on a setting you are unlikely to have. It is worth separating what the game does from what players have concluded it does. The short version is near the top on purpose; the reasoning is there if you want to know why.

Why it works this way

The accepted community answer is broadly right and wrong in a specific way that matters here. There is usually a fast way and a reliable way, and it is worth knowing which one you are choosing. It helps to understand why a step exists, because then you can adapt it when your situation is slightly different.

  • Revisit after a major patch if the behaviour changes.
  • Check which version any conflicting advice was written for.
  • Write down what you changed, so you can undo exactly one thing if it goes sideways.
  • Do not build a routine around an edge case.

The practical answer

Anything that behaves differently on console than on PC is flagged where it matters. What follows assumes you are on a current install and have not modified it. None of this needs a paid tool, a third-party launcher or an account on a site you have never heard of. The developers have changed their mind about this at least once, which explains the older advice.

Everything below is framed around the current state of Civilization rather than a launch-week impression. Treat anything stated without a version number as provisional. If your result differs from what is described here, note what is different first rather than starting over.

Worth knowing alongside this

Screenshots age faster than text, which is why this describes rather than shows. Half the pages on this topic were written for a build that no longer exists, which is why they stop matching what you see. The community wisdom on this is roughly half right, and the half that is wrong costs the most time.

A single check up front replaces a lot of guessing later. Most of the disagreement you will find online is two people describing different builds. If a step reads as obvious, do it anyway — the obvious ones are the ones people skip and then wonder about.

What to do instead

Do the cheap check before the expensive one — that ordering alone saves most of the frustration. Patch notes move numbers around constantly; the shape of the answer holds even when a specific value shifts. If you are coming to this after a long break, the terminology has probably moved on.

Where people go wrong

  • Downloading a helper tool for something the game already does in its own menu.
  • Treating a rare edge case as the normal behaviour and planning around it.
  • Grinding a method that was patched months ago because a thread still ranks well.

Civ FAQ

Does this work the same on console and PC?

The logic is identical. Menu paths and button prompts differ, and any real difference is flagged above.

Is this still accurate after the latest Civilization update?

The method is; individual numbers may not be. If a value on your screen differs, trust the screen and keep the sequence.

Why do other guides describe this differently?

Most were written for an earlier version and never revisited. Compare the steps against what your build actually shows.

Does this change between platforms?

The behaviour does not. Where menu paths or prompts differ, that is noted above.

Come back to the caveats list if it does not work first time — the answer is almost always in there.