To establish a trade route in Civilization VII, select a Merchant, choose an eligible foreign Settlement, and—during Antiquity and Exploration—send the unit there. When it arrives, activate its Make Trade Route action. In the Modern Age, a Merchant can start a route from anywhere on the map. You can inspect route options through the Trade Lens or the Merchant’s Trade Route panel.
How to create a trade route
- Unlock and obtain a Merchant. Merchants are typically unlocked by studying a supporting Civic, according to Firaxis Games’ trade overview. The available method of obtaining one depends on your game; use the unit-production or purchase options shown in your interface.
- Find an eligible destination. Select the Merchant and open its Trade Route options, or use the Trade Lens. The available destinations depend on which leaders and Settlements you have discovered and the Merchant’s reach.
- Compare the destination’s resources with your needs. A route grants a copy of each resource produced locally at its destination. Consider what your Settlements need and where you have capacity to allocate incoming resources.
- Send the Merchant to the foreign Settlement. In Antiquity and Exploration, select the destination and move the Merchant there. The unit must reach the Settlement before you can establish the route.
- Activate the route when the Merchant arrives. Use the Merchant’s Make Trade Route action in the unit-action area. Reaching the destination alone does not establish the route.
The March 25, 2025 patch added the Trade Lens and the ability to send Merchants directly from the Trade Route panel.
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How trade routes work
- Resources: A route gives you a copy of each resource produced locally at the destination Settlement.
- Land routes: These have a shorter maximum distance and create a road between the foreign Settlement and the nearest Settlement in your trade network.
- Sea routes: These can reach twice as far as land routes. When another leader sends a Merchant to you, a sea route doubles the Gold received by your destination Settlement.
- Incoming routes: If another leader sends a Merchant to one of your Settlements, that Settlement automatically shares its resources and receives Gold. Firaxis says the amount of Gold depends on how many resources the Settlement provides.
- Caravans and ships: After a route is established, a trade caravan or ship is generated and continues along it. Enemy forces can plunder it.
Choose a destination that fits your plans
Start by comparing the destination’s locally produced resources with the resources your empire lacks and the capacity available in your Settlements. The Settlement type may affect where you can allocate what the route brings back: GameSpot’s merchant and trade route walkthrough says resources from a city destination go to one of your cities, while resources from a town destination may be allocated to cities or towns. Check the in-game allocation interface for the options in your current game.
Also consider whether the route is by land or sea, its distance, and whether the route could be exposed to enemy plunder. GameSpot reports that additional routes with the same leader may require Influence and that leaders at war or with negative relations generally reject route proposals. Treat those as walkthrough guidance: check the current interface for the requirements and availability of a specific route.
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Why you may not see or complete a route
- The destination is unknown or out of reach. Route choices depend on discovered leaders and Settlements and on the Merchant’s reach. Explore to reveal more possible destinations.
- The Merchant has not arrived. In Antiquity and Exploration, the unit must travel to the destination before the route can be activated.
- You have not used the route action. After arrival, select the Merchant and activate Make Trade Route; arrival by itself is not enough.
- Possible routes do not appear in the interface. The December 9, 2025 patch notes say that selecting a Merchant now properly displays possible Trade Routes. They also report a fix for creating routes to some Distant Land Settlements from the Homelands.
- You are following an older interface sequence. The Trade Lens and dispatch from the Trade Route panel were added in the March 25, 2025 update, so use those options if they are available in your game.
What changes in the Modern Age?
In Antiquity and Exploration, send the Merchant to the foreign Settlement and activate the route once it arrives. In the Modern Age, the Merchant can initiate a Trade Route from anywhere on the map; it does not need to travel to the destination first.
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