c7pbm — Civilization 7 Play-By-Mail

A free Play-By-Mail (PBEM) relay server for Civilization 7 Hotseat multiplayer.
Play Civ 7 asynchronously with friends online: register, point to your saves folder, upload your turn, and your opponent gets notified to play next — no need to be online at the same time.

Open c7pbm Web App

Best in Chrome or Edge. The app uses the File System Access API to read and write save files directly — this is only supported in Chromium-based browsers.

Server stats

2 registered players

1 active games

How it works

Open the c7pbm web app and register an account.
Click Set Saves Directory and select your Civ 7 saves folder (see below).
Create a Hotseat game in Civ 7, save it, and click Upload Save.
Your opponent opens the app, sees it's their turn, and if all worked well and they have set their downloads directory (see below), they already have the file downloaded.
Then play in Civ 7, save, and upload back — c7pbm handles the turn order.

Automatic downloads & a real app

When it becomes your turn, c7pbm automatically fetches your opponent's latest save and drops it straight into the Civ 7 saves folder you picked — no manual clicking or emailing files back and forth. You just open Civ 7 and play.

c7pbm is a Progressive Web App (PWA). That means you install it to your home screen or desktop like a native app, it launches full-screen without a browser bar, it updates itself, and it keeps working even if you briefly lose your connection. No app store, no installs to manage, no fees.

Where is my Civ 7 saves folder?

Windows (default)

C:\Users\<username>\Documents\My Games\Sid Meier's Civilization VII\Saves\Hotseat

Steam Cloud

If Steam Cloud is enabled, saves may also be in the Steam userdata directory.
Look in C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\userdata\<steamid>\<appid>\remote\Saves\Hotseat

When in doubt, open Civ 7, start a game, save it, then search your PC for *.Civ7Save files. The folder containing the newest one is your saves directory.

Fine print

I don't collect any personal data beyond what's needed to run the game (your account and save files). There is no guarantee this service works, stays available, or continues to work — I built it to solve my own problem, and you're welcome to use it if you'd like. Use it at your own risk.