What is Permit Pending?
Permit Pending is a free city simulation game you play in your browser. It looks like the classic city builders, with one big difference: you are not an all-powerful planner. You are an elected mayor, and every apartment block, bus lane and factory has to get through hearings, reviews, objections, lawsuits and appeals before it is built.
Under the politics sits a real economy. Residents have ages, incomes and homes, businesses hire and leave, and land values, rents, jobs and taxes all affect each other. New housing lowers rents but angers homeowners, new industry brings jobs and smog, and better transit attracts development and its opponents. You face reelection every four years, and heatmaps, graphs and plain explanations show why voters are angry.
It went viral on Hacker News in October 2026 as "SimCity, but with Permits". There is no win screen: it is a sandbox that lasts as long as the voters keep you in office.
Main Features
- City building where every project goes through hearings and appeals
- A seven-seat council, public hearings and political clout to spend
- A real economy of residents, businesses, rents, jobs and taxes
- Elections every four years
- Five starting cities, from a 200-person hamlet to a 300,000-person metropolis, plus a blank slate
- Heatmaps, graphs and a local newspaper that explain what went wrong
- No account or download; saves stay on your computer and it works offline after the first visit
How to Get Started with Permit Pending
- Open permit.petercai.com on a desktop or laptop and click Play.
- Pick a starting city, or a blank slate to shape yourself.
- Rezone land and propose projects from the map.
- Work through your inbox of applications, hearings and appeals.
- Watch the graphs and keep enough voters happy to win the next election.
Permit Pending Pricing
Permit Pending is free to play in your browser, with no account and no download. The site says it is free "because you are loved".
Who Should Use It?
- Fans of SimCity and other city builders
- Anyone curious why housing and transit take so long to build
- Urbanism and policy nerds
- Players who like sandbox games with no fixed ending
Permit Pending Alternatives
- Townscapera relaxing town builder in the browser
- Blocks Switzerlanda block-by-block 3D map of Switzerland
- Universal Paperclipsa browser game about running away with a simple goal
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Permit Pending free?
Yes. It is free to play in your browser, with no account and no download.
Can you win Permit Pending?
Not exactly. It is a sandbox: your goal is the city you want, and the challenge is staying in office long enough to build it.
What do I need to play Permit Pending?
A desktop or laptop with a current browser such as Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari. A mouse helps.
Does Permit Pending save my city?
Yes. Saves stay on your computer, and after the first visit the game also works offline.