7 Days to Die creative mode: how to enable it, cm/dm/god/fly commands, the U item menu, giveself spawn commands, and server setup (BuildCreate).
7 Days to Die Creative Mode: Commands and Cheats (2026)
Creative mode in 7 Days to Die is a sandbox layer on top of the normal game: turn it on, press U, and you get a 7×10 grid of every block and item in the game to spawn freely — plus god mode, flight, and spawn commands. It's PC-only (the console editions have no developer console), and enabling it in a world's settings disables achievements for that world, so treat it as a testing tool, not a free lunch. This guide covers how to switch it on, every command that matters (cm, dm, god, giveself, settime), how it works on servers, and the honest take on trainers.
Official resources: Steam store page · Official wiki: Creative Menu · Official wiki: Command Console · IGN: 7D2D item codes · Official 1.0 launch announcement
What Creative Mode Actually Is
Creative mode is a cheat-layer toggle, not a separate game mode. It gives you three overlapping tools:
- The Creative Menu — press U to open a searchable 7×10 grid containing every block and item in the game. Drag anything into your inventory in any quantity, including items you haven't unlocked and (if enabled in the XML) developer items.
- Debug mode — unlocks the Esc-menu developer overlay, teleport options, god mode, flight, and the entity-spawning menu.
- Console commands — the F1 terminal, which does everything from spawning items to changing the time to kicking players.
The official wiki's Creative Menu page is blunt about the trade-off: "Use of this creative menu for gameplay purposes has the potential to ruin the looting aspect of the game." It also notes the achievement rule — a world created with cheat mode enabled won't earn achievements.
(1) Achievements — enabling Cheat Mode at world creation disables Steam achievements for that world, and the flag sticks. (2) Your fun — spawning your way to endgame gear once usually makes the looting loop feel hollow afterwards. The community consensus: use creative mode on a test world for base prototyping (see the base designs guide), not on your real save.
How to Enable Creative Mode
Method 1 — world setting (recommended): New Game (or load an existing world) → World Options → Advanced tab → set Creative Mode: On (the "Cheat Mode" option in the UI). Load the world, press U to open the Creative Menu.
Method 2 — in-game console: press F1 (or " on US layouts), type cm (short for creativemenu), Enter. This toggles the Creative Menu on mid-session. Note the menu itself only opens if the world has Cheat Mode enabled; cm alone may not unlock it on a survival world.
Method 3 — debug tools: type dm (or debugmenu) in the F1 console to unlock the developer overlay in the Esc menu (god mode, fly, teleport, noclip).
Every Command That Matters
| Command | Effect | Example |
|---|---|---|
cm / creativemenu |
Toggle the Creative Menu | cm |
dm / debugmenu |
Toggle debug/developer overlay | dm |
god |
Invincibility (no damage, hunger, thirst) | god |
fly |
Fly / no-clip movement (also H in debug) | fly |
giveself <itemID> <quality> <qty> |
Spawn an item at a quality level | giveself gunPistol 6 1 (Tier 6 pistol) |
giveselfxp <amount> |
Grant XP directly | giveselfxp 10000 |
settime <day> <hour> <minute> |
Jump the clock — perfect for testing hordes | settime 7 21 00 (one hour before the Blood Moon) |
gettime |
Show current time | gettime |
saveworld |
Force-save (do this before spawning entities) | saveworld |
spawnentity 0 <entityID> |
Spawn an entity at your position | spawnentity 0 zombieBikerFeral |
spawnwanderinghorde |
Trigger a wandering horde | spawnwanderinghorde |
spawnscouts |
Spawn a screamer scout | spawnscouts |
spawnairdrop |
Trigger a supply drop | spawnairdrop |
teleport <x> <z> / teleport <x> <y> <z> |
Jump to map coordinates | teleport 352 -646 |
Finding item IDs: item IDs change between patches. The reliable method: enable cm, press U, and hover over the item in the Creative Menu — the tooltip shows its internal asset name (e.g. gunPistol). IGN's 7D2D item codes page has a maintained list for common items.
The best creative-mode use case: build a prototype base, then settime 7 21 00 and let a real horde hit it. You'll learn which walls fail before you invest resources in a real world. The blood moon guide has the horde mechanics to watch for while you test.
Creative Mode on Servers
Creative mode on a server requires admin rights, and the host controls who has them:
- Add yourself (or the player) as admin: console command
admin add <SteamID or name> <level>— permission level 0 is the highest, 1000 is none. - Enable creative/debug tools on the server: in
serverconfig.xml, setBuildCreatetotrue(the setting that permits creative building), save, restart. - In-game, the admin uses
cm/dmas normal. When done testing, setBuildCreateback tofalseand restart — leaving it on for a public server means any admin can spawn items freely.
Important limits: there is no command to give items directly to another player — only to yourself (giveself), after which you drop the item for them. Server-side mods like ServerTools add direct-give commands if you need them (see the best mods guide). Console editions have no developer console at all — creative tools are PC-only, which the review guide notes as one more console/PC gap.
The Honest Word on Trainers
"Trainers" are third-party cheat programs that inject into the game process (god mode, ammo, speed hacks) — not part of creative mode, and a different animal entirely:
- They trigger Easy Anti-Cheat. 7 Days to Die uses kernel-level EAC, and trainers that modify the process are the fastest way to a ban from EAC-protected servers. The crossplay guide explains the EAC architecture.
- They break with every update. Every game patch invalidates trainers until their authors re-release; creative mode commands never break.
- Everything a trainer does, creative mode does better — spawn, god, fly, time control, entity spawning — without the ban risk or the malware surface.
The recommendation is consistent across the community: use the built-in commands. If you want creative powers in your own game, cm/dm give you 100% of what a trainer offers with zero of the risk.
Per the official wiki's Command Console page: "The Command Console is a tool primarily used for game development" — that's the framing that keeps creative tools useful: they're a development/test sandbox the player can also access, not a cheat ecosystem.
FAQ
How do I enable creative mode in 7 Days to Die?
Open the world's Advanced options and set Creative Mode (Cheat Mode) to On, then press U in-game for the item grid. Or type cm in the F1 console. Debug tools unlock with dm. World-level cheats disable achievements for that world.
What are the creative mode commands in 7 Days to Die?
cm (creative menu), dm (debug menu), god (invincibility), fly, giveself <item> <quality> <qty>, giveselfxp, settime, spawnentity, spawnwanderinghorde, teleport. Open the console with F1; use help for the full list.
How do I give myself items in 7 Days to Die?
Use giveself <itemID> <quality> <qty> — e.g. giveself gunPistol 6 1. Find the correct item ID by hovering the item in the Creative Menu (U), or check IGN's item codes list. IDs change between patches.
Can I use creative mode on a server?
Only as an admin: add the player with admin add, set BuildCreate to true in serverconfig.xml, restart, then use cm/dm. There's no command to give items to other players directly — spawn and drop instead.
Do trainers work with 7 Days to Die?
Technically some do, but they trigger Easy Anti-Cheat (ban risk on protected servers), break every update, and duplicate what creative mode already does safely. The built-in commands cover everything a trainer offers.
Related guides: 7 Days to Die Base Designs — prototype with creative mode · 7 Days to Die Blood Moon — testing hordes · How to See the Server IP in 7 Days to Die · Best 7 Days to Die Mods · Conan Exiles Console Commands guide
Last updated: August 13, 2026.
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