How to Make Money in Starfield

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 7:06 PM /

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Starfield screenshot of a space cowboy with stock images of dollar signs over his eyes and a cartoon tongue sticking out of his mouth

Starfield is huge and there's lots to spend your money on, so this guide will show you how to make money in Starfield

If you enjoy this guide you should check out some of our other guides on similar games. We've covered the basics of games like Forever Skies to help you survive as long as possible, or you can check out our Palia guides if you're more in a cozy MMO sort of mood. 


There are a few different options for making a lot of creds quickly (relatively) in Starfield, and we've laid out the best ones for you below. 

Trading

Starfield screenshot showing a futuristic store called Jemison Mercentile

One of the easiest ways to make money in the early game is to sell pretty much everything you can get your hands on. While you're exploring you can find items with a high value sitting in containers and on shelves, and you should pick up as much as you can to sell. 

Starfield screenshot showing two electronic boards standing next to each other

Familiarize yourself with the major stores. It's likely that your first store will be “Jemison Mercantile” in New Atlantis, not far from the starport, but you can find stores in most major settlements that'll take your creds or goods. 

Starfield screenshot showing a mission board with yellow details on a grey background

If you want to be a "proper trader" then you'll need to check out the mission boards in major settlements, pictured above next to the bounty remover. The Trade Authority will post contracts here for you to ship goods across space, assuming you have the hold space to do it that is. 

Smuggling

Starfield screenshot showing a spaceship screen with the shielded capacity of a ship highlighted in red boxes

Basically trading on steroids. Smuggling will get you much, much more in the way of credits, but you'll need special equipment and contacts to actually do it right. Most important, is having shielded storage on your ship to get past contraband scans. 

You can pick up illicit goods on most planets, but Neon, Cydonia, and The Key are hotspots for illegal products. You can also check out The Well in New Atlantis if you're still very early on in the game. 

Starfield screenshot showing a woman in futeristic gang attire staring at the viewer with dialogue options laid out underneath her

To sell stolen goods you'll need to know a fence. You can find them in lots of cities, but by far the easiest to access are the markets on The Key, or the gang merchants on Neon. Both of the aforementioned options require you to be 'in' with the factions that control them slightly. 

If you're struggling with smuggling on your own, check out our Contraband Guide for more information in making money without any morals. 

Questing

starfield screenshot showing a couple of electronic kiosks sat next to each other

Another amazing way of making a lot of money is taking on specific questlines, or completing side-missions. Most factions have quest boards you can use to make quick cash once they give you access, as well as the generic boards posted all over the galaxy. 

Below are some of the best questlines for making a lot of cash: 

  • Crimson Fleet/UC Investigation Questline (finishing can net you upwards of 250,000 credits.) 
  • Freestar Collective Ranger Mission Board (lots of bounty and rescue missions back-to-back) 
  • Ryujin Job Questline (Head to Neon and attend the Ryujin interview or interact with the Ryujin Terminal) 

How to Cheat Money

Starfield screenshot showing an active console window open in the bottom left corner

If you're playing on PC and want to get more money at any cost, you can use the console (Shift + ') and enter the following command: 

  • player.additem 000000f ###

Change ### to whatever value you'd like to add to your inventory. It's a good thing that credits don't weigh anything. 

If you like these commands, check out our Console Command Guide as well. 


That's it for this Starfield guide, but check out more below: 

Have a tip, or want to point out something we missed? Leave a Comment or e-mail us at tips@techraptor.net


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| Staff Writer

Will has been writing about video games professionally since 2016 and has covered everything from AAA game reviews to industry events and everything in… More about William

More Info About This Game
Learn more about Starfield
Game Page Starfield
Publisher
Bethesda Softworks
Platforms
PC, Xbox Series X|S
Release Date
September 6, 2023 (Calendar)
Genre
Action, RPG