The Best Starfield Ships To Buy, Steal, Or Earn

Bethesda's latest massive RPG Starfield will have you frequently flying across the universe, but the starting ship is pretty uninspired. Luckily, there are plenty of other options to cruise through space, from flying weapons of mass destruction to space trucks that can haul a planet's worth of cargo. Depending on your needs, there is likely a ship that fits your specific playstyle, although a few of them will cost you.

Below is a collection of ships that can either be acquired through different questlines or by purchasing them from the various ship vendors throughout the settled systems. Some of these ships cost quite a bit of credits, so make sure you have stacked up a fair bit of money if you are looking to nab some of the best ships around. The list does not include any ships you can steal, not because they aren't any good, but because there aren't many places to consistently find those ships.

In addition to ships you can buy or steal, you can also just build your own creation and if you have maxed out the Ship Design skill, that's going to be the best way to get a ship with max stats across the board. It's also important to note that to pilot the higher class ships you will need ranks in the Piloting skill, specifically Rank 3 Piloting for Class B, and Rank 4 for Class C.

All ship stats and costs were pulled from a New Game+ run and might be slightly inflated from what they are in the first playthrough of Starfield. However, these are still some of the best ships around.

Please note that the final entry in this article contains endgame spoilers. If you wish to avoid those particular details, stop reading after you check out the Crimson Fleet Wraith ship entry.

Cost: Free via quest

Location: Denebola I-b

The Razorleaf is a powerful ship that you can snag for free very early on in Starfield. To obtain this ship you will need to complete the side quest titled "The Mantis." This quest is started by obtaining a datapad as a random drop from some Spacers, who are a band of space pirates unaffiliated with the Crimson Fleet, the universe's more prominent faction of space pirates. You are likely to find it on a different mission than we did, but it reliably drops as a note on a Spacer during the game's early hours. . The quest itself is quite fun, so without saying too much, just prepare to fight a few dozen Spacers. This ship has decent weapons, although it can only handle two crew members and 460 Cargo. It has the unique trait of scaring enemy ships on sight, prompting them to flee from you. It does have 160 shielded cargo, so you can smuggle some contraband, too.

Cost: Free via quest

Location: Akila City

The Star Eagle ship is awarded to anyone who completes the Freestar Rangers faction questline. This is the standard ship of the Rangers and it has plenty of upside. It comes with an EM weapon, which makes it easy to disable ships so you can board them. It has a massive cargo hold of 2,500, and can hold a crew of five. It's only flaw is that its grav jump range is 18 LY, which is on the lower end for the better ships in the game. You can upgrade it, but that will require a max level in the Ship Design skill.

Cost: 380,000

Location: Akila City Ship Tech

If you are looking for a long-distance tank, the Stronghold is for you. Its main features are its impressive grav jump distance of 30 LY and its 1,600 base shields. In addition to that you can hold six crew members and haul 2,300 cargo. The only real downsides here are the fact that it comes with only two weapons and it's massive, so if you're looking for something nimble, this isn't it. It can be modified to your personal taste, including the addition of a third weapon.

Cost: 240,000

Location: New Atlantis Ship Tech

The ship selection in New Atlantis is pretty abysmal, but there is one great option there. The Shieldbreaker offers a well-rounded ship that isn't great at any single aspect, but above average in nearly every department. It has 610 shields, 25 LY range, five crew spots, and 2,300 cargo capacity. Its weapon systems are pretty solid and it comes with all three slots filled. It also comes in around 240,000 Credits (depending on your commerce perk rank) making it a bit more affordable than some other options.

Cost: 440,000

Location: Stroud-Eklund Showroom on Neon

This Class C ship punches above its weight, offering high stats across the board, albeit at a high cost. The Vanquisher has solid weapons stats in all three departments, as well as room for six crew members. It has high shields of almost 1,000, in addition to over 4,000 cargo capacity, although no shield cargo space by default. It's Grav Range is 29 LY, making this one of the better Class C ships available to purchase, although you will likely want to upgrade the weapons systems to make this one perfect.

Cost: 430,000

Location: Taiyo Astroneering in Ryuji Tower on Neon

The Narwhal is perhaps one of the best, if not the best, ships you can buy in Starfield, which is reflected in its hefty price tag. The main features here are the impressive ballistic and missile systems, coming in at 114 and 82 respectively. It also has a hull of over 2,000, in addition to a nearly 1,000 shield, making it a beefy ship. It can hold seven crew members and has a grav range of 30 LY. The only real downside outside of the price tag is the cargo capacity of 1,760, which isn't as high as the other high-end ships, although you can always add a few parts if needed.

Cost: 350,000

Location: Paradiso Ship Tech

The Abyss Trekker is an odd ship, but if you love space combat and dogfighting, this nimble craft might be for you. It has impressive weapons systems, with 96 missiles and 162 ballistic. Its shields come in at 850, with a hull of about 1,000. Its grav jump range of 28 is nothing to sneeze at and it can hold six crew members. It does have one major flaw, which is the cargo capacity. At only 340 it's one of the lowest capacity ships around, so don't use this if you enjoy space hauling.

Cost: 370,000

Location: Hopetech HQ

If you want the equivalent of a space semi-truck, the Silent Runner is for you. Its main feature is the cargo capacity, which comes in at a whopping 6060. It's pretty impressive in a few other categories too, like a 975 shield, 30 LY grav range, and five crew members. Its missile systems are 96, but it only comes with two weapon slots filled. It only offers 300 fuel capacity, too, so you may want to upgrade that. . For its price, it's the best space truck available.

Cost: 240,000

Location: The Key Ship Tech

This Crimson Fleet space ship will require you to be a member of the notorious pirates, but it offers some impressive stats for much cheaper than the other ships on this list. The Wraith has 149 missiles, 43 ballistic, and 27 lasers, making it a dangerous ship to face in combat. In addition it had 705 shields and 855 hulls, which isn't top of the class, but still great. It can hold six crew members with a grav range of 30 LY. The only disappointing part is the 1760 cargo, which doesn't include any shield cargo, but the red and black paint job looks pretty sleek.

Cost: Free

Location: New Game+

Awarded for rolling credits and starting up New Game+ is the Starborn Guardian. This is a solid ship, especially for free, with great weapons and shield systems. There are a few downsides to this ship, although how much they matter will depend on the person. This ship only has two weapons and, unlike most other ships, you cannot modify this ship in any way. That means you have to work around the stock systems, but they are pretty solid. It also has a limited amount of shield cargo space for any smuggling needs. Still, its boost ability is the fastest in the game, and if you have weapon targeting unlocked, it's arguably the best ship in the game when you want to end a dogfight quickly