Increasing Ship Cargo Capacity in Starfield

When playing Starfield, you’ll quickly realize that there is no shortage of planets to explore and treasures to collect. However, the loot you gather adds to your character’s “mass” and can weigh you down as you navigate the game’s environments. While your ship’s cargo bay can provide some storage space, it too has its limits. If you’re wondering how to increase your ship’s cargo capacity in Starfield, we’ve got you covered.

Unlock and Develop the Payload Skill

Early on in your adventure, you’ll obtain your first ship called the Frontier. As you progress, you’ll start earning skill points that can be used to improve your character’s abilities, knowledge, and technology. These skill points are crucial when it comes to addressing your storage constraints. To increase your ship’s cargo capacity, you’ll need to invest in the Payload skill or consider acquiring other ships.

Screenshot by PC Invasion

While ships can be expensive, they are relatively easy to obtain. You can visit docks, such as the one near Viewport in New Atlantis, where ships are available for purchase if you have enough credits. The Frontier and other ships you encounter during your journey typically start with a base cargo capacity rating of around 400. Some ships can be acquired through rewards for completing certain missions or by stealing them, and they may or may not offer higher capacity.

If acquiring additional ships seems like too much effort, consider allocating skill points to the Payloads skill. This skill is found in the Tech branch of the skill tree. In order to access the second tier of the Payloads skill, you must invest 4 skill points in the first tier. Once you reach the second tier, you can acquire Payloads that increase your ship’s cargo capacity by 10% at Rank 1. Further investment in skill points allows you to access higher ranks, with a total capacity increase of 50% at Rank 4. This improvement can make a significant difference even on ships with less storage space. For example, the Econohaul benefits greatly from this skill. Personally, I’ve spent all my credits on purchasing a Dream Home, so I’ll need to save up more to buy a better ship. However, in the meantime, I’m considering investing in the Payloads skill if I have enough skill points to spare.

Starfield is available for purchase on both Steam and the Microsoft Store.