How to Make Money in Ostranauts — Every Method Ranked
✔ Last checked: 2026-08-04
Salvage pays the bills, flipping ships builds wealth, and 1.0 added a whole new career — bounty hunting — on top of gigs, hauling and asteroid mining. Here’s the ladder, from broke to broker.
The money ladder
| Method | Capital needed | The honest read |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed salvage | Tools + $5k license | Reliable from hour one; value-per-tile knowledge is the skill |
| Gigs & hauling | A working ship | Courier/delivery contracts; rebalanced July 2026 (v0.15.1.20), with short-hop gigs around Ceres and Europa |
| Ship flipping | Deed money + repair time | The classic mid-game wealth engine; details below |
| Bounty hunting | Combat-ready ship | New in 1.0 — catch criminals “some dead, some alive.” Community still benchmarking pay |
| Asteroid mining | Mining gear (added v0.15) | Real since Fire in the Hold; margins being re-verified for 1.0 |
| Trading / barter | Cargo space + spare cash | Buy low at one kiosk, sell high elsewhere; kiosk barter needs a license |
Ship flipping, the checklist version
- Scout a Boneyard derelict that can plausibly become airtight and mobile.
- Buy the deed first at the commercial ship kiosk. Repairs made before you own it just raise the asking price.
- Make it legal: working transponder, at least one antenna, functioning nav console. Keep nav/IFF/antenna powered on both ships or security may read you as an unlicensed salvager mid-project.
- Multiply value with rooms. Equipment sells for its value times the room’s modifier — Luxury Quarters at 2.0x turns a $10k install into $20k of sale price. Full table on the rooms page.
- Tow it in, dock it, sell it.
The other side of the ledger
Money out matters as much as money in: mortgage installments on your starter ship, docking fees that recur while docked (a bug charging the wrong station was fixed in v0.15.1.16 — update if you’re seeing phantom fees), fuel, license renewals, crew wages if you’ve hired help. The classic death spiral is sitting docked “one more day” while fees eat your float.
Returning veteran? The economy you remember has shifted — gig timing, PASS ferries advancing the calendar, and the new careers are all covered in what’s new in 1.0.
FAQ
What's the fastest early money in Ostranauts?
Licensed salvage runs in the Boneyard. One decent haul of thrusters and electronics covers the $5,000 license several times over, with almost no capital required beyond tools and a suit.
How does ship flipping work?
Buy a derelict's deed at the commercial ship kiosk BEFORE repairing it, make it airtight and legal (transponder, antenna, nav console), build high-value-modifier rooms around expensive equipment, tow it in, and sell.
How do I pay my debt?
Mortgage installments come due on your starter ship, and docking fees recur while you sit docked. Salvage aggressively early, undock when idle, and treat the mortgage as your first boss fight.
Is bounty hunting good money?
It's brand new in 1.0 — officially you catch criminals dead or alive for pay. Earning rates are still being tested by the community, so we're not quoting numbers yet.