In No Man's Sky, you're left to roam the expanse of space to your heart's content. You can take on space pirates, explore diverse biomes on different planets, craft unique bases, and have a fleet of different starships to fly around in while you do all of this. You will start off with a basic ship that can get you from planet to planet or galaxy to galaxy. Of course, this only comes after a number of repairs and upgrades.
However, as you progress in No Man's Sky, you will acquire more units and be able to buy a new ship. This can either replace your beginning ship or you can use the two in concert. The more units you acquire, the more ships and upgrades you can purchase. Along this journey, some players might be questioning just how far they can go with their ship collection.
In this guide, we explain how many starships you can own in No Man's Sky and how to get new ones.
How many ships can you own in No Man's Sky
In No Man's Sky, all players will begin by owning one starship. Throughout the game, they can collect more starships and have up to 12 of them in their fleet. This was increased from six in a 2023 update.
However, players will only have access to six of their ships in the freighter hangar at any time. This means players need to switch the ships in their hangar if they want access to others. Players can also choose to scrap starships in their fleet at any time if they're looking to replace one starship with another.
- Read more: No Man's Sky - How To Get A Free Freighter
Starships that need discarding in No Man's Sky can be taken to the Starship Outfitting Terminal at a space ttation to be melted into scrap. Scrapping unused or damaged starships also gives players the chance of receiving Storage Augmentation, too. This can be applied to a starship at the same outfitting terminal to increase the storage slots of that particular vehicle by one.
How to get more ships
Buying a new starship in No Man's Sky is incredibly easy when you know how, and when you have a lot of units to spend. There is no given retailer or merchant across the interstellar systems where you can purchase new ships. Instead, you must speak directly to the owner of various ships as you encounter them.
For example, at outposts and space stations, other races will come and go in their own ships. By speaking with the owner directly, you can purchase their ship, or initiate a trade for a small discount. Things to keep in mind when acquiring new ships are their class, inventory, and stats. You also want to keep in mind the fact that installed technology cannot be transferred between ships either.
The only other way to get new starships is by finding them damaged or abandoned on other planets. You can claim the ship as your own and exchange it for scrap metal, or if you have the time and patience, you can go about fixing all the ship's broken technology to be able to use it.
That's all you need to know about how many ships you can own, and how to acquire new ones, in No Man's Sky. For more on what to do while you travel through space and time, check out how to play multiplayer with friends, or how to get a pet companion to keep you company.