Best free Starfield ships: Cruise the galaxy for less

They say there’s no such thing as a free ride, but in Starfield there’s a fleet full of free ships you can collect which serve a variety of purposes.

What’s more, you can grab some of the best free ships in Starfield almost immediately when you start your adventure, while others are just a matter of waiting around. It's a whole lot easier than stealing and selling ships to the highest bidder. And even if it doesn't make you money, it definitely saves you a whole lot of cash.

Best free ships in Starfield

Best free Starfield ship for cargo - Wanderwell

Just like real life, accumulating too much stuff is one of life’s biggest difficulties in Starfield. If your home ship is turning into an ingredients house with all the resources you need, then the solution might be just around the corner.

Having a home ship with a hefty amount of storage is a must, particularly if you’ve got sticky fingers for the myriad resources you need to craft attachments, furniture for your Dream Home and equipment for your outposts.

Luckily, this is one area where Daddy knows best. If you grabbed the Kid Stuff trait during character creation, then after a while you’ll receive a note from your father asking you to head home to Pioneer Tower in New Atlantis for a quick visit.

Since your parents are retired, they have no need for a ship kitted out with lasers and ballistic cannons, so they hand off the keys to the Wanderwell to you.

What really stands out on the Wanderwell however, is the mammoth default storage capacity, which is almost double that of The Frontier.

It’s also got some decent weapon storage in the form of racks and cases in the galley towards the back of the vessel, as well as a big upgrade over your original ship in the engine and weapon departments too.

Best free Starfield ship for combat - Razorleaf

Feared by spacers throughout the galaxy, The Mantis’ ship, Razorleaf, can be yours almost immediately if you’re smart.

Randomly on enemy spacers (it tends to drop very quickly), you find a note directing you to a secret base on Denebola I-B in the Denebola system in the top corner of the map. Reading it gives you the Mantis quest, and you should make it a priority once it appears.

Yes, it’s described as a level 30 system, but if you’re smart - and already have one of Starfield best weapon archetypes - you can cautiously pick your way through the few relatively powerful enemies and snag yourself some brilliant stuff that will last you through a big chunk of Starfield.

Once you land in Denebola, fight the spacers on the landing pad and make your way into the lair. Inside, there are some more spacers to wade through, but lean on your companion’s help, stealth, and make use of the high ground. Even if you’re a lower level, you should be able to whittle them down without too much trouble.

Pay attention to the notes you pick up along the way and you will know to walk along the letters “TYRANNIS” once you reach the challenge. Then be very careful of turrets and ballistic-resistant robots as you approach your prize.

At the end of the gauntlet, you receive a ton of great loot, including the Razorleaf, a nimble, powerful ship completely for free.

Boasting exceptional engines and decent weapons platforms, which can easily be upgraded even further of course, the Razorleaf is a force to be reckoned with - plus it looks great inside.

It also comes equipped with loads and loads of weapon and armor storage in the form of displays, cases and crates, making it an aesthetic treat as well as a practical one.

There’s no doubt that you should grab this awesome free ship at some point in your adventure - the only real question is whether the name is a reference to Bulbasaur’s signature attack, or to The Mandolorian’s ship, The Razor Crest?

It’s more likely to be the latter, with the twin engines on each side of the craft giving the two vessels a visual similarity on top of the name.

Best free Starfield ship for crew mates - Star Eagle

This free ship takes a lot more work to obtain than the others, but its stats are simply on another level to justify the time investment.

As you explore the galaxy in Starfield, you will be able to join a number of factions. One of the main ones is the Freestar Collective, but more specifically, their peacekeeping division of “Rangers”.

You will naturally come towards this series of quests once you visit the Cheyenne system and the Freestar Collective’s bustling hub, Akila City. Check out our Freestar Rangers quest hub if you're stuck!

At the summation of this quest line, you receive the Star Eagle. It’s a huge ship packed with weaponry, but more importantly space for a whopping amount of crew. If you ever wanted to turn Starfield into a Firefly simulator, then this is the craft to do it with.

Best free Starfield ship for those who just like ships - UC Prison Shuttle

If you've only got time for the biggest and best free ships, you might not want to waste your time seeking out the UC Prison Shuttle. It's not particularly impressive; it's big, and hideous, and bright yellow, but it's free, so we can't complain too much.

You'll unlock the UC Prison Shuttle by infilitrating the Crimson Fleet for the UC SysDef, which kicks off the Crimson Fleet questline. During the 'Echoes of the Past' quest, you'll end up stealing the ship as a means of escape, and then it's all yours to never use again. Or you can spend some time upgrading it and really make it into your own, if you've Credits to spare.

Best free Starfield ship for late-game - Starborn Guardian

If you don't fancy any late-game spoilers in Starfield, I recommend you stop reading this now. This next ship, the Starborn Guardian, is a big part of Starfield's end-game.

The Starborn Guardian is given to you at the very end of Starfield. More specifically, you'll receive it when starting New Game Plus+ in Starfield, and it's a fantastic vessel for tough space combat. It has some insane stats overall, and plenty of shielded cargo for the contraband smugglers among us.

What's better is that the Starborn Guardian actually becomes even better with each and every New Game Plus you go through in Starfield before eventually, so that's good news for super-fans of exploring New Atlantis and beyond.