No Man’s Sky Economy and Trade routes, explained

The world of No Man’s Sky has everything a universe needs to exist, from living creatures to conflicts and trading. Although economy isn’t a core part of No Man’s Sky and you can completely avoid it if you want, it’s one of the best ways to quickly make Units.

Here’s everything you need to know about Economies and Trade Routes in No Man’s Sky, as well as how you can take advantage of them.

Economies in No Man’s Sky, explained

Economy types

In No Man’s Sky, every system has one of the seven Economy types indicated with a corresponding icon. You can check the system’s economy type using the Galaxy Map once you’ve visited the system.

Every Economy type has one of the four names or sub-types. Those names don’t affect anything, and you only need to know them to identify the main Economy type.

Here’s every Economy in the game and its sub-types/names.

Depending on the Economy, the Galactic Trade Terminals in the system will have different local trade goods (i.e. commodities) for sale. This, however, doesn’t affect regular resources and materials like Silver and Phosphorus.

Economy tiers

Aside from the Economy type, every system also has an Economy tier indicated with one to three stars and a descriptor. The higher the Economy tier is, the better commodities it has to offer and the more money you’ll be able to make. Some of the most expensive commodities, for example, are only available in systems with strong Economies.

Here are all the Economy tiers and corresponding descriptors:

Trade Routes in No Man’s Sky, explained

The Economy types in No Man’s Sky form Trade Routes. These are loops of Economy types that produce materials needed for each other. Trade Routes aren’t displayed anywhere in the game, so save them on your PC or notes for when you’ll be buying and selling commodities.

There are two Trade Routes in No Man’s Sky:

1. Mining -> Manufacturing -> High-Tech -> Power Generation
2. Scientific -> Trading -> Advanced Materials

Since these are loops, Power Generation goes back to Mining, and Advanced Materials goes back to Scientific, respectively.

How to make Units using Trade Routes in No Man’s Sky

Follow the Trade Routes

The main use of Economies and Trade Routes in No Man’s Sky is to make Units. Every Economy type manufactures materials needed for the next Economy in the Trade Route, and you can use that to buy and sell commodities in the right places.

Here’s how to take advantage of Trade Routes to make Units:

1. Find any system with a strong Economy and look at its Economy type (e.g. Manufacturing).
2. Travel to its Space Station and buy the commodities at the Galactic Trade Terminal.
3. Travel to the system with the Economy next in the Trade Route (in this case, Technology).
4. Sell commodities for profit.

Once you find a profitable loop of systems, you can use teleporters to quickly travel between their Space Stations. This saves a lot of time and Warp Fuel.

Use Sell and Buy modifiers

On the Galaxy Map, you can also see the Sell and Buy modifiers of each system. If you want to make the most out of your trading, look for the highest Sell percentage to sell commodities and the lowest Buy percentage to buy commodities.

Use the Economy Scanner

The Economy Scanner is a useful technology to have on your starship as it allows you to view the economic data of the system without visiting it. It’s handy if you want to quickly find a specific system to sell purchased commodities.