Picking up anything and everything not nailed down is a key part of the Bethesda RPG experience, and it’s front and center in Starfield. The problem comes when your pockets are so filled with other people’s things that you can’t move anywhere without taking up a massive amount of oxygen (Starfield’s punishment for the much maligned encumbrance mechanic).
With encumbrance acting as an ever-looming threat, it’s important to keep a mentality of “junk in, junk out” in Starfield. And that leads us to a massive question and problem: how the hell do I get rid of all this stuff?
In this Starfield guide, we’ll walk you through selling your items, finding people that actually want to buy your stuff, and refreshing vendor credits.
The best places to sell items in Starfield
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24903658/Starfield_Screenshot_2023.09.05___14.11.34.85.png)
There are a lot of shops in Starfield, especially on one of the main social hub planets like Neon or New Atlantis. But, unfortunately for you, not every single shop wants to buy all of your space junk. The local clothier does not have any interest in the bazooka you pulled off of a space pirate 10 hours ago.
Now, you absolutely can go and sell your items in specialty shops, like gun stores, suit suppliers, etc. You can fly around space looking for the perfect shop to buy all the items you’ve picked up during your adventures. But there’s already a lot to do in Starfield without spending three hours traveling between boutiques every time you fill up your inventory and cargo hull.
That’s why the general stores are your best options for selling things in Starfield. Local general stores like Jemison Mercantile in New Atlantis are great for selling a variety of different things, but what you really want is the local Trade Authority.
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24904272/Starfield_Screenshot_2023.09.03___14.05.54.46.png)
Most major planets have a Trade Authority shop where you can sell your various goods and even pick up a few tools here and there. And, conveniently, most major spaceports also have a Trade Authority kiosk, which you can use to sell a handful of items without ever having to go into the city itself.
The Trade Authority is everywhere in Starfield, and it’s always worth taking a detour to your local shop to offload all your junk whenever you’re in town.
What to do when vendors run out of credits
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24903684/Starfield_Screenshot_2023.09.07___11.24.54.84.png)
Finding a place that actually wants the garbage you’ve picked up on your adventures is one thing, but what happens when your favorite buyer runs out of credits?
Every vendor has a roughly daily credit limit in Starfield, and you can bump into that limit very quickly if you’re selling high-value items like spacesuits. If you’ve invested in the Commerce skill, you can get even more bang for your buck in these interactions. However, that also means you’ll drain your store’s piggy bank even faster — which actually hinders your ability to offload junk, even if it increases your profit margin.
So what do you do when you still have stuff to sell but you’ve bled your vendor dry? You sleep, of course.
Every 24 hours, all shops refresh their stores, including their credit reserves. This means that you can just go back to your ship, go to sleep for 24 hours, and then head back to the shop to dump more of your items.
The fastest location to do this is probably The Den, a space station in the Wolf system. The walk from your ship to the local Trade Authority (both the kiosk and the store) is very short, plus you don’t get scanned when boarding, which makes it a great spot to offload some stolen or contraband items. Simply dock with The Den, walk in, sell your stuff, walk back to your ship, sleep, and repeat. This is especially good if you’re encumbered and therefore unable to fast travel.
If you are able to fast travel — for example if you’re primarily selling stuff from your ship’s cargo hold — it might actually be worth it to fast travel from Trade Authority to Trade Authority, as sleeping in this game actually takes a very long time to play out.
Finally, it’s worth mentioning that buying items from a store also replenishes their credit stores with the credits you just spent — almost like a bartering system. So if you want to sell more stuff to a shop but they’re out of credits, consider browsing their selection before nodding off for the night.