Starfield XP farming

If you’re struggling to level up, our guide to some Starfield XP farm methods has all of our tips and tricks for making it to triple digits in no time at all.

Trying to find a Starfield XP farm method is often the first destination for players jumping into Bethesda’s epic deep-space RPG. The good news is that there are a couple of Starfield XP exploits you can use to boost your level beyond the stars, offering you a quick way to rank up some of your most pivotal skills, like Security, Weight Lifting, and Piloting. So, we’ve gone out looking for all the XP farm methods we can find, and all you need to do is scroll down to check them out.

Once you’re at a level you’re happy with, blast off to a new destination with our Starfield ships hub, including guides to ship designs, ship components, ship manufacturers, and more. Or, if you’re still trying to get to grips with some of the main locations, try our Starfield maps hub, with interactive versions of the Akila City Map, Cydonia map, New Atlantis Map, and more.

Starfield XP farm methods

We’re collecting all the Starfield XP farm methods below so you can easily level up without doing all the hard work of completing quests or finding new locations. Each time we find a new way to quickly level up, we’ll be back to update this page.

Outpost XP farming

This method, originally posted by YouTuber Maka91Productions, requires both a little patience, some specific skills, and a massive improvement to your ship’s cargo hold. For starters, your ship needs a minimum of 2,000 kilograms of cargo space, with 3,000 the ideal. Considering your starter ship, the Frontier, has a cargo capacity of just 359, it’s worth either seeking out some parts or creating your own cargo ship purpose-built for holding lots of resources.

Once you have a big enough ship, you need to make sure you’ve got at least Rank 1 of the Outpost Management skill. Some of your crew can help out here, especially Heller, who is a Rank 3 Outpost Manager. The outpost management skill doesn’t become available until you’ve put some work into other science skills first, though, so it might take some playtime before you’re at the point where this is possible.

Before arriving at the Starfield XP farm location, you need to secure certain resources to build what you need to level up. We’ve got a short list of all the necessary resources below, and you can use our Starfield planets database to filter out the planets with the specific metals and rocks you require.

18 Adaptive Frames
124 Aluminum
24 2Beryllium
30 Copper
2 Fiber
99 Iron
24 Tungsten

Now, it’s time to set up an outpost on Andraphon, a moon of Sumati in the Narion system. The mountainous regions of this planet are ideal as they have plenty of Iron and Aluminum, the two resources you need to make this method work. You can scan the area to make sure it has both resources in abundance, then set up six Iron Extractors and six Aluminum Extractors with Solar Arrays to power them.

Once your extraction facilities are set up and all connected, it’s time to get some shut-eye. This might seem counterintuitive, but due to how time passes on Andraphon, it’s a quick way to secure a lot of resources. Then, you can finally get to XP farming, using all the resources at your disposal to create as many Adaptive Frames as possible, each offering you an XP boost. From here, it’s just a case of rinsing and repeating the sleep/crafting cycle until you arrive at a level you’re happy with.

Screenshot of an outpost living quarters for Starfield XP farm and exploit guide

Change of Difficulty XP farming

This one could be classed as a Starfield bug, so we’re not sure how long it’ll be possible for. However, at the time of writing, it works and it’s a surefire way to level up quickly and grab some creature resources in the process.

First, you need to equip yourself with plenty of weapons and ammo. Then, it’s time to pause and set the difficulty to ‘Very Hard’. From here, fly to a planet with plenty of low-level creatures, such as Kreet or Eridani II, and reset the difficulty to ‘Very Easy’. From here, you can blast away at the local alien wildlife and recieve the amount of XP you would usually get from playing on the hardest difficulty.

Starfield XP exploits

While we’re still looking for specific XP farming methods, we can recommend some general Starfield XP exploits. Specific items and mechanics boost the amount of XP you collect, and we’ve got them all in a list below.

Alien Tea – Drinking an Alien Tea gives you a 1% XP bonus for a short time. It’s not a lot, but it might be enough to push you an extra level before the end of a space-faring session.
Sleeping alone – The ‘Well Rested’ mechanic from previous Bethesda games returns in Starfield, offering a 10% XP bonus for getting some in-game rest.
Sleeping with someone – One of the many reasons it’s worth looking into the Starfield romance mechanics is that sleeping with your loved one gives you a timed 15% XP boost when you wake up. All the better reason to flirt with Sam Coe or Andreja,
Console commands – This one is just for PC players, but you can easily boost your XP with a simple console command and not have to worry about any of this Starfield XP farm nonsense.

There you have it, our guide to all the Starfield XP farm methods and exploits we’ve found so far. If you find some yourself, be sure to let us know over at our Starfield forum. Or, if you’re wondering how high you can go, check out our guide to the Starfield max level.