How to get Freighters for free in No Man's Sky

Freighters are immense ships in the procedurally-generated No Man’s Sky and allow players to travel through its vast universe, not to mention carry huge loads. Needless to say, owning one of these is essential in the game. These are massive interstellar starships that are like standard variants, but with a scale similar to that of a space station.

Travelers may either purchase these massive space vehicles using the in-game currency known as units or acquire one free of charge by completing missions. This article will focus on the latter, detailing how to get one for free in No Man’s Sky.

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No Man's Sky guide: Easy steps to get Freighters for free

Trek across systems. (Image via Hello Games)

Getting a Freighter in No Man's Sky is not all that complicated. They will just have to play through the main story until they've managed to tinker with their ship to make it warp capable. A hyperdrive build alongside several warp cell spares are essential as these ships will be warping between systems.

The opportunity to acquire such a massive ship is usually triggered after a few warps, as this will be in the form of a distress signal from a Freighter captain as they are under attack. Take down these space pirates (the ships with a red trail on them) and after successfully doing so, the captain will send off an invite to board the massive ship.

It’s worth noting that attacking it would lower one’s standing with whichever alien race owns the massive ship, not to mention missing on a free Freighter.

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Invitation to board the Freighter in No Man's Sky

Some small talk and that's it. (Image via Hello Games)

After receiving the invite, players should head on to the blue light located at the uppermost portion of the ship. This will prompt a landing sequence and once inside it, they should head to the stairs that will lead to the ship’s control room where its captain awaits. Gamers should then interact with the captain and have a little chit chat, which will lead to the former offering his ship free of charge.

Be reminded, though, that the one being offered will pretty much be a low-tier one (C-Class), but it is better than not getting one at all. No Man’s Sky players players may opt to work their way into getting an A or S-Class Freighter by trading the C-Class later on until the aforementioned higher tiers have been reached. By doing so, they will definitely save a ton of units since outright purchasing higher-tiered ships is astronomically steep.

As for its crew members, they will be at random. Nonetheless, if a No Man’s Sky player wishes to have the majority of their crew to be a specific race, it would be advisable to warp into a system where such a race is present.