If you’ve spent hours grinding for that S-class hauler or sleek exotic starship in No Man's Sky, you’ve probably wondered: can you walk around your ship in no man's sky? I know I did, after I saved up 12 million units for my first long-range explorer and wanted to check out the cabin beyond the pilot seat. Most players assume you’re stuck glued to the controls the second you board, but the answer is a little more nuanced than a simple yes or no. This guide breaks down what’s possible in the base game, what you can unlock with mods, and hacks to get the most out of your ship and freighter spaces.
When Can You Walk Around Your Ship in No Man’s Sky Base Game?
First, let’s cover what’s available for all players, no mods or workarounds required. If you’re still asking can you walk around your ship in No Man's Sky when it’s a standard fighter, explorer, hauler, shuttle or exotic, the short answer is no, for now. Small personal starships only have a functional pilot seat in the vanilla game, and you can’t move away from it once you board. Small personal starships (under 40 slots) don’t have explorable interiors in the base game as of the latest update.
That doesn’t mean you have zero ship exploration options in vanilla, though. Your personal freighter is the largest explorable ship you own in vanilla gameplay. You can walk through every section of your freighter, customize the layout with bedrooms, storage rooms, farms, research stations and even trade terminals. You can also board and walk through allied frigates that dock with your freighter, and explore the interior of enemy capital freighters during raid events. These spaces are fully interactive, and you can customize them to match your playstyle as you progress through the game.
Mods That Let You Walk Around Small Personal Starships
If you play on PC and don’t mind using community-made mods, you can access fully explorable interiors for every type of small starship right now. These mods solve the question of can you walk around your ship in No Man's Sky for PC players who don't want to wait for official support. Most popular ship interior mods are hosted on trusted modding platforms, and add fully functional spaces with storage, interactive navigation consoles, crew quarters and even decorative elements that match your ship’s exterior design. Some mods even let you customize the layout of your ship’s interior to fit your needs, whether you want extra cargo space for trading or a research lab for your exploration runs.
Before you install any ship interior mod, there are a few critical rules to follow to keep your game and account safe:
- Only download mods from trusted, verified sources to avoid malware or corrupted game files
- Back up your save file before installing any ship interior mod, as game updates can break mod functionality without warning
- Avoid using mods in public multiplayer lobbies, as they can trigger anti-cheat flags or cause crashes for other players
Most mod developers only test their content for single-player or private friend lobbies, so stick to those game modes if you’re running ship interior mods. Modded ship interiors are only supported for single-player or private friend lobbies to avoid account penalties. If you play on console, you won’t be able to use these mods right now, as console versions of No Man’s Sky don’t support external modding.
Workarounds to Explore Your Small Starship Without Mods
If you’re on console or don’t want to risk modding your game, there are still a few fun workarounds to get a look at your small starship’s interior. The easiest trick uses the game’s built-in photo mode. After you land your ship on a flat planetary surface, open photo mode and turn on the noclip camera setting. You can fly the camera straight through your ship’s hull to see the fully modeled interior that’s already hidden in the game’s files. These models are fully finished, which means Hello Games has already done most of the work to add official explorable interiors later.
You can also use a simple terrain glitch to stand on your ship’s wing and peek into the cockpit from outside. Just land your ship next to a steep cliff or tall building, climb until you’re level with the ship’s wing, then jump across to land on it. You won’t be able to interact with anything inside, but it’s a fun way to get a closer look at the ship you spent so much time earning. Always avoid using glitches during critical mission steps, as they can cause your save to corrupt or your ship to disappear entirely. Stick to using these tricks during free exploration to avoid losing progress.
What to Expect From Future Ship Interior Updates
Hello Games has a well-documented track record of releasing free, massive content updates for No Man’s Sky years after its initial launch, and explorable small ship interiors are one of the most requested features from the community. The studio has mentioned multiple times in official interviews that small ship interiors are on their long-term development roadmap, and dataminers have found fully finished, functional interior models for every ship class in the game’s files. That means official support for walking around your small personal starship is not a question of if, but when it will be released.
Based on previous updates, we can expect official ship interiors to include interactive storage, crew quarters for your hired NPCs, and customization options that let you decorate your cabin to match your personal style. There’s also speculation that the feature will launch alongside new companion and crew mechanics that let you bring NPCs or even your pet companions along for rides in your ship. Official ship interior support will likely come with a free major content update, so you won't have to pay extra to access the feature. Until then, you can use the vanilla, modding and workaround options outlined in this guide to get the most out of your ship spaces.
At the end of the day, the answer to whether can you walk around your ship in No Man's Sky depends on what type of ship you're using and whether you're open to modding your game. If you're playing vanilla, you can spend hours customizing and exploring your freighter to your heart's content, and small ship support is likely coming down the line. If you're on PC and don't mind modding, you can access fully functional custom interiors right now. No matter how you play, there are plenty of ways to feel more connected to the ships you spend so much time earning and flying across the galaxy.
