I still remember my first week playing No Man’s Sky, stranded on a frozen ice planet with 2 units to my name and zero cobalt left for launch thruster fuel. I spent an hour bashing random rocks hoping to find a scrap of the blue mineral before I finally stumbled on a small deposit near a cave mouth. If you’ve ever been stuck in that same spot, or just need a steady supply for warp cells, hazard protection upgrades, or base building, you already know how critical this resource is. Mastering how to get cobalt in No Man’s Sky doesn’t just save you from being stranded—it lets you explore the galaxy without constantly pausing to scrounge for basic materials.
How to Get Cobalt in No Man’s Sky: 3 Fast Beginner-Friendly Methods
If you’re new to the game and just need a quick stack of cobalt to get off a planet or craft your first warp cell, these three low-effort methods work with almost no upgrades or in-game currency. I still use all of them from time to time when I’m exploring a new region and run low on stock.
- Mining it directly from bright blue mineral deposits on frozen and radioactive planets, which is 100% free and gives you bonus byproducts like ionized cobalt if you have a upgraded mining laser.
- Refining it from ionized cobalt using a portable refiner, which is perfect if you find stacks of ionized cobalt in derelict freighter crates or planetary ruins.
- Purchasing it from space station trading terminals or NPC pilots, which is the fastest option for emergency situations when you don’t have time to go mining.
Mining is by far the best option for new players, as it doesn’t cost any units and lets you pick up extra resources like ferrite dust and sodium as you explore. Always bring an advanced mining laser with the cobalt efficiency upgrade if you plan to farm large amounts—it cuts mining time by 40% in my experience, and gives you a 25% higher chance to get extra ionized cobalt per vein. Buying cobalt only makes sense if you need less than 200 units for an emergency launch; it usually sells for 90-130 units per piece, so buying more than that will drain your unit stash fast.
Best Locations to Find High-Yield Cobalt Deposits
You can find tiny amounts of cobalt in random rocks on almost any planet, but if you want to farm hundreds or thousands of units in a single run, you need to head to the right type of world. When you scan a star system from your warp map, look for planets tagged with “frozen”, “glacial”, “radioactive”, or “irradiated” in their description. These planets have the highest concentration of large cobalt veins, and you’ll rarely have to walk more than a few minutes from your landing spot to find a deposit.
Once you land, pull up your analysis visor and scan for mineral markers. Cobalt deposits show up as bright blue icons on your visor, and the marker will tell you exactly how much cobalt is in the vein before you start mining. Cobalt veins are almost always found near cave entrances and mountain ridges on frozen planets, so head for those areas first instead of wandering across flat open ice fields. I once found a 12,000-unit cobalt vein tucked into the side of a mountain ridge on a glacial planet, and I mined the whole thing in less than 10 minutes with my upgraded laser.
Radioactive planets are a great alternative if you don’t want to deal with cold hazard costs. Cobalt veins on these worlds are often mixed with uranium deposits, so you can farm two high-value resources at the same time. Just make sure you have at least level 2 radiation or cold resistance before you land on these planets—you’ll waste more resources recharging your hazard protection than you’ll gain from mining if you show up underprepared.
Advanced Cobalt Farming Loops for Infinite Supply
If you’re a more experienced player who needs hundreds of thousands of cobalt for base building, warp cell crafting, or trading, these advanced farming methods will let you build up an infinite supply with almost no ongoing effort. I’ve used all of these at different points in my playthrough, and the passive extractor method is still my go-to for keeping my stock topped up.
The most popular loop is the refiner dupe trick, which is an intended game mechanic, not an exploit, so you don’t have to worry about being banned for using it even in multiplayer. To run it, first get a starter stack of 500 cobalt. Refine all of that into ionized cobalt (1 cobalt = 1 ionized cobalt in any refiner). Next, put 1 ionized cobalt and 1 oxygen into a medium or large refiner, and you’ll get 2 cobalt back. You can keep cycling this process: turn the new cobalt into ionized cobalt, mix it with more oxygen, and double your supply every cycle. This loop works best if you have an oxygen harvester set up at your base so you don’t have to run around collecting oxygen from plants every time you want to run a batch.
For even less effort, set up a passive cobalt extractor farm on a high-yield deposit. Pull out your survey tool when you’re on a cobalt-rich planet, and scan for hotspots until you find a deposit that yields 100+ units of cobalt per minute. Place a mineral extractor on the hotspot, connect it to a few supply depots, and power the whole setup with solar panels and batteries. The extractor will run 24/7 even when you’re offline, and I usually get 30,000+ units of cobalt every time I log back into my frozen planet base to empty the depots. If you want to save even more time, add a bank of refiners next to the extractors to turn the raw cobalt into ionized cobalt automatically.
Smart Ways to Use Cobalt to Avoid Wasting Your Stock
There’s no point in farming thousands of units of cobalt if you waste it on unnecessary items, and I’ve made enough mistakes over 300 hours of play to know what’s worth spending it on. The highest priority uses for cobalt are launch thruster fuel, warp cell crafting, and hazard protection upgrades—you’ll need a steady supply of these for every part of the game, from early exploration to endgame base building.
Never refine all your cobalt into ionized cobalt unless you have a dedicated farming loop set up. I made this mistake early on when I wanted to upgrade my exosuit’s cold resistance: I turned my entire 2,000-unit stock of cobalt into ionized cobalt, then got stranded on a dead planet with no cobalt left for launch fuel. I had to walk 20 minutes to a distant trading post to buy 20 units of cobalt to leave, and I’ve never made that mistake again.
Prioritize using cobalt for launch fuel and warp cells before spending it on cosmetic base parts. It’s tempting to blow your entire stock on blue decorative walls for your base, but you’ll regret it when you run out mid-exploration trip. If you have extra cobalt left over after covering your basic needs, you can sell it for a nice profit in manufacturing-focused star systems, which usually pay 15-20% more for raw resources like cobalt. I usually sell 10,000 units of extra cobalt every few weeks to fund new exosuit and starship upgrades.
At the end of the day, cobalt is one of those resources you’ll never regret stocking up on in No Man’s Sky. It’s used for almost every core game mechanic, and running out at the wrong time can completely derail an exploration trip. Whether you’re a new player mining your first small vein on a frozen planet or a veteran running a full extractor farm with a refiner loop, there’s a method that fits exactly how you like to play. Even after hundreds of hours of exploring, I still refer back to these tricks when I need to restock, and they’ve saved me from being stranded more times than I can count. No matter your skill level, learning how to get cobalt in No Man’s Sky will make every part of your journey smoother and more fun.
