Starfield - How To Manage Inventory And Encumbrance

Being able to manage inventory and encumbrance in Starfield is quite important. As you explore, you're bound to pick up all sorts of loot. Naturally, your character won't be able to carry everything, and you'd get slowed down significantly. Worse, you won't be able to fast travel at all. Our guide discusses the different methods so you can share the load, while still being able to carry a lot of goodies.

How to manage inventory, encumbrance and carry weight in Starfield

The four methods of movement

When it comes to Starfield encumbrance, you'll want to take note of the four methods of movement: walking, jogging, running, and sprinting. Walking and jogging are done by slightly tilting the left control stick, and these don't consume stamina even if you're over-encumbered. Running (i.e. fully tilting the left control stick) and sprinting (i.e. pressing the left control stick) will consume a significant amount of stamina.

Adding the Pocketed mod

The Pocketed mod, which grants extra carry weight, can be added to your spacesuit once you research the Spacesuit Mods 2 project. The perk itself requires 2x sealant, 1x polytextile, and 1x adhesive.

Jump around and use your boost pack

Believe it or not, jumping around and gliding with your boost pack can help you manage limited carry weight and encumbrance in Starfield. This works nicely on planets with low gravity. Although jumping does consume stamina, being able to glide with your jetpack consumes fuel instead. As such, you can cover more ground before you land and need to jump again, all while your stamina recharges, too.

Give items to your companion

Naturally, having a companion tag along is immensely helpful. You can recruit and romance several companions, but you're only able to bring one active follower at a time. Talk to them and select the "let's trade gear" option to open their inventory, then move your items there. Just remember that companions also have their own carry weight limit, and they won't be able to exceed that amount.

Obtain the Weightlifting skill

If you've checked out our best skills guide, you'll know that we didn't list Weightlifting as one of the top options. For the most part, it just adds extra carry weight to help you manage encumbrance. Still, if you have the points to spare, then you can certainly get a rank or two, at least.

Place items in your ship's cargo and sell them from there

One of the most viable methods to manage inventory and encumbrance in Starfield is the use of your ship's cargo. If you go to a ship's cockpit, you'll notice a terminal along the left-hand side while facing the pilot's seat. Interact with it to open the cargo menu, and transfer all your items there. As an aside, vessels do have a maximum carry weight allotment, though you can always increase your ship's cargo size by way of modules.

Likewise, when you talk to a vendor, you can press the corresponding button to switch to your ship's inventory. This allows you to sell items directly from the cargo hold, instead of having to lug everything around with your character.

Build storage and cargo links in your outpost

Last but not least, don't forget to try Starfield's outpost feature. With it, you'll be able to build your own base on various planets. Structures include storage dumps and warehouses, which can store different kinds of materials. Moreover, if you plop down a cargo link, the items from other outposts will also appear as part of the shared inventory.