With Tier 8, you unlock drones, another way—alongside trains and trucks—to transport items over long distances. Drones work a bit differently and can feel limited at first, but they definitely have their place. If you dig into them, they can even outperform the other two vehicles in some cases. Today we’ll look in detail at how to use drones effectively, how they work, and which fuel is best. There are clear differences in how quickly items are moved from A to B.
Transporting with Satisfactory drones: Setup, drone ports, and use cases
To use a drone for item transport, you must first build a drone port. A drone can only fly back and forth between two ports, which is a bit limiting. There’s a home port and a destination port. However, you can run multiple drones on the same route and mix and match ports as you like.
A drone costs:
- 4x Motor
- 10x Alclad Aluminum Sheet
- 1x Radio Control Unit
- 2x AI Limiter
- 1x Portable Miner
A port costs:
- 20x Heavy Modular Frame
- 20x High-Speed Connector
- 50x Alclad Aluminum Sheet
- 50x Aluminum Casing
- 10x Radio Control Unit
A drone has 9 free slots to carry items. It also needs fuel to fly. All of this is managed at the home port. There’s a fuel input as well as input and output for the items being transported. A drone picks up the items, takes off, flies to its destination port, unloads there, and returns. How fast items are loaded and unloaded depends on the amount.
You can rename ports, just like train stations. This makes them easier to find in the list. You can also color both the ports and the drones to tell them apart more easily. The port always draws 100 MW, whether it’s in use or not.
Best fuel for Satisfactory drones: Speed, range, and consumption
For a long time, drones could only run on batteries, but since version 1.0 you can use other fuel types too. This gives you more flexibility and lets you tailor fuel choices to your current progression. In general, drones can use only packaged fuels, so plan for that from the start.
Your fuel choice determines how far your drone can fly and how fast it is. The calculations are shown at the home port, and they vary by trip. In the lower-left section, you can select different fuels, which shows the fuel consumption per minute. Choose your preferred fuel and supply the port accordingly. Higher up, you’ll see how many units per minute and per trip are consumed. The total round-trip time is also displayed.
These Satisfactory fuels can be used for drones:
- Packaged Fuel
- Packaged Turbofuel
- Batteries
- Packaged Rocket Fuel
- Packaged Ion Fuel
- Uranium Fuel Rod
- Plutonium Fuel Rod
A fun detail: the exhaust color of the drone depends on the fuel in use. If you want to know what you’re currently running, check the exhaust.
Which fuel you use depends on where you are in your playthrough. Every type is valid—focus on what fits your current playstyle. Also, consumption depends on the route, not just distance but also the terrain the drone needs to cross.
Our top 3 fuels for drones in Satisfactory:
- Batteries: Drones initially only ran on batteries, and they’re still a solid option. Once you’re producing sulfur and aluminum, they’re not hard to make. At 6,000 MJ, they’re efficient and let the drone reach 133 km/h.
- Rocket Fuel: Rocket Fuel is generally a good pick, even if it’s a bit less impressive in drones. It’s often more practical than Ion Fuel, which can be too much effort for its benefit. Rocket Fuel has 7,200 MJ and also allows 133 km/h. Depending on your setup, it can be easier to produce than batteries.
- Uranium/Plutonium: Nuclear fuels are even more effective, but only worth it if you already run that infrastructure. Advantage: using fuel rods in drones produces no waste, unlike in a nuclear power plant. Uranium offers about 750,000 MJ at 151 km/h, while Plutonium is much stronger at about 1.75 million MJ, enabling 162 km/h.
Satisfactory drones compared: Pros and cons versus trains and trucks
Drones are interesting and can replace some of your conveyors, trains, or trucks. They’re not for everyone, though—it ultimately depends on your playstyle. They’re great as a fast transport option, but they come at a cost.
Pros:
- No track building required
- Fast, efficient transport along a direct flight path
- Multiple fuel options
- Perfect for handling nuclear fuel
Cons:
- Can carry only 9 slots per flight
- Speed depends on fuel
- Only a single flight path per drone
- Can be expensive to set up
An overview of all three transport options:
- Trucks are best before you unlock trains. They’re a great way to start transporting items and replacing belts. They’re cost-effective, since you don’t need to lay tracks. And unlike drones, you can connect multiple stations and plan routes.
- Trains are best for moving large quantities of materials, both over short and long distances. Thanks to multiple freight cars, you can move a lot from A to B. They’re fairly complex, though—especially with multiple trains and signals.
- Drones are best for long-distance transport. Their setup is simple and straightforward. They shine with specialized items that don’t take much space.
Conclusion: Use Satisfactory drones correctly for fast item transport
Especially in Satisfactory’s late game, where you need to move resources across long distances, drones are a welcome helper. They have limitations, but they’re extremely practical for moving materials from one point to another. In terms of speed, they outclass other transport options, which makes them very flexible. Plus, you can choose the fuel that best fits your current progression.
Rent a Satisfactory server from us and push to Tier 8 to unlock drones. Try different fuels and move critical items across the entire map!
