After completing the second Space Elevator phase, Tiers 5 and 6 become available to you (Satisfactory Guide: Successfully Complete Space Elevator Phase 2) . The demands on your production rise sharply and can feel overwhelming, especially for first-time players. Many new concepts and materials are introduced, including oil, petroleum products, and with Tier 6 even trains. We recommend taking it slow and unlocking the important fields step by step. Today we’ll focus on Tier 5 and show you how to integrate these new elements into your base—or even start fresh.
Satisfactory Tier 5 guide: Unlock the Jetpack and use fuel
The first Tier 5 milestone isn’t complicated and is a great mobility upgrade. You should unlock it first—there isn’t much else in this milestone anyway.
Costs:
- 50x Motor
- 1000x Cable
- 1000x Iron Plate
With these relatively low requirements, you unlock three additional inventory slots and the Jetpack. Both are welcome upgrades and make this milestone a perfect starting point.
You still need to craft the Jetpack yourself (5x Motor, 10x Steel Pipe, 25x Iron Plate, 50x Wire) and equip it in your inventory. It requires fuel to operate. We recommend Solid Biofuel at this stage. If you’ve already unlocked the Dimensional Depot for your inventory, store the fuel there. That way you won’t run out while traveling and can reach hard-to-access places. Later, you can switch to Packaged Fuel, which offers better energy density.
Satisfactory oil processing: extract crude oil and produce plastic, rubber, and fuel
Next, you’ll need to set up oil as a new resource, since the following milestones require components you can only make from it. This part is complex, so take your time and ease into it.
Costs:
- 50x Motor
- 100x Encased Industrial Beam
- 500x Steel Pipe
- 500x Copper Sheet
After completing this milestone you can scan for Crude Oil, extract it, and refine it into several products. As in real life, oil is used for many different things and is one of the most important resources in the game.
At the core are three products: Plastic, Rubber, and Fuel. Place an Oil Extractor and find a location with one or more Crude Oil nodes. The process is similar to mining ore, just with a fluid. Connect pipes and transport the oil to a Refinery.
In the Refinery you produce Rubber and Plastic. This creates Heavy Oil Residue as a by-product. With the appropriate recipes you can convert it into Fuel. This supplies many aspects of your factory with a new energy source—for example the Jetpack in packaged form or dedicated generators.
Satisfactory Logistics Mk. 4: faster conveyor belts, conveyor lifts, and the Truck
A new milestone also brings a logistics upgrade. You’ll need a working Rubber production line for this.
Costs:
- 200x Rubber
- 300x Encased Industrial Beam
- 400x Modular Frame
This milestone adds just a few but very helpful upgrades. You unlock Conveyor Belts Mk. 4 and Conveyor Lifts Mk. 4. Use them where needed to relieve bottlenecks in your production lines. It’s not strictly necessary, since Tier 4 already brought the big jump to Mk. 3, which often still suffices.
You also unlock the Truck, an improved transport option over the Tractor. Learn more in the transport guide: (Satisfactory Transport Guide: Conveyor Belts, Vehicles, Trains, and Hypertubes) .
Packaging liquids in Satisfactory: canisters, transport, and efficiency
Packaging liquids makes your factory far more efficient and becomes especially important with oil production. It also lets you handle different fuels more easily and use them in other areas.
Costs:
- 200x Plastic
- 400x Steel Beam
- 1000x Copper Sheet
This milestone unlocks the Packager and the Empty Canister recipe. Unlike fluids, packaged fluids can also be transported on conveyor belts. You can package nearly everything—from Water to Fuel to later Sulfuric Acid.
Primarily, packaging is about safe, scalable transport. Pipes aren’t always the best solution, since you need pumps (and thus power) for elevation changes. Packaged fluids are often more effective over long distances, whether via your inventory, Truck, conveyor belt, or train. Some equipment, like the Jetpack, even accepts packaged fuels only.
Satisfactory Fuel Generator: petroleum power and large fluid storage
Unpackaged Fuel is valuable, too. It enables another upgrade to your power production. With this you round off Tier 5 and can gradually replace your early coal power setup.
Costs:
- 100x Motor
- 100x Encased Industrial Beam
- 200x Rubber
- 200x Plastic
Alongside a larger fluid storage option, you unlock the Fuel Generator. This lets you store Fuel efficiently and use it to significantly boost your power production. A single Fuel Generator provides up to 250 MW, far more than the 75 MW of a Coal Generator. The setup takes planning and patience, but later you can free up coal for other uses.
You can also effectively scan for Caterium nodes now. You may have discovered them through the MAM already. It’s worth looking toward late-game tech and researching further. Among other things you can unlock the Zipline, Smart Splitter, and improved Power Poles.
Conclusion for Satisfactory Tier 5: use oil, plastic, and fuel wisely
Tier 5 ushers in a new era in Satisfactory and will have you rethink some of your existing production lines. With oil you gain access to more crucial materials, and you can turn it into Fuel to produce much more power. Add the Jetpack and faster logistics, and you have the tools to expand your production deliberately.
With a rented Satisfactory server you’ll dive into the oil age even faster. It’s especially fun with friends to tackle milestones and explore new aspects of the game together.
