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SpaceX says Starship is designed to carry more than 100 metric tons to low Earth orbit (LEO). Its published estimates drop to 21 metric tons for a specified geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) without refueling, while the company’s larger lunar and Mars surface figures depend on propellant transfer in space. These are stated capabilities and design estimates—not records of completed cargo deliveries to either world.
How much payload can Starship carry to orbit?
SpaceX’s March 2020 Starship Users Guide, Revision 1.0 estimates more than 100 metric tons to LEO for its baseline reusable design. The guide also lists 100+ metric tons in its propellant-transfer column. SpaceX’s current Starship page describes the vehicle as capable of carrying satellites, large space telescopes, and significant cargo to orbit.
A payload number is not universal across every orbit. The guide estimates 21 metric tons to GTO in a single launch without propellant transfer. Its footnote defines that estimate for a 185 × 35,786 km orbit at 27-degree inclination, with 1,800 m/s of delta-v remaining. The guide advises contacting SpaceX for estimates to a specific orbit.
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How much cargo can Starship take to the Moon?
SpaceX’s Moon page says refilling enables Starship to deliver up to 100 tons directly to the lunar surface. The 2020 Users Guide lists 100+ metric tons for lunar surface delivery in its propellant-transfer column; it does not give a single-launch lunar surface figure. These are company-stated capabilities that depend on the mission architecture, not confirmed delivery totals.
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SpaceX identifies rovers and habitats as examples of lunar cargo. Those examples do not mean every such item—or any particular combination—fits on one flight. Mass, dimensions, trajectory, and vehicle configuration all affect what a mission can carry.
How much payload can Starship take to Mars?
The 2020 Users Guide lists 100+ metric tons for Mars surface delivery in the propellant-transfer column and marks single-launch surface capacity as N/A. SpaceX’s Mars & Beyond page describes cargo missions as future plans, not completed deliveries.
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SpaceX says cargo flights to the Martian surface for research, development, and exploratory missions start no earlier than 2028. It lists a rate of $100 million per metric ton. That is SpaceX’s published plan and rate, not a guaranteed schedule or offer for a specific payload.
Why does propellant transfer change the answer?
Starship’s payload to a destination depends on how much energy the trip requires and how much propellant is available for the journey. The 2020 guide separates estimates for missions without propellant transfer from those using transfer in a parking orbit. A vehicle that first reaches LEO can be refilled there by tanker Starships before departing for a more distant destination.
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NASA’s Artemis mission architecture likewise describes a lunar lander sequence involving a storage depot and tanker flights. Refueling is therefore a mission-system requirement behind the high lunar and Mars figures, not a small adjustment to the LEO payload number.
How do Starship’s lunar figures compare with NASA’s cargo lander estimate?
NASA’s April 19, 2024 article on large cargo landers gives an expected surface payload of approximately 12 to 15 metric tons for cargo landers under development, with service no earlier than Artemis VII. This is an estimate for a specific NASA program, not a revision of SpaceX’s broader company-stated Starship capability.
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NASA says these cargo landers are intended to deliver large equipment and infrastructure, including needs such as rovers and habitats. Starship’s role in NASA’s crewed lunar program is a separate configuration and mission: NASA’s Human Landing Systems reference, updated May 6, 2025, says SpaceX is developing Starship HLS to carry astronauts between lunar orbit and the Moon’s surface for Artemis III and Artemis IV.
What the published numbers do—and do not—tell you
- They are not all the same kind of figure. LEO and GTO refer to orbital destinations; lunar and Mars figures refer to surface delivery.
- They rely on different mission assumptions. The guide’s high surface estimates appear in the propellant-transfer column, while its GTO estimate is a single-launch figure without transfer.
- The 2020 guide is a dated design reference. Its estimates assume full Starship reuse, including Super Heavy returning to the launch site. They should not be treated as a guaranteed payload schedule or assumed unchanged for every evolving vehicle version.
- A stated capability is not a demonstrated delivery. The cited SpaceX pages describe future lunar and Mars cargo missions; they do not report Starship cargo delivered to either surface.
- There is no universal manifest. The cited sources do not establish the capacity for every vehicle version, trajectory, or customer mission, or a guaranteed payload for an individual flight.
For context, the current Starship page names satellites and large telescopes as orbital cargo examples, while SpaceX and NASA describe rovers and habitats as lunar cargo needs. Such examples are not promises that all can be carried together.
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