Every mining-capable hull judged for mining specifically and ranked on a 1–100 scale. The role demands cargo room for ore, optional-internal slots for a refinery and limpet controllers, hardpoints for the tools, and a tank to survive a pirate while your limpets work. Small hulls can mine as cheap trainers, but the serious field runs medium to large — nineteen ships in all.
A ship’s number is its mining ceiling relative to the field. Cargo figures are maximum cargo-capable tonnage — a real mining fit gives up some of that to a refinery and limpet controllers, so working ore holds run a little smaller.
Mining is the craft of extracting and refining materials from asteroid rings — and at the high end it is one of the most lucrative activities in the game. The ship must carry the tools, refine on the move, and hold the ore.
Three things at once: cargo for the refined ore, optional-internal slots for a Refinery and one or two Limpet Controllers (collector + prospector), and hardpoints for the mining tools. A tank to survive a pirate while your limpets are out is the fourth. Pure cargo isn’t enough — a miner needs the slots to spend on tools too.
The 1–100 mining rating weighs, in order:
The scale is roster-relative. The Type-11 tops it not on raw cargo — the Cutter and Type-9 hold more — but on being the only hull designed to mine, with exclusive tools and the perfect slot layout. Compare within a class first.
The cost tables also list an approximate rebuy (~5% of insured value) — what you pay each time the ship is destroyed. It is the number that really governs how boldly you can fly.
This 1–100 rating is a roster-relative, fully-engineered editorial verdict — not a hidden formula. See the shared rating methodology for the full rubric and worked examples.
All 19 miners on one scale, best to worst, with maximum cargo as the headline. Remember a mining fit spends some of that on a refinery and limpets. Per-class breakdowns and costs follow.
| Ship | Class | Max cargo | One-line verdict | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type-11 Prospector | Medium | 288 t | The purpose-built mining flagship — the only hull designed for this job. | 95 |
| Imperial Cutter | Large | 794 t | The high-capacity powerhouse — mine for an hour, sell a fortune. | 92 |
| Python | Medium | 294 t | The timeless medium miner — the safe, capable default. | 90 |
| Type-9 Heavy | Large | 790 t | The bulk ore barge — vast capacity, zero defence. | 90 |
| Anaconda | Large | 470 t | A rank-free capital miner — deep hold, real tank, re-roles to anything. | 86 |
| Type-8 Transporter | Medium | 406 t | A cheap high-capacity medium miner — great hold, no defence. | 84 |
| Krait Mk II | Medium | 230 t | The defended laser miner — mine and shoot back. | 84 |
| Type-7 Transporter | Large | 310 t | A budget large-pad ore hauler — capacity on a shoestring. | 78 |
| Panther Clipper Mk II | Large | 1,048 t | A bottomless ore hold — luxury capacity for marathon sessions. | 77 |
| Krait Phantom | Medium | 190 t | The explorer-miner — fast and far-ranging, best as a second loadout. | 70 |
| Imperial Clipper | Large | 250 t | A fast Imperial hull that mines on the side — versatile, not specialised. | 70 |
| Type-10 Defender | Large | 528 t | The indestructible barge — armour over tonnage per credit. | 70 |
| Keelback | Medium | 98 t | The anchor entry miner — defended, but low capacity. | 68 |
| Asp Explorer | Medium | 128 t | The cheapest credible medium miner — a starter, not an endpoint. | 64 |
| Federal Corvette | Large | 700 t | A warship that mines — self-defence at a warship’s price and rank. | 64 |
| Type-6 Transporter | Medium | 110 t | The first miner — cheap enough to learn on, then trade up. | 62 |
| Cobra Mk V | Small | 110 t | The cheapest capable small-pad miner — full kit, trivial rebuy. | 58 |
| Cobra Mk III | Small | 64 t | A cheap small-pad on-ramp — learn the loop, then step up. | 52 |
| Adder | Small | 30 t | An almost-free mining trainer — learns the loop, earns little. | 48 |
Read it in bands: 88–95 is a top-tier mining platform; 74–87 is a thoroughly capable miner; 68–73 is a budget entry. Small hulls can mine as cheap trainers, but the full toolkit and a worthwhile ore hold only really fit from medium up — where every serious miner starts.
A handful of small hulls can fit a complete mining loadout — lasers or seismic charges, a Pulse Wave Analyser, a Refinery, a collector and a prospector limpet controller — but only at the cost of the ore hold. They work as cheap trainers: learn prospecting, cracking and refining for almost nothing, then trade up. None earns at the rate of a medium.
| Ship | Class | Max cargo | Pros & cons for mining | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cobra Mk V | Small | 110 t | The largest small-pad ore hold, with the slots for a full laser-and-core kitCheap to buy and a trivial rebuy — a complete miner for a few millionThin tank and small refinery; outclassed the moment you can afford a medium | 58 |
| Cobra Mk III | Small | 64 t | Cheap and fast, and fits a complete small mining suiteTiny hold and light shield — a few-trip on-ramp, not an earner | 52 |
| Adder | Small | 30 t | Almost free — learn prospecting, cracking and refining for nothingToken hold and token shield; earns far too little to fund the step up | 48 |
| Ship | Hull | A-rated fit | To engineer | ~Rebuy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cobra Mk V | 1.48M | ~6M | materials · Moderate | ~300k |
| Cobra Mk III | 208k | ~2M | materials · Moderate | ~100k |
| Adder | 41k | ~1.5M | materials · Moderate | ~75k |
The Cobra Mk V (58) is the best of them — the largest small-pad hold and a full kit for a few million. The Cobra Mk III (52) and Adder (48) are cheaper still, but a small hull can’t carry the refinery, limpets and a worthwhile ore hold at once. Learn the loop here, then move to a medium the moment you can.
Medium pad is the heart of mining. A medium fits the full toolkit, holds a serious quantity of ore, docks at the ring-adjacent outposts that lock out larges, and — on the right hull — carries a fighter to chase off pirates. For most miners, a medium is the answer.
| Ship | Class | Max cargo | Pros & cons for mining | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type-11 Prospector | Medium | 288 t | The only purpose-built miner — exclusive Mk II mining modules and a Mining Volley Repeater no other hull can fitHuge ore hold for a medium pad, with the slots for a full mining toolkit~68M hull, slow, and specialised to the point of being a one-trick ship | 95 |
| Python | Medium | 294 t | The timeless medium miner — tanky, roomy, lands on a medium padComfortably runs lasers or core mining with cargo to spareOut-capacitied by the dedicated and large hulls | 90 |
| Krait Mk II | Medium | 230 t | The laser-mining favourite — tanky, with a fighter bay for pirate defenceStrong hardpoints and good internal roomLess cargo than the dedicated or large miners | 84 |
| Type-8 Transporter | Medium | 406 t | Big medium-pad ore hold for very little moneySimple, cheap, lands at outpostsSlow, paper tank, and no fighter bay | 84 |
| Krait Phantom | Medium | 190 t | Fast and far-ranging — a premium FSD reaches distant or freshly-scanned hotspotsOutruns trouble rather than tanking itLight hull and modest shield; best as a re-role, not a bought-for-mining hull | 70 |
| Keelback | Medium | 98 t | The cheapest viable miner, and a fighter bay deters piratesA tiny ore hold and slow | 68 |
| Asp Explorer | Medium | 128 t | The cheapest credible medium miner — pays for itself in a session or twoModest hold and thin defence; outgrown the moment you can afford a dedicated hull | 64 |
| Type-6 Transporter | Medium | 110 t | The cheapest way into medium-pad mining — profits compound into a real miner fastSlow, fragile and small-held; a teacher, not an earner | 62 |
| Ship | Hull | A-rated fit | To engineer | ~Rebuy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type-11 Prospector | 68M | ~100M | materials · Heavy | ~5.0M |
| Python | 57M | ~109M | materials · Heavy | ~5.4M |
| Krait Mk II | 46M | ~97M | materials · Heavy | ~4.8M |
| Type-8 Transporter | 38M | ~47M | materials · Heavy | ~2.3M |
| Krait Phantom | 35.7M | ~50M | materials · Heavy | ~2.5M |
| Keelback | 3.1M | ~5.9M | materials · Heavy | ~296k |
| Asp Explorer | 6.1M | ~18M | materials · Heavy | ~900k |
| Type-6 Transporter | 867k | ~3M | materials · Heavy | ~150k |
The Type-11 Prospector (95) is the purpose-built king — exclusive Mk II mining hardware and the ideal slot layout. The Python (90) is the timeless, tanky default. The Krait Mk II (84) adds a fighter bay for defended laser mining, and the Type-8 (84) is the cheap big-hold option.
Large pad mining is about marathon capacity: enormous ore holds you fill over a long, undisturbed session, then sell for a fortune. The trade-off is the large pad (fewer ring-adjacent outposts) and, on the barges, a tank that can’t defend itself.
| Ship | Class | Max cargo | Pros & cons for mining | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imperial Cutter | Large | 794 t | Massive ore hold and a warship tank for marathon, undisturbed sessionsBig enough to run lasers and core tools and still fill a vast holdImperial Duke rank, ~209M hull, large pad only | 92 |
| Type-9 Heavy | Large | 790 t | An enormous ore hold — fill it once and sell bigCheap to buy for the capacity it offersGlacial, near-defenceless, large pad | 90 |
| Anaconda | Large | 470 t | Deep ore hold and a warship tank, with no rank or permit gateRe-roles to hauling, combat or exploration by swapping modules~142M hull; out-carried per credit by the Type-9 and Cutter | 86 |
| Type-7 Transporter | Large | 310 t | Cheap large-pad capacity for ore haulingSlow and fragile for its size | 78 |
| Panther Clipper Mk II | Large | 1,048 t | A bottomless hold — mine a carrier’s worth of ore without docking~287M hull; the vast hold rarely fills in one session, hard to justify on tonnage | 77 |
| Imperial Clipper | Large | 250 t | Cheap and fast for a large hull — mines, trades and fightsModest hold for a large, and gated by Imperial Baron rank | 70 |
| Type-10 Defender | Large | 528 t | Near-indestructible — never has to flee a pirate interdiction~125M hull; cheaper barges out-carry it and the Python out-defends per credit | 70 |
| Federal Corvette | Large | 700 t | A warship’s tank and a big hold — mines through any pirate~183M plus the Rear Admiral grind; tonnage you can get far cheaper elsewhere | 64 |
| Ship | Hull | A-rated fit | To engineer | ~Rebuy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Imperial Cutter | 209M | ~433M | materials · Very heavy | ~22M |
| Type-9 Heavy | 77M | ~128M | materials · Very heavy | ~6.4M |
| Anaconda | 142M | ~175M | materials · Very heavy | ~8.8M |
| Type-7 Transporter | 17M | ~25M | materials · Very heavy | ~1.3M |
| Panther Clipper Mk II | 287M | ~310M | materials · Very heavy | ~16M |
| Imperial Clipper | 21.1M | ~32M | materials · Very heavy | ~1.6M |
| Type-10 Defender | 125M | ~165M | materials · Very heavy | ~8.3M |
| Federal Corvette | 183M | ~215M | materials · Very heavy | ~11M |
The Imperial Cutter (92) is the capacity-and-tank powerhouse — mine undisturbed for an hour and sell big. The Type-9 (90) is the same vast hold without the defence or the price. The Type-7 (78) is the budget large-pad entry. Pick a large only if you can mine in peace.
The right miner depends on how you mine and how much you can spend. Pick the description that fits you.
Cheap enough to learn on, and a fighter bay means pirates think twice while you figure out laser mining. Low capacity, but a forgiving teacher.
Tanky, roomy, medium-pad and equally happy with lasers or core charges — the safe, capable default that re-roles into trade or combat when you’re done.
The only hull built for the job — exclusive Mk II mining modules, a Mining Volley Repeater, and a slot layout nothing else matches. If mining is your main income, this is the ship.
A vast ore hold and a tank that lets you mine for an hour without a care — the highest single-session yield in the game, once you hit Duke.
An enormous hold for a modest price — unbeatable bulk if you mine quiet rings and don’t mind a defenceless barge.
Strong hardpoints, a real tank, and a fighter bay to chase off the pirates a laden miner attracts — the defended laser-mining favourite.
A miner’s engineering is light — the mining tools themselves are barely engineered, and the focus is on getting to the ring, surviving it, and getting home. The tour is short and shared across the hulls here.
| Module | Blueprint (G5) | Experimental | Engineer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frame Shift Drive | Increased Range | Mass Manager | Felicity Farseer |
| Power Distributor | Charge Enhanced | Cluster Capacitor | The Dweller |
| Shield Generator | Reinforced | Hi-Cap | Lei Cheung |
| Power Plant | Low Emissions | Thermal Spread | Hera Tani |
| Pulse Wave Analyser (opt.) | Long Range | — | various |
The mining tools (lasers, charges, abrasion blasters) are left mostly unengineered — there is little to gain. The real engineering is the power distributor (so your weapon capacitor sustains the lasers) and a shield to survive interdiction while you sit still in the ring. Engineering costs materials, not credits; a miner’s materials tier is Moderate on the mediums and Heavy–Very heavy only if you fully roll a large.
If mining is your profession, the Type-11 Prospector (95) is the only hull built for it. For the biggest single-session payday, the Imperial Cutter (92) rules on capacity and tank. For the best all-round value, the Python (90) mines superbly and re-roles when you’re done — and the Krait Mk II (84) is the pick if you want to laser-mine with a fighter watching your back.
Figures on this page are verified against the sources below.
