In Starfield, when you explore planets and look at the animals, plants, and stuff there, you gather something called “Starfield survey data.” It’s like collecting information about what’s on these planets. After you’ve collected all this info, you can do something useful with it. You can sell it to make some money. Here’s how you do that and get the most money for it.
How to Get Starfield Survey Data
To get Starfield survey data, first, go near a new planet. Then, use your map to scan and see what’s on the planet like animals, plants, and things you can collect. Next, land on the planet and use your scanner to study the animals, plants, and resources you find. You only need to find one of each resource, but for animals and plants, you need to find several of each type. We have a separate guide for finding different types of animals and plants in Starfield.
You might also need to find something called “Traits” on the planet. These are marked with a circle and a question mark on your map. To find them, land in different spots on the planet and use your scanner to look for “Unknown” landmarks. Go to those places and follow the instructions to scan and discover the Traits. Once you’ve done all of this, you’ll see a “Surveyed” sign on the planet’s name on your map, and the survey data will be in your inventory as a Note.
Where to Sell Survey Data in Starfield
Now, let’s talk about where to sell your survey data in Starfield. There are a few places, but the best one is a space station called “The Eye” that orbits a planet called Jemison in Alpha Centauri. When you meet a guy named Vladimir Sall there, choose the dialogue option that says “Your Artifact search must be a full-time job.” After that, you can tell him you have survey data to sell. But keep in mind, when you sell things in Starfield, you might not get as much money as you hope. Vladimir will usually pay you about 25% of the value written on the Note in your inventory, or a bit more if you have the Commerce Starfield skill.
If you don’t want to go all the way to The Eye, you can sell your survey data to the Trade Authority through their vendors or kiosks. However, they will only give you about 12.5% of the value, which is half of what Vladimir pays. So, think about that when deciding where to sell. Lastly, if you’re working with Phil Hill, the LIST rep on Mars, he’ll buy survey data for habitable planets, but you’ll only get half of what Vladimir pays. Do it once to finish a mission, then go back to selling to Vladimir for everything else.