ToolInteractive Upgrade Planner

Click any upgrade row or the circle button to mark it as unlocked. Your total Goo spent and remaining count update in real time. The planner is saved in your browser — it persists between visits.

01Recommended Unlock Order

If you follow this sequence you'll spend Goo in the order that returns the most value — each early upgrade directly unlocks more Goo deposits than it costs.

1. 1
   Jump Boost — 40 Goo

   Opens the top half of every planet. More areas = more Goo = the investment pays for itself within minutes of unlocking it.
2. 2
   Grapple Hook — 75 Goo

   Grapple anchor points are everywhere on every planet. Without this you're blocked from 20–30% of collectibles per planet permanently.
3. 3
   Stomp Attack — 35 Goo Post-patch cheaper

   Breaks floor panels that hide secret rooms with Goo deposits. Also unlocks more combat options before harder planets.
4. 4
   Double Jump — 60 Goo

   Massive combat improvement and a third tier of vertical mobility. By this point you'll have enough Goo saved from the areas unlocked by Jump Boost + Grapple.
5. 5
   Scan Boost + Goo Detector — 30 + 50 Goo

   Scan Boost is cheap and immediately useful for Kindex work. Goo Detector turns exploration into a treasure hunt — get it before Planet 2.

02Upgrade-o-Rama Terminal Locations

Every planet has at least one terminal. You can use any terminal to access the full shared upgrade pool — upgrades are not planet-locked. Here's where to find each one.

03Upgrade Category Deep-Dives

🦘 Mobility Upgrades — Always First

Mobility upgrades have the highest ROI of any category because they directly expand the playable world. Every new movement option you unlock opens secret rooms, new Goo deposits, and shortcuts that persist for the rest of the game. Never delay mobility upgrades.

The core mobility chain is: Jump Boost → Grapple → Double Jump → Sprint Boost → Slide Boost. You don't need all five to be effective, but completing this chain before tackling Planet 3 makes the back half of the game dramatically smoother.

⚔️ Combat Upgrades — Tier by Planet

Combat upgrades scale in importance with planet number. On Stellaris Prime you can complete most content with zero combat upgrades — the enemies are manageable. By Cryo Station and Noxious Ridge, Goo Damage Up becomes noticeably impactful against boss health pools.

The exception is Stomp Attack — don't treat this as a pure combat upgrade. Post-patch at 35 Goo it's also an exploration tool: Stomp breaks specific floor tiles that hide Goo caches and secret rooms. Get it early for exploration value alone.

📡 Scanner Upgrades — Underrated, Get Early

Most players skip scanner upgrades entirely and regret it at completion time. Scan Boost costs only 30 Goo and immediately makes Kindex work safer — you can scan hostile flying creatures from outside their aggro range. Goo Detector at 50 Goo is the single best quality-of-life upgrade in the game for thorough explorers — it removes the frustration of pixel-hunting for the last few Goo deposits on each planet.

🛡️ Survival Upgrades — Save for Late Game

Armour Plating at 90 Goo is the most expensive upgrade and the least impactful early. On Stellaris Prime and Xephyr you simply don't take enough damage to justify the cost. Save it for when you first arrive at Cryo Station — the damage spike is real there and you'll feel the difference immediately. Health Regen is a comfort upgrade that makes extended exploration sessions less stressful.

🔧 Utility Upgrades — Situational but Worthwhile

Lasso Range is worth getting before Planet 2 if you're planning a Kindex playthrough — several Xephyr creature types require capturing and they're skittish. Carry Capacity is the least impactful upgrade in the game for most players but valuable if you're doing heavy Habitat building runs.

04Frequently Asked Questions