Tell us how to get into trading!

You don't need to know that much to trade, but it's good to know a few things

1. Get a ship that can carry a decent amount of cargo, equip it with shields to survive pirates and maybe a fuelscoop so you don't have to stop at stations along the way.

2. Buy some materials that are in short supply and go to a system that needs that type of material

3. Watch out for pirates along the way, always try to run away

4. Arrive at the sales station and buy low-grade materials there and repeat the process. You can do this in a loop or travel around the bubble like this

By following these steps you can make a nice profit and have fun

Getting started in trade in Elite Dangerous isn't always easy, I wish I'd had a simple guide to help me when I first started, understand that trade is a great way to accumulate wealth in a safe way, avoiding combat (even if the pirates don't agree with that haha). Let's get down to what I think is essential:

Choose the right transportation

First, you'll need a ship with cargo capacity. I recommend the Hauler for those embarking on this journey now, as it's cheap and has a reasonable capacity. After a while, I'd go for the Cobra MkIII, an excellent intermediate option. If you're already making a lot of money and have a good budget, there are some good options like the Type-6, Python and Type-9. The Imperial Clipper is your dream, it's where you'll set your sights.

Use Trade Route Tools

The universe of the game is huge, so don't feel bad about getting lost, that's why tools like inara.cz make your life easier, where you can enter your location and set parameters such as “maximum route distance” and “load capacity”, showing you the most profitable trade routes and even an estimate of profits.

Avoid Long Supercruise and Stay Alert in Space

If the route suggests a station too far from the system's star, think about whether it's really worth it, take into account the extra time and the high risk of pirates showing up. Always choose routes with a shorter distance from stations and in less dangerous systems.

A good shield

Remember a decent shield, you will always be stopped by pirates, a good shield will help hold off the first shots until the FSD recharges.

I think these are the tips I would have liked to have received when I started the game. Good luck, Commander!

I know how it may be confusing dealing with so many informations on Elite Dangerous. First of all, you have to pass through the tough mechanics just to move your ship, then learn how to travel to another system, and the list goes on and on.

After that, you find yourself docked in some station, exploring the menu, wondering: what the heck I'm going to do? You have only a few thousands of CR, and you see those millions CR ships that feel out of reach. It can be overwhelming.

But that thought can be exciting too! There are so many ways you can get CR, and some don’t require risking yourself or your precious ship. Trading might be the best among them. But how to make money with that?

First of all, you need cargo space, obviously. So, you need a ship with a decent cargo capacity to increase your profits. In the beginning, a Cobra MkIII is a great first trading ship, and you can get it by simply scanning systems with your D-Scanner and Spectrum Scanner and then selling the data, as it only costs 350k. Don't wanna do "all" (it is fast, I promise) this? Then, get a Hauler. Go with that for now so you can start making money by being smarter than your competitors (we'll get to this soon).

You can also opt for a larger ship, if you have the money. If not, you should get one as soon as possible, and you should follow this list: Type-6 or Type-7, Python, Type-9 (slow, but you get 790 max. cargo capacity) and then Imperial Clipper (the GOAT of trading, maneuverable and has the best cargo capacity). If you can wait after the Cobra, focus on buying a Python for its multipurpose role (its a nice mining ship too).

Ok, but where is the money?

So, one day you enter a station, look at the market and think: with this many things to buy, how do I choose the one that could make me money the most? Well... don't choose. It's 3310, commander, we don't have to jump from station to station so we can find profitable routes. Go nuts on tools that do that for you.

Everything you need is inara.cz - not only for trading but almost anything else. Take a look at how ituitive it is:

Did any of those icons catch your eye? I'm sure they did! You can get the best trade routes in a few seconds, or search directly for commodities buy/sell prices.

Let's take a look at trade routes first:

You have 2 options here: the Best Trade Routes and Trade Routes Search.

Want to find some routes close to you so you can go there and start trading? Then the first option it's yours. Simply fill the Near star system field with your actual star system or the one you're getting close to, set Max route distance (how far it'll be from the Near star system you choose), your Cargo capacity (this tool even shows your estimated profit) and Max. price age (the newer, the better. Aim for 1 day or less).

You have additional options too! If you have a larger ship, set the Min. landing pad to large, and if you don't want to go to Surface stations, disable this option, and you can even set the Max. station distance so you don't travel too far from star to station. That’s enough explanation, go and try it yourself!

Want more control over your route and set a station as your starting point? Go to the other menu, Trade Routes Search, and you'll be able to even set your destination. The other options are the same, added the possibility to Use fleet carriers on your route, Limit to minor faction (sometimes you need to build your reputation so you can access engineers) or even Limit to favorites systems/stations (you need to sign in).

Once set, you're going to see a list like this:

Here, you can set filters as Round trips, to buy in a station, sell to another, buy again there, return to the first station, sell and redo; Exports, that limits only so you can buy in the selected station and sell elsewhere, and Imports, so you can sell something in your selected station.

The best option here is the first one, as you can make more Profit per hour (look at those numbers!). Remember to always check Route Distance, specially because loaded cargo ships usually have 10-20Ly jump range, and Station Distance, as space is dangerous with all those pirates and gankers, so you don't wanna stay too much time in Supercruise.

Another option is to search for a specific commodity so you can see where to buy or sell it for the best price:

This is even more intuitive, with the same additional options, you need only to set wether you want to buy or sell, what commodity(ies) and the options. and its best usage is when you're done mining and want to sell your goods. You can also use it to buy the commodities that some engineers require without going too far from them.

Also, they provide a commodities list so you can check Avg. Price and Max. Profit across the galaxy. Also, you can opt to search for Rare commodities, their whereabouts and other informations (this is going to be useful specially for PowerPlay mechanics).

So, don't waste your time gathering information that is already in your hands, and don't fully trust the GALNET-provided informations embedded in your galaxy map, they are not only confusing, but often wrong. Also, remember to always use your D-scanner so you can increase your profit by selling the data.

Now, you have everything you need to make a fortune with trading. But don't chain yourself in it. ED has a lot more to offer, so when you tired of just go arount, don't think twice before you try out mining, exploring or even bounty hunting. The space is huge, as your options are.

Have a great time, CMDR. o7

Before anything else, to start trading in the game it's important to understand how the economy works: differences between the systems and how they affect what is bought and sold. There are different types of economy, such as Agricultural, Industrial and High-Tech, each with its own specific needs, both in terms of target audience and specific materials for trade.

For example: Agricultural systems have food surpluses that can be sold at a profit to industrial systems that import them. The ideal is to start with low-cost goods on shorter trade routes as well. This decreases the risk of being attacked by pirates and also eases the learning curve for taking risks on longer routes and more expensive goods!

At first I got help from my brother, but I ended up with an eye bigger than my belly and lost a lot of expensive goods by taking a long route without preparing myself properly, so I ended up learning the hard way to go little by little.

Some websites are useful for tracking trade in real time, such as Inara, which help you find the current prices of goods, but it's only an estimate, prices are always fluctuating! Look for stations with a lot of goods, as they will probably be cheaper, and try to sell them at stations where they are rarer, where the purchase price will probably be higher

A clever way of organizing yourself is to make a kind of “Commercial Route” where you transport goods between two fixed and nearby systems, where you can sell goods from one system to the other. This is perfect for maintaining a profitable round trip and accumulating money more quickly. Just be aware that in a short time that route may no longer be so good.

I think you can get a good idea of how the game's trade works and how to take advantage of it!

Trading is one of the most profitable activities in the game. Thanks to this activity I was able to get the Fleet Carrier.
You can start with any ship that is within your budget. Remember to put cargo holds on it, which is the most important thing for a Trade ship.
As other commanders have commented, the “Inara” website can make it easier to find trade routes.
You can also accept missions within space stations.
And with the money you collect, I recommend investing it in other ships with a better cargo capacity to be able to earn more credits on trade routes.
And something important is that your goal is not only to earn credits, since you can get frustrated. You have to enjoy the process.

(Translated with Google translator)