NewSpace Market Intelligence · launch index
Rideshare & Small Launch Price Index
What getting a small satellite to orbit actually costs — published prices only, every figure with a source and an as-of date, refreshed quarterly. Paired with live upcoming rideshare opportunities from our launch catalogue.
Published prices — compiled Q3 2026, each figure as dated
| Provider | Offer | Price | Basis | As of | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SpaceX | Rideshare — 2026 launches | $7,000/kg | published booking rate, SSO / LEO / polar, billed from 50 kg | 2026-08 | www.spacex.com ↗ |
| SpaceX | Rideshare — 2027 launches | $7,500/kg | same published schedule; 2027 is the earliest bookable window | 2026-08 | www.spacex.com ↗ |
| CAS Space | Kinetica-2 — dedicated launch | $4,443/kg | ¥30,000/kg stated by the vice-president (converted at 6.75) | 2026-04 | www.scmp.com ↗ |
| Innospace | HANBIT-Micro — dedicated small launch | $28,000/kg | per-kg figure presented by the company | 2026-03 | ket.kr ↗ |
| Rocket Lab | Electron — dedicated small launch | $7.5M / launch | target average revenue per launch, stated by the CFO on the Q3 2024 earnings call | 2024-11 | www.insidermonkey.com ↗ |
| Rocket Lab | Neutron — medium launch | $55M / launch | average selling price confirmed by the CEO in a public interview | 2024-11 | payloadspace.com ↗ |
| Galactic Energy | Ceres-1 — dedicated small launch | $4M / launch | flat mission price given by the CEO to IEEE Spectrum | 2020-03 6 yr | spectrum.ieee.org ↗ |
| Rocket Factory Augsburg | RFA One — dedicated small launch | $3.2M / launch | €3M per launch, company press release (converted at 1.08) | 2021-02 5 yr | www.rfa.space ↗ |
Everyone else quotes on request. We checked the sites of 35 launch companies and brokers; 27 publish no price at all — Firefly Aerospace, Relativity Space, Stoke Space, Isar Aerospace, PLD Space, Skyrora, Orbex, Latitude, MaiaSpace, HyImpulse, Arianespace, Exolaunch, D-Orbit, Momentus, Impulse Space, ISRO / NSIL, Skyroot, Agnikul, Bellatrix Aerospace, Space One, Interstellar Technologies, iSpace (Beijing Interstellar), LandSpace, Orienspace, Space Pioneer, Equatorial Space, Perigee Aerospace. That is the norm in this market rather than an omission: a rideshare rate card is the exception.
SpaceX published rideshare rate over time, $/kg to SSO
Published booking rates as listed on spacex.com/rideshare at each date (minimum booking mass changed over the period). The often-quoted downward “price per kg” trend applies to bulk launch capacity; published smallsat rideshare list rates have been slowly rising.
What the per-kilogram rate does not cover
The advertised «from $350k for 50 kg» buys the ride and a standard mechanical interface. The separation system that actually pushes your satellite off the plate is quoted separately, and it costs more than the ride does for a small payload — worth knowing before the budget is signed.
| Optional service | Price, 2026 launches |
|---|---|
| Separation system, 8" | $336,800 |
| Separation system, 15" | $409,970 |
| Separation system, 24" | $629,600 |
| Payload fuelling at the launch site | $49,300 |
SpaceX add-on schedule, same published source as the rate above. Mechanical adapters for non-standard interfaces and pad-side electrical access are priced on enquiry.
Upcoming rideshare-friendly windows
All 31 upcoming windows →Get real quotes for your payload
List prices are the ceiling, not the floor: actual rideshare pricing depends on mass, volume, orbit and integration scope. Describe your payload once — the matchmaker finds compatible windows and sends your request to the providers behind them.
Find a launch → CSV (CC BY 4.0)