While putting together your factory, Alternate Recipes can be a huge boost to production, providing a better alternative for many of the in-game elements. When you get the opportunity to unlock new alternate recipes in Satisfactory, a random choice of two will be available, so knowing which is the best and worst choice is essential. This ranking system should help you choose the right one every time.
How to unlock Alternate Recipes in Satisfactory
To get your hands on the better versions of recipes in Satisfactory, a little exploration is required. The Alternate Recipes can be found on hard drives around the world in crashed drop pods. These must be collected and researched at the M.A.M. This process will take ten minutes. You can use a dedicated server to give yourself the time and space you need to search for the various drop pods.
Once these hard drives have been researched, you will have the option to research one of two recipes or gain additional inventory space. Some Alternate Recipes are much more beneficial to productivity and output in Satisfactory, so make sure you check our tier list to ensure you make the right choice.
However, if you’re lucky enough to come across extra inventory space, I would recommend taking this option. It is incredibly useful, especially in the early game, and would come to the top of the tier list. It’s a pretty rare find, but one that will make playing Satisfactory much easier.
Alternate Recipes tier list
These items are ranked on their productivity changes. The better the Alternate Recipes are for power consumption and output, the higher they rank in the Satisfactory tier list. Of course, you may disagree with some of their placements, but for me, this is where they all sit.
In these tables, minus numbers are a positive thing. Power is a reduction in power use, Items are a reduction in items needed to move around the map, buildings are a reduction of buildings required for a production chain, and resources are a reduction in necessary raw resources in production. These numbers are based on parameters across a whole production chain.
Use CTRL+F to find the various recipes.
S Tier Alternate Recipes
These Alternate Recipes are ones you should always keep an eye out for in Satisfactory. They have the highest bonuses for output, productivity, and resources.
| Alternate Recipe                        | Power | Items | Buildings | Resources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy Encased Frame | -1.82% | -6.40% | -7.56% | -2.76% |
| Pure Aluminum Ingot | -0.73% | -1.43% | -2.52% | -2.12% |
| Copper Alloy Ingot | 0.55% | 0.07% | -23.16% | 0.10% |
| Oil-Based Diamonds | -2.54% | -4.79% | -0.81% | -10.84% |
| Dark Matter Trap | -0.51% | -1.49% | 0.05% | -2.25% |
| Heavy Flexible Frame | -0.86% | -3.95% | -3.73% | -2.45% |
| Turbo Diamonds | -3.09% | -1.70% | 0.70% | -5.98% |
| Insulated Crystal Oscillator | -1.34% | -1.58% | -3.01% | -1.38% |
| Uranium Fuel Unit | -0.52% | -0.92% | -1.56% | -0.93% |
| Sloppy Alumina | -0.50% | -1.63% | 0.04% | -2.60% |
A Tier Alternate Recipes
These will certainly help your build in Satisfactory. Pick them over the alternatives most of the time. These are all recommended Alternate Recipes.
| Alternate Recipe                          | Power | Items | Buildings | Resources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silicon Circuit Board | -1.92% | -0.69% | -3.15% | -0.66% |
| Crystal Computer | -1.25% | -1.98% | -2.15% | -1.42% |
| Heat-Fused Frame | -0.35% | -2.71% | -2.54% | -1.00% |
| Caterium Circuit Board | -1.96% | -0.67% | -2.69% | -1.77% |
| Super-State Computer | -0.84% | -0.96% | -2.75% | -0.39% |
| Electrode Aluminum Scrap | 3.16% | -6.65% | -15.72% | -9.78% |
| Caterium Computer | -1.03% | -1.15% | -1.26% | -0.85% |
| Steel Screw | -0.60% | -0.87% | -7.29% | -0.23% |
| Turbo Pressure Motor | -0.62% | -0.75% | -0.99% | -0.60% |
| Diluted Fuel | -0.48% | 0.07% | -0.87% | 0.61% |
|
| ||||
| Rubber Concrete | -0.27% | -1.53% | -3.75% | -4.01% |
| Plastic AI Limiter | -0.42% | -1.00% | -1.55% | -1.19% |
| Steel Rod | -0.38% | -0.87% | -3.75% | -1.03% |
| Fine Concrete | -0.25% | -1.29% | -2.89% | -3.78% |
| Rigor Motor | -0.02% | -1.14% | -1.10% | -0.67% |
| Aluminum Beam | -0.71% | -0.94% | -2.67% | -0.68% |
| Aluminum Rod | -0.41% | -0.66% | -3.76% | -0.89% |
| Turbo Electric Motor | -0.37% | -0.21% | -0.37% | -0.39% |
| Steeled Frame | -0.46% | -0.05% | -1.89% | 0.18% |
| Infused Uranium Cell | 3.12% | -5.63% | -16.36% | -5.04% |
B Tier Alternate Recipes
These are the most common Alternate Recipes in Satisfactory. They will certainly help you with productivity and output of your Satisfactory build, but they aren’t the final solution for a perfect build.
| Alternate Recipe                     | Power | Items | Buildings | Resources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electric Motor | -0.07% | -0.67% | -0.50% | -0.53% |
| Coke Steel Ingot | -0.14% | -0.08% | -0.16% | -3.00% |
| Automated Speed Wiring | -0.11% | -0.59% | -1.07% | -0.06% |
| Insulated Cable | -0.09% | -1.05% | -1.81% | -0.15% |
| Solid Steel Ingot | -0.14% | -0.28% | 0.28% | -2.55% |
| Wet Concrete | 0.08% | -0.23% | -3.95% | -0.56% |
| Coated Cable | 0.10% | -0.92% | -1.52% | -0.18% |
| Silicon High-Speed Connector | -0.06% | -0.57% | -0.71% | -0.15% |
| Radio Control System | -0.95% | 0.73% | -1.21% | 0.33% |
| Adhered Iron Plate | -0.01% | -0.92% | -0.20% | -0.13% |
|
| ||||
| Heat Exchanger | -0.19% | -0.40% | -0.56% | -0.40% |
| Coated Iron Plate | -0.07% | -0.47% | -1.24% | -0.49% |
| Quickwire Cable | 0.11% | -1.20% | -0.61% | -0.21% |
| Fused Wire | -0.04% | -0.43% | -1.36% | -0.53% |
| Stitched Iron Plate | -0.03% | -0.50% | -0.24% | -0.04% |
| Steel Cast Plate | 0.00% | -0.32% | -0.95% | -0.39% |
| Copper Rotor | -0.01% | -0.27% | -0.50% | 0.17% |
| Plastic Smart Plating | 0.00% | -0.17% | -0.54% | -0.05% |
| Steel Rotor | 0.04% | -0.50% | -0.14% | 0.13% |
| Tempered Caterium Ingot | -0.08% | -0.88% | 1.30% | -1.48% |
|
| ||||
| Cooling Device | 0.08% | 0.01% | 0.24% | -0.23% |
| Steamed Copper Sheet | 0.47% | -0.43% | -2.33% | 0.08% |
| Caterium Wire | -0.08% | -0.36% | -1.32% | -0.42% |
| Recycled Plastic | 0.06% | 0.26% | 0.11% | 0.06% |
| Nitro Rocket Fuel | -1.36% | 0.05% | -2.27% | 2.22% |
| Electromagnetic Connection Rod | 0.01% | -0.21% | -0.36% | -0.01% |
| Turbo Heavy Fuel | -0.34% | -0.22% | -0.48% | -0.20% |
| Pure Quartz Crystal | 0.36% | 0.26% | -1.20% | 0.60% |
| Fine Black Powder | -0.04% | -0.03% | -0.12% | -0.03% |
| Quickwire Stator | -0.14% | -0.20% | -0.34% | 0.01% |
| Bolted Iron Plate | -0.11% | 0.25% | -0.43% | 0.00% |
| OC Supercomputer | -0.69% | 0.95% | -1.69% | 0.63% |
| Flexible Framework | 0.04% | -0.13% | -0.15% | -0.05% |
| Cast Screw | -0.01% | -0.08% | -2.19% | 0.96% |
| Iron Alloy Ingot | 0.01% | -0.06% | -0.27% | -0.14% |
| Heavy Oil Residue | 0.02% | 0.02% | -0.04% | -0.06% |
| Polyester Fabric | 0.00% | -0.02% | -0.02% | 0.01% |
| Polymer Resin | 0.00% | -0.01% | -0.01% | 0.01% |
C Tier Alternate Recipes
These Alternate Recipes are nothing to write home about but are often better than their regular counterparts in Satisfactory.
| Alternate Recipe                       | Power | Items | Buildings | Resources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Classic Battery | 0.03% | 0.19% | 0.53% | -0.44% |
| Iron Wire | 0.05% | -0.05% | 0.77% | -0.22% |
| Fused Quickwire | 0.23% | 0.92% | -1.50% | 1.06% |
| Pure Iron Ingot | 0.06% | -0.02% | -0.23% | -0.05% |
| Leached Iron ingot | 0.04% | -0.03% | -0.28% | -0.12% |
| Bolted Frame | -0.38% | 1.37% | -1.57% | -0.12% |
| Alclad Casing | 0.12% | 0.32% | 0.05% | 0.09% |
| Basic Iron Ingot | 0.05% | 0.06% | -0.17% | 0.14% |
| Molded Beam | 0.02% | 0.04% | -0.38% | 0.28% |
| Fused Quartz Crystal | 0.15% | 0.27% | -1.27% | 0.66% |
| Molded Steel Pipe | 0.15% | 0.03% | -1.46% | 0.48% |
| Turbo Blend Fuel | -0.53% | -0.02% | -1.11% | 0.60% |
| Leached Caterium Ingot | 0.32% | 0.27% | -0.35% | 0.15% |
| Electrode Circuit Board | -0.20% | -0.24% | 0.23% | -1.05% |
| Pure Caterium Ingot | 0.70% | 0.32% | 0.47% | 0.70% |
| Encased Industrial Pipe | 0.43% | 0.59% | 1.81% | 0.24% |
| Cheap Silica | 0.22% | 0.61% | 0.00% | 0.99% |
| Distilled Silica | 0.24% | 0.71% | -0.84% | 0.25% |
D Tier Alternate Recipes
You got unlucky if you’re pulling one of these from a hard drive in Satisfactory. Almost all of these will be worse than their alternatives.
| Alternate Recipe                       | Power | Items | Buildings | Resources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pink Diamonds | 0.27% | -0.87% | 2.28% | -4.12% |
| Compacted Steel Ingot | 0.13% | 1.60% | 0.52% | -0.92% |
| Quartz Purification | 0.81% | 1.33% | -2.34% | 1.25% |
| Plutonium Fuel Unit | 0.19% | 0.93% | 0.73% | 0.91% |
| Iron Pipe | 0.29% | 1.46% | 0.66% | 2.01% |
| Instant Plutonium Cell | 1.04% | 0.60% | 0.52% | 0.56% |
| Instant Scrap | 4.38% | -8.48% | -16.51% | -5.28% |
| Recycled Rubber | 1.10% | 2.19% | 2.98% | 1.38% |
| Pure Copper Ingot | 12.55% | -3.97% | -4.40% | -11.38% |
F Tier Alternate Recipes
These ones are more of a detriment than anything else. If you’re unlucky enough to find one of these Alternate Recipes in Satisfactory, I would recommend picking anything else.
| Alternate Recipe                          | Power | Items | Buildings | Resources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fertile Uranium | 2.75% | 2.20% | 2.17% | 2.45% |
| Radio Connection Unit | 0.62% | 2.65% | 3.87% | 2.18% |
| Dark-Ion Fuel | -0.23% | 4.23% | 2.56% | 3.74% |
| Cloudy Diamonds | 4.18% | 5.29% | 1.41% | 11.81% |
| Petroleum Diamonds | 3.58% | 6.43% | 11.80% | -9.24% |
| Dark Matter Crystallization | 4.61% | 2.94% | 3.15% | 3.36% |
| Leached Copper Ingot | 5.07% | 1.86% | -18.18% | -5.68% |
| Tempered Copper Ingot | 7.86% | 9.17% | -3.20% | -16.11% |
| Automated Miner | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Biocoal | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Charcoal | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
How much difference do Alternate Recipes make?
If you’re wondering whether the time and effort of collecting and researching the Alternate Recipes in Satisfactory are worth it, the answer is yes. With your builds using a lot of the top-ranking Alternate Recipes, not only will your factory use a lot less power, but it will also move items much faster, build significantly faster, and mine resources much quicker.
It is worth going out into the world and looking for those crashed drop pods. Of course, you won’t always be lucky enough to get your hands on an S Tier parts, but chances of getting a better recipe than an original are high. Once you have figured out the best place for your factory and your dream layout, these new parts will make all the difference.
Published: Sep 12, 2024 04:01 pm