How to rank up your skills in Starfield

Starfield how to rank up skills - the character is looking across the surface of a rocky planet

(Image credit: Bethesda)

You can rank up your skills in Starfield, which is pretty handy if you want to specialise in a certain area. Perhaps you're a space pirate whose sole objective is to survive by your wits and combat skills, or maybe you're more of a settler type, and your strength lies with technology and building.

Ranking up your favorite Starfield skills takes a little patience and the completion of related objectives, but it increases their effectiveness, allowing you to lean into your preferred talents—of which there are many in Starfield, from ballistics to diplomacy. Here's how to rank up your skills in Starfield so you can live your best space life.

How to rank up skills in Starfield

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Starfield how to rank up skills — The first challenge has been completed.(Image credit: Bethesda)

Each time you level up in Starfield, you'll gain a skill point which can then be allocated to improve your character. Each skill you choose can be ranked up to increase its effectiveness, but even if you have the spare skill points available, you can't do this right away. First, you will need to complete a challenge related to the skill to unlock the next rank.

In the example above, the Weight Lifting skill increases my carry capacity by 10 kilograms. To rank it up and further increase it by 25 kilograms, I'd need to sprint for 1000 meters while at 75% or more of my maximum load capacity. It might seem like a lot, but if you pick up enough crap like I do, you'll finish it in no time.

Once the challenge is complete, you can use a skill point to level up that skill. You'll then unlock another challenge—which, as you probably guessed, is more difficult or will at least take longer to complete than the previous—which allows you to unlock the next rank, and so on. Each skill can be leveled up to Rank 4, though you won't be able to make progress on the next challenge until you've spent a skill point to unlock the previous level.

Sarah started as a freelance writer in 2018, writing for PCGamesN, TechRadar, GamingBible, Red Bull Gaming and more. In 2021, she was offered a full-time position on the PC Gamer team where she takes every possible opportunity to talk about World of Warcraft and Elden Ring. When not writing guides, most of her spare time is spent in Azeroth—though she's quite partial to JRPGs too. One of her fondest hopes is to one day play through the ending of Final Fantasy X without breaking down into a sobbing heap. She probably has more wolves in Valheim than you.