Starship vs Falcon 9: the workhorse and the giant, compared
They're both SpaceX rockets, but they're almost different species: the Falcon 9 is the proven, leg-landing workhorse that's flown hundreds of times, while Starship is the colossal, fully-reusable next-generation vehicle that gets caught by a tower and belly-flops home. Here's how they stack up — and you can fly both in LANDING BURN, free.
Side by side
| Falcon 9 | Starship + Super Heavy | |
|---|---|---|
| Height | ~70 m | ~120 m (the biggest ever) |
| First-stage engines | 9 Merlin | ~33 Raptor |
| Reusability | Booster + fairings | Designed for full reuse |
| Booster landing | Upright, on legs | Caught by tower arms (no legs) |
| Upper stage | Expended | Lands itself (belly-flop + flip) |
| Status | Proven workhorse | In flight testing |
Falcon 9: refined and relentless
Falcon 9 reuses the booster and fairings while expending the upper stage. That partial reuse is enough to make it the cheapest reliable ride to orbit — and the boosters keep going, with one now at 35 flights. Its leg landing on a droneship is the move everyone pictures when they think "rocket landing."
Starship: bet everything on full reuse
Starship is the bigger swing: reuse both stages. The Super Heavy booster is caught by the tower to skip the weight of legs, and the Starship upper stage lands itself by entering flat, braking on the atmosphere, then flipping vertical. It's harder and less proven — but if it works, it's the airliner model for spaceflight. (The why-it-matters is in how reusable rockets work.)
So which is "better"?
Wrong question — they're built for different eras. Falcon 9 is what reliably flies the payloads of today; Starship is the architecture for the heavy-lift, Moon-and-Mars future. If you want the full rundown of all the vehicles, see SpaceX rockets explained.
Fly both, back to back
LANDING BURN lets you feel the difference: the precise leg-landing of a Falcon 9, the white-knuckle tower catch of a Super Heavy, and the belly-flop flip of a Starship on Mars. Same physics core, wildly different feel — free, in your browser.
FAQ
- Will Starship replace Falcon 9?
- Eventually, perhaps — but Falcon 9 is the workhorse today and Starship is still in flight testing, so they coexist for now.
- Why does Starship land so differently?
- Its size and shape make a belly-first descent the fuel-efficient way down; the flip converts that into a vertical landing. Boosters, by contrast, stay engines-first the whole way.
- Which is cheaper per launch?
- Falcon 9 is the cheapest proven option now; Starship aims to undercut it dramatically through full reuse once operational.
- Can I really fly both for free?
- Yes — LANDING BURN is free, no download, on desktop and mobile.