ExactUnits
↑↓ move ↵ open Esc close All shortcuts

What does going to space cost?

Launch costs have fallen by a factor of twenty in twenty years, which has quietly rewritten what is affordable in space.

67% of Space Shuttle launch

1,000,000,000 USD is more than 1 of the 7 references on this page.

Apollo programme280,000,000,000 USDInternational Space Station150,000,000,000 USDJames Webb Space Telescope10,000,000,000 USDHubble Space Telescope4,700,000,000 USDMars Curiosity rover2,500,000,000 USDSpace Shuttle launch1,500,000,000 USDThat budget1,000,000,000 USDFalcon 9 launch67,000,000 USD

Reference figures are measurements and are rounded; the unit conversion behind them is exact.

Every reference on this page, with its size and its ratio to your number
Reference Size Yours ÷ theirs Note
Falcon 9 launch 67,000,000 USD 14.9×
Space Shuttle launch 1,500,000,000 USD 0.667× Programme cost per flight
Mars Curiosity rover 2,500,000,000 USD 0.4×
Hubble Space Telescope 4,700,000,000 USD 0.213× Construction and launch
James Webb Space Telescope 10,000,000,000 USD 0.1×
International Space Station 150,000,000,000 USD 1/150
Apollo programme 280,000,000,000 USD 1/280 In 2020 dollars

Worth knowing

  • The Apollo programme cost about $280 billion in today’s money — roughly 4% of the US federal budget at its peak.
  • Launch cost per kilogram to orbit has fallen from about $65 000 on the Shuttle to under $3 000 on a reused Falcon 9.

Frequently asked

How much did the James Webb telescope cost?

About $10 billion including the launch and five years of operations — roughly twenty times its original 1996 estimate.

Why did launch get so much cheaper?

Booster reuse, vertical integration and higher flight rates. The physics did not change; the manufacturing and amortisation did.

More comparisons

Settings

Theme

System follows your operating system and changes with it.

Text size
High contrast

Maximises text and border contrast and removes the grid background.

Graph-paper background
Round to
Notation
Thousands separators
Decimal mark
Nearest fraction

Shows the result as the nearest tape-measure fraction, with the error it costs.

Accessibility & interaction
Reduce motion Stops interface animations even when the operating system does not.
Underline links Keeps links visually distinct without relying on colour.
Larger touch targets Makes buttons and form controls easier to tap.
Shorter reading lines Limits article width for easier scanning.
Monochrome display Removes colour as an information cue.
Always-visible focus Makes the keyboard focus ring persistent and stronger.
Verbose screen-reader results Announces the complete conversion equation.
Sticky action bars Keeps converter and calculator actions within reach.
Select values on focus Replaces a value immediately when you start typing.
Left-handed mobile layout Moves key mobile actions toward the left thumb.
Your data

Settings, recent conversions and favourites live in this browser only. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Offline library