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Starfield: Where to Sell Contraband and Stolen Items

Trade Authority vendors buy stolen items and contraband in Starfield. Learn where to find them, why The Den can help with contraband, and how to sell from ship inventory.
Length2 min Posted Quest giverVGSources Team
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Sell both stolen items and contraband to a Trade Authority vendor. Bethesda identifies Kolman Lang at the Trade Authority Building in Neon as an early option. For contraband, guides recommend The Den in the Wolf system because ships can approach without a scan; that no-scan detail comes from secondary guides, not Bethesda’s cited support pages.

Stolen items and contraband are not the same

Check the item icon before deciding how to travel. Bethesda’s inventory guide marks stolen items with a red icon and contraband with a yellow one. Stolen items do not cause guards to stop you and are not found in ship scans; contraband is the category that requires care around scans. Bethesda’s inventory management guide explains the icons, while its answer about selling stolen items clarifies the scan distinction.

Where to sell each category

Trade Authority vendors

Trade Authority vendors accept stolen goods and contraband. Bethesda names Kolman Lang at the Trade Authority Building in Neon City as one of the first vendors a player may encounter. Guides also list Trade Authority locations in New Atlantis, Neon, The Key, and aboard Trade Authority ships; availability and convenience depend on your progress and route. See GameSpot’s location guide for those additional options.

The Den for contraband

For a route that avoids an approach scan, guides recommend The Den, a space station in the Wolf system. Dock there, find the Trade Authority vendor, and sell your goods. The no-approach-scan claim is reported by Windows Central’s guide; it is secondary-source guidance rather than a confirmation from Bethesda.

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Sell from your character or ship inventory

You do not have to move goods from ship cargo into your character’s inventory first. Bethesda says items can be sold directly from character or ship inventory. At the vendor, open the trade interface and switch to the ship-inventory view to select cargo-held goods; the precise interface presentation may vary by context. Bethesda’s inventory management guide covers direct selling, and GameSpot describes switching the vendor screen to ship inventory.

Choose a route based on scan exposure and convenience

Route or item Scan exposure Practical use
The Den, Wolf system Guides describe no approach scan. A useful destination for contraband when you want to avoid an approach scan.
Planetary Trade Authority locations May require dealing with ship scans before reaching the vendor. Use a branch that fits your location or progress; Neon is an early option named by Bethesda.
Stolen items Bethesda says stolen items are not found in scans. Sell at a Trade Authority vendor without treating stolen status as contraband.

The scan details for The Den and the broader location list come from secondary guides. The cited sources do not establish exact scan probabilities, so there is no reliable percentage to use when weighing other routes.

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What arrest can cost

Bethesda says being arrested with contraband or stolen items in character inventory or ship cargo may cost you the goods and Credits, as well as time and experience. Fighting or escaping can instead result in a severe bounty from the arresting faction. Read Bethesda’s arrest consequences article for its explanation.

Quick Recap

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Starfield (Standard Edition) [Xbox Series X]
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