Where to Find Magnetite in Subnautica: Biomes and Depth
Magnetite is deep and rolled fresh in every new game. The model expects about 780 spawns, and Mountains holds the most (277), then Blood Kelp Zone (170) and Jellyshroom Caves (137). Half of all the chance lies deeper than 335 m.
- Most spawnsMountainsabout 277 of 780, 234 to 393 m
- Shallowest of the main areasJellyshroom Caves227 to 285 m, about 137 spawns
- Depth335 mhalf the chance is deeper; 90% is deeper than 234 m
- Used in10 recipesCyclops sonar upgrade needs 3
Magnetite does not sit at a fixed spot, so a pin list would be wrong in your save. This page ranks the areas by how many magnetite spawns the game's own spawner tables expect there, and says how deep to dive.
Where magnetite is most likely
The 4 areas with the most expected magnetite, with 85% of the world's chance between them. Each picture is our map render with the magnetite chance painted on it and the area's strongest cell marked.
- 277expected spawns
Mountains
35% of the world's chance, 234 to 393 m deep
Most spawns
- About 277 of the 780 magnetite spawns the model expects per game.
- Half of the chance here lies deeper than 317 m; the range that holds 80% of it is 234 to 393 m.
- 5,367 spawn slots in this area can hold magnetite.
- 170expected spawns
Blood Kelp Zone
22% of the world's chance, 281 to 558 m deep
- About 170 of the 780 magnetite spawns the model expects per game.
- Half of the chance here lies deeper than 426 m; the range that holds 80% of it is 281 to 558 m.
- 27,486 spawn slots in this area can hold magnetite.
- 137expected spawns
Jellyshroom Caves
18% of the world's chance, 227 to 285 m deep
Shallowest of the main areas
- About 137 of the 780 magnetite spawns the model expects per game.
- Half of the chance here lies deeper than 253 m; the range that holds 80% of it is 227 to 285 m.
- 1,132 spawn slots in this area can hold magnetite.
- 79expected spawns
Sea Treader Path
10% of the world's chance, 202 to 444 m deep
- About 79 of the 780 magnetite spawns the model expects per game.
- Half of the chance here lies deeper than 346 m; the range that holds 80% of it is 202 to 444 m.
- 7,418 spawn slots in this area can hold magnetite.
4 more areas hold the other 15%; they are in the folded table at the end.
Taking magnetite and what it makes
- 2%in large deposits
Mining
Taking magnetite out of the ground
2%in large deposits- 2% of the expected magnetite is a large deposit, which the game keeps as a separate object from loose pieces. The Prawn suit drill arm's own text reads "Enables the mining of large resource deposits."
- The drill arm is made from 5 Titanium, 1 Lithium, 4 Diamond at the Vehicle upgrade console.
- How a loose piece is picked up is not in the data we read, so this page does not say.
- 10recipes
Craft
What magnetite makes
10recipes- 10 recipes in the game's crafting table use magnetite; the table below lists the heaviest users.
- Cyclops sonar upgrade: 1 Computer chip, 3 Magnetite, made at the Cyclops fabricator.
- Prawn suit propulsion cannon: 1 Computer chip, 5 Titanium, 2 Magnetite, 1 Lithium, made at the Vehicle upgrade console.
Before you go
- Top three: Mountains (277), Blood Kelp Zone (170), Jellyshroom Caves (137). Together that is 75% of the chance.
- It is deep. 90% of the magnetite chance lies below 234 m, so plan oxygen, a depth module or a vehicle before you go.
- Jellyshroom Caves is the shallowest of the main areas (227 to 285 m), though only 1,132 spawn slots there can carry magnetite.
The spawns are a model, not checked in a running game, and they are rolled again for every new game: a bright cell here can be empty in your save.
What magnetite is used for
10 recipes use magnetite. All of them are below.
| Item | Magnetite needed | Made at | Other ingredients |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cyclops sonar upgrade | 3 | Cyclops fabricator | 1 Computer chip |
| Prawn suit propulsion cannon | 2 | Vehicle upgrade console | 1 Computer chip, 5 Titanium, 1 Lithium |
| Repulsion cannon | 2 | Modification station | 1 Propulsion cannon, 1 Computer chip |
| Seamoth depth module MK2 | 2 | Modification station | 1 Seamoth depth module MK1, 1 Plasteel ingot, 1 Enameled glass |
| Seamoth sonar | 2 | Vehicle upgrade console | 1 Copper wire |
| Stasis rifle | 2 | Fabricator | 1 Computer chip, 1 Battery, 1 Titanium |
| Thermal plant | 2 | Habitat Builder | 5 Titanium, 1 Aerogel |
| Scanner room HUD chip | 1 | Scanner room fabricator | 1 Computer chip |
| Scanner room range upgrade | 1 | Scanner room fabricator | 1 Copper ore |
| Vortex torpedo | 1 | Vehicle upgrade console | 1 Titanium |
All data
Show tablesHide
Magnetite by area, every recipe and how the chance is worked out.
How the chance is worked out
Magnetite is not placed by hand. For every spawn slot in the world the game rolls once at the start of a new game, picking from the list of things that slot's area allows. We read those lists and the slots from the game files and add up, for magnetite, the chance of every slot. "Expected spawns" is that sum: the average over many new games, not the count in yours.
That makes this page a set of odds. A cell the map paints bright is where slots that can hold magnetite are packed closest, not a promise of a find. Nobody has checked the model against a running game, so the area order is more reliable than any single number.
Magnetite by area
Every area where the spawn tables allow magnetite, most expected spawns first. Depth is metres below sea level: the shallow end and the deep end of the range that holds 80% of the area's chance.
| Area | Expected spawns | Share of the world | Depth range | Spawn slots |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mountains | 277 | 35% | 234 to 393 m | 5,367 |
| Blood Kelp Zone | 170 | 22% | 281 to 558 m | 27,486 |
| Jellyshroom Caves | 137 | 18% | 227 to 285 m | 1,132 |
| Sea Treader Path | 79 | 10% | 202 to 444 m | 7,418 |
| Inactive Lava Zone | 68 | 9% | 1,204 to 1,378 m | 1,323 |
| Ghost Tree | 21 | 3% | 632 to 661 m | 563 |
| Tree Cove | 18 | 2% | 929 to 1,015 m | 374 |
| Bones Field | 10 | 1% | 643 to 760 m | 2,101 |
Common mistakes
- Searching the shallows. 90% of the magnetite chance lies below 234 m; the layer is nearly empty above that.
- Reading a bright cell as a pin. Magnetite is rolled again for every new game, so the same cell can be empty in your save while the next one over is full.
- Counting Mountains alone. It holds 35% of the chance, so 65% is elsewhere, and Blood Kelp Zone and Jellyshroom Caves are close behind.
About these numbers
Every fixed place on this page is read from the game files of the Steam build 20241558 (3 October 2025). Anything that is rolled again for each new game, such as ore, is a chance model built from the game's spawner tables. It has not been checked in a running game, so treat it as odds, not as a map of what you will find.
The magnetite chance is the map's "Magnetite" layer: 780 expected spawns across 8 areas.
Pages to keep open
Related pages
Sources
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