How to Request Launch Quotes: What to Include and How to Compare Offers

To get comparable launch quotes, send every provider the same request with the same data: payload mass with margin, dimensions and mechanical interface, target orbit, launch window, deployment and propulsion needs, and the status of your licences. Then ask each provider to quote on the same basis: the same payment year, a clear split between included and optional services, the deposit, the payment schedule and the rebooking terms. Only then can you put the offers side by side. This guide shows what goes into a launch request, why each item changes the price and how many quotes you should collect.

Why launch quotes are hard to compare

Most launch providers and brokers do not publish prices. They quote on request, and every quote is built from the information you give them. If one provider assumes 50 kg and another 80 kg, or one quotes a standard parking orbit and another a precise deployment into your final orbit, the numbers cannot be compared. Even SpaceX, which publishes rideshare prices per kilogram, prices a booking with minimum masses per plate, optional services and a price that depends on the payment year. Details are in our guide to the SpaceX rideshare price per kg by year.

What to put in a launch request

The following items determine which vehicles fit and what the launch costs. Put them in one short document and send the same version to every provider.

Payload mass: current estimate and the maximum mass including margin. Rideshare prices scale with mass, and SpaceX bills at least 50 kg on a quarter plate, 100 kg on a half plate, 200 kg on a full plate and 300 kg on an XL plate.
Dimensions and interface: stowed envelope, and whether the satellite uses a CubeSat dispenser, an 8, 15 or 24 inch separation interface or a four point interface. The SpaceX Rideshare Payload User's Guide covers exactly these interface types, and other interfaces need an adapter at extra cost.
Separation system: whether you bring your own or need one from the provider. SpaceX lists separation systems as an optional service with at least six months of procurement lead time.
Target orbit: altitude, inclination and, for sun-synchronous orbits, the local time of the ascending node, plus the tolerances you can accept. SpaceX lists its open flights with an altitude range and an inclination, for example 500 to 600 km and SSO plus or minus 0.1 degrees.
Launch window: the earliest date your satellite can be ready and the latest date that still works for your mission.
Deployment: whether a standard rideshare parking orbit is enough or you need precise deployment. D-Orbit, for example, describes its rideshare service as release into "a standard parking orbit" and offers precise deployment into a final slot with its ION Satellite Carrier.
Propulsion and fueling: whether the satellite carries propellant and must be fueled at the launch site. SpaceX lists launch site fueling as an optional service.
Special services: electrical connectivity on the pad, additional deployment signals, several spacecraft in one dispenser.
Licences and export control: the status of your frequency licence and national authorisation, and which country the hardware ships from. SpaceX states that the provision of items and services to foreign persons is subject to US export control laws, and that it may rebook or terminate a contract if a required licence cannot be obtained within a reasonable time.
Insurance: whether you want the provider to arrange launch insurance. SpaceX offers optional launch-only insurance with a maximum insurable amount of $2 million.

Ask everyone to quote on the same basis

A request is only half of the job. The other half is telling providers how to present their price. Ask each provider to state:

Price basis: total price and the mass it covers, plus the price for each additional kilogram.
Payment year and schedule: which year's prices apply and when payments fall due. In the SpaceX booking tool, paying up front uses the current year's prices, otherwise the launch year's prices apply.
Included and optional services: integration, separation system, adapter, fueling, transport to the launch site, insurance.
Deposit: how much, when and whether it is credited. At SpaceX, the deposit covers processing and validating the reservation request and is applied towards the launch price if the request is approved.
Delivery orbit: parking orbit of the launch vehicle or final orbit after a transfer vehicle.
Schedule and milestones: target launch date and the deadlines for your deliverables.
Rebooking and delay terms: what happens if you or the provider slip. SpaceX writes that a material failure by the customer to meet its responsibilities may require rebooking with applicable fees.
Validity: how long the offer is valid.

How many quotes to collect

There is no fixed number for commercial buyers, but public procurement rules give a useful reference. For simplified acquisitions, the US Federal Acquisition Regulation tells contracting officers to "consider solicitation of at least three sources to promote competition to the maximum extent practicable" (FAR 13.104(b)). If you buy for a university, research institute or public body, check your own procurement rules before you send the first request, because they may set a minimum number of offers. Our recommendation: ask at least three providers or brokers, and include at least one integrator if your satellite is lighter than the minimum mass of a plate.

When to send the request

Early, because several lead times add up. The typical SpaceX rideshare schedule in the user's guide starts with mission analysis inputs at eight months before launch, with range safety submissions from six months and launch campaign planning from five months. A separation system bought through SpaceX needs at least six months. Impulse Space lists a lead time of 12 months for its Mira vehicle. Our own planning rule from these figures: send launch requests at least 12 months before the date your satellite will be ready, and earlier if you need a transfer vehicle or a specific orbit. More in our guide to satellite launch lead times.

From quote to contract

Compare: put the offers side by side on the same mass, orbit and payment year. Our 10-point checklist for choosing a launch provider covers the criteria.
Clarify: ask each provider the same follow-up questions in writing, so the answers stay comparable.
Reserve: providers may ask for a deposit to reserve a slot. At SpaceX, the deposit accompanies the reservation request.
Contract: the launch services agreement fixes price, schedule, interfaces and liability. At SpaceX, the user's guide is an applicable document to the agreement, and an Interface Control Document follows that the customer must review and sign. See our guide to the launch service agreement.

FAQ

What information do launch providers need for a quote?

Payload mass with margin, dimensions, mechanical interface, target orbit with tolerances, launch window, deployment and propulsion needs, and the status of licences and export control. Without these, providers can only give a rough estimate.

How many launch quotes should I get?

At least three is a good reference. US federal rules for simplified acquisitions recommend considering at least three sources. Public institutions should also check their own procurement rules.

Why do launch quotes differ so much?

Because they are often based on different assumptions: different masses, a parking orbit versus a final orbit, different payment years or different included services. A common request and a common price basis remove most of these differences.

How early should I request a launch quote?

At least 12 months before your satellite is ready, as our own rule of thumb. The SpaceX rideshare schedule alone starts eight months before launch, and some transfer vehicles list 12 months of lead time.

Do I need a licence before I can ask for a quote?

No, but providers will ask about it. State the status of your frequency licence and national authorisation in the request, because a missing licence can delay or end a contract.

Send one request, get comparable offers

Carrier Space is built for exactly this step. Compare launch providers and brokers, launch vehicles and scheduled missions with consistent data, then send one inquiry to up to five providers and brokers you pick. Carrier Space checks it and forwards it anonymously, and the indicative offers come back in one comparable view. Free for customers, paid by providers.

Sources

Cover image: Technicians and engineers remove NOAA's Joint Polar Satellite System-1 (JPSS-1) from its shipping container inside the Astrotech Processing Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, in September 2017. Credit: NASA/Timothy Trenkle (VAFB-20170901-PH_TMT01_0034)