How to get lithium in Subnautica

A common material, but you’ll need lots of it.

Image via Unknown Worlds Entertainment.

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Among the many materials you can find in Subnautica, lithium is one of the more common raw materials, yet you will need lots of it throughout the game. Some important late-game recipes require lithium, such as the plasteel recipe that calls for both lithium and titanium. Luckily, it’s pretty abundant, but you got to know where to look for it. This guide will explain how and where to get lithium in Subnautica.

Related: How to get diamonds in Subnautica

Where to find lithium in Subnautica

There are three ways to find lithium in the game. You can find it on the seabed, by mining shale outcrops, or in large resource deposits. Some biomes are better than others, but you should keep an eye out for lithium in:

  • Blood Kelp Zone
    • Blood Kelp Caves
  • Bone Fields
    • Bone Fields Caves
  • Bulb Zone
    • Bulb Zone Caves
  • Crag Field
  • Crash Zone Mesas
  • Deep Sparse Reef
  • Dunes
  • Grand Reef
  • Grand Reef Caves
  • Inactive Lava Zone
    • Inactive Lava Zone Corridor
  • Jellyshroom Caves
  • Lost River
    • Corridor
    • Ghost Forest
    • Junction
  • Mountain Island
  • Mountains
    • Mountains Caves
    • Mountains Corridor
  • Mushroom Forest
    • Mushroom Forest Caves
  • Sea Treader’s Path
    • Sea Treader’s Tunnel Caves
  • Sparse Reef
  • Underwater Islands
    • Underwater Islands Caves

For best results, we recommend that you farm lithium by looking for large resource deposits, especially in the general Lost River biome and Mountains and Mountain Island Caves.

How and where to get lithium in Subnautica: Below Zero

Similarly, in Below Zero, you should look for lithium within ore veins on the seabed, or alternatively, you can get it from Sea Monkeys. All biomes that contain lithium are:

  • Arctic Spires
  • Crystal Caves
    • Main Crystal Caves
  • Deep Purple Vents
  • Deep Twisty Bridges
  • East Arctic
  • Purple Vents
  • Thermal Spires
  • Tree Spires
    • Tree Spires Fissure

The best areas in Below Zero to look for lithium are Purple Vents. Alternatively, Arctic Spires have lots of ore veins, so drilling for lithium (and other ores) there can be very profitable.