Pick up to 4 launch vehicles to compare side-by-side. State lives in the URL — share the link and the comparison loads exactly as you left it.
The global launch market reached $14.1 billion in 2024 — up 34% since 2021.
| Attribute | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | SpaceX | ULA | Rocket Lab |
| Country | 🇺🇸 USA | 🇺🇸 USA | 🇺🇸 USA |
| Status | Active | Active | In Development |
| Vehicle class | Medium | Medium | Medium |
| Propellant | RP-1 / LOX | RP-1 / LOX (RD-180); LH₂ / LOX (Centaur III) | CH₄ / LOX |
| Reusable | Yes | No | Yes |
| Stages | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| First flight | 2010 | 2002 | 2026 |
| Payload to LEO | 22,800 kgas of [1]Reusable first stage (expended gives 22,800 kg; reused gives ~15,600 kg) ↑ Best | 18,850 kgas of [1]401 configuration. Maximum 401/551 stretch to 20,520 kg. 551 max 29,420 kg (5-solid boosters). | 13,000 kgas of [1]Reusable configuration with downrange barge landing — this is the single payload figure Rocket Lab publishes. ~15,000 kg expendable. |
| Payload to GTO | 8,300 kgas of [1]Expendable configuration. Reusable GTO capacity ~5,500 kg. | 8,900 kgas of [1]551 configuration (maximum performance) ↑ Best | — |
| Height | 70 mas of [1] ↑ Best | 58.3 mas of [1]401 configuration | 43 mas of [1] |
| Liftoff mass | 549 tas of [1] ↑ Best | 334 tas of [1]401 configuration without strap-ons | ~481 tas of [1] |
| Success rate | 99.5%as of [2]~665/668 full successes (Falcon family incl. Falcon Heavy); 500th landing Sep 2025 ↑ Best | 99.1%as of [2]108 full successes + 1 partial failure (NROL-30, Jun 2007 — payload still reached usable orbit) across 109 launches | — |
| Total flights | ~668as of [2]Falcon family total (Falcon 9 + Falcon Heavy) per launch log; 75 in 2026 (74 F9 + 1 FH) as of Jun 25, 2026 ↑ Best | 109as of [2]No longer sold but still flying its backlog: ~8 launches remained as of Apr 2026 (6 Starliner + 2 Amazon Leo); most recent flight Amazon Leo LA-07 (May 29, 2026), ~7 remain | — |
| Cost / kg LEO | ~$2,720/kgas of [1]Based on $67M list price / 22,800 kg LEO (expendable) ↓ Cheapest | — | — |
| Summary | The world's most frequently flown orbital rocket. Block 5 first stages have landed over 280 times and reflown up to 23 times. Backbone of Starlink and commercial crewed launches. | ULA's workhorse since 2002 and the longest-serving active US rocket. Launched Mars Science Laboratory (Curiosity), OSIRIS-REx, Solar Orbiter, Lucy, New Horizons, and the Boeing Starliner. Production ended in 2024 and ULA no longer sells the vehicle, but it continues flying a sold-out backlog of Starliner and Amazon Leo missions into the late 2020s. | Rocket Lab's medium-lift reusable rocket targeting the $100B constellation replenishment market. Uses a 'hungry hippo' fairings design that opens at the top rather than traditional clamshell separation. First flight delayed to Q4 2026 after a Jan 2026 propellant tank test anomaly. |
48 launch vehicles across 10 countries — active, retired, and in development — with primary-source citations from manufacturer user guides and agency press kits. Pure URL state: bookmark or share the link and the comparison reproduces exactly.