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The global launch market reached $14.1 billion in 2024 — up 34% since 2021.
| Attribute | Electron 🇳🇿 New Zealand / USA Trust: Agency-primaryⓘ Last verified Active · Last updated 2026-06-01Remove × | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Company | Rocket Lab | Rocket Lab | LandSpace |
| Country | 🇺🇸 USA | 🇳🇿 New Zealand / USA | 🇨🇳 China |
| Status | In Development | Active | Active |
| Vehicle class | Medium | Small | Medium |
| Propellant | CH₄ / LOX | RP-1 / LOX | CH₄ / LOX (Tianque-12 + Tianque-15 upper stage) |
| Reusable | Yes | Yes | No |
| Stages | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| First flight | 2026 | 2017 | 2022 |
| Payload to LEO | 13,000 kgas of [1]Expendable; ~8,000 kg reusable with first-stage return ↑ Best | 300 kgas of [1]~200 kg reusable mode (lower due to propellant reserved for re-entry burn) | 6,000 kgas of [1]SSO capacity ~4,000 kg |
| Payload to GTO | — | — | — |
| Height | ~40 mas of [1] | 18 mas of [1] | 49.5 mas of [1] ↑ Best |
| Liftoff mass | ~481 tas of [1] ↑ Best | 13 tas of [1] | 219 tas of [1] |
| Success rate | — | 95.4%as of [2]83/87 orbital successes; 21/21 success rate in 2025 calendar year per Rocket Lab investor release ↑ Best | 75%as of [2]3/4 full successes; ZQ-2 Y1 (Dec 2022) reached orbit on stage 1 but 2nd stage failed; ZQ-2 Y2 (Jul 2023) SUCCESS — world's first methane-fueled rocket to reach orbit |
| Total flights | — | 87as of [2] ↑ Best | 4as of [2] |
| Cost / kg LEO | — | ~$25,000/kgas of [1]Based on ~$7.5M list price / 300 kg payload ↓ Cheapest | — |
| Summary | 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. | The world's most commercially active small launch vehicle, designed and built in-house at Rocket Lab. Rutherford engines are the first flight-proven engines made with additive manufacturing (metal 3D printing). Booster recovery via parachute and helicopter catch (later transitioned to ocean recovery). | The world's first methane-fueled rocket to achieve orbit (July 12, 2023), beating SpaceX Starship to that milestone. A commercial Chinese rocket built by LandSpace with vertically-integrated methane propulsion — the same propellant strategy as Starship, Neutron, and Terran R. |
28 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.