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 | CASC / CALT | Arianespace / ArianeGroup |
| Country | 🇺🇸 USA | 🇨🇳 China | 🇪🇺 Europe |
| Status | In Development | Active | Active |
| Vehicle class | Super Heavy | Heavy | Heavy |
| Propellant | CH₄ / LOX | UDMH/N₂O₄ (stages 1–2) + LH₂/LOX (stage 3 YF-75) | LH₂ / LOX (Vulcain 2.1 + Vinci) |
| Reusable | Yes | No | No |
| Stages | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| First flight | 2023 | 1996 | 2024 |
| Payload to LEO | ~150,000 kgas of [1]SpaceX projected max payload in fully expendable mode; ~100,000 kg reusable ↑ Best | 11,200 kgas of [1] | 21,650 kgas of [1]Ariane 62 (2 boosters) / Ariane 64 (4 boosters); 64 offers higher GTO capacity |
| Payload to GTO | ~21,000 kgas of [1]Reusable configuration estimate ↑ Best | 5,500 kgas of [1]With 4 strap-on liquid boosters (CZ-3B/E enhanced variant) | 11,500 kgas of [1]Ariane 64 configuration. Ariane 62 delivers ~4,500 kg to GTO. |
| Height | 121 mas of [1]Version 2 (V2) full stack Ship + Super Heavy | 54.84 mas of [1] | 56–63 mas of [1]56 m (Ariane 62) / 63 m (Ariane 64 with 4 solid boosters) ↑ Best |
| Liftoff mass | ~5,000 tas of [1] | 426 tas of [1]Enhanced variant with 4 liquid strap-on boosters | 530–860 tas of [1]530 t (A62) / 860 t (A64) ↑ Best |
| Success rate | ~50%as of [2]Flights 1-12; ~6 complete mission successes (incl. Flights 10 and 11), remainder partial or vehicle lost. First payload deploy on Flight 10 (Aug 2025); Flight 12 (V3 debut) lost during descent. | ~95%as of [2]~6 failures/partial failures out of ~105+ flights; gradually being superseded by Long March 5 for GTO | 100%as of [2]8/8 missions through VA269 Amazon Leo (Jun 17, 2026, 36 sats on upgraded P160C boosters); Ariane 64 debut Feb 12, 2026 ↑ Best |
| Total flights | 12as of [2]Flight 1 (Apr 2023) through Flight 12 (May 22, 2026 — V3 debut from Pad 2). Flight 11 (Oct 13, 2025) closed out Block 2. | ~105as of [2] ↑ Best | 8as of [2] |
| Cost / kg LEO | ~$600/kgas of [1]SpaceX target figure; not yet achieved in operational configuration ↓ Cheapest | — | ~$7,500/kgas of [1]Estimate based on ~$115M A62 / ~$165M A64 list prices |
| Summary | Largest and most powerful rocket ever flown. Super Heavy booster uses 33 Raptor engines. V3 Ship debuted on Flight 12 (May 22, 2026) from Starbase Pad 2 — it reached space but broke up at the ocean surface, and the vehicle is grounded pending an FAA mishap review. Mechazilla booster catches demonstrated from Flight 5 (Oct 2024) onward; first payload deploy on Flight 10 (Aug 2025). Primary vehicle for the Artemis HLS lunar lander (Artemis III LEO docking demo 2027, first landing on Artemis IV). | China's primary geostationary transfer vehicle for over 25 years. Launched communications, meteorology, and navigation satellites including Beidou-3 (GEO/IGSO nodes). Being phased out in favour of Long March 5 for heavier GTO payloads as newer domestic communications satellites grow in mass. | Europe's flagship launcher replacing Ariane 5. The Vinci re-ignitable upper stage enables multi-orbit missions and controlled deorbit. Primary customers: Amazon Kuiper, European government payloads, and ESA science missions. |
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.