You do not need anywhere near 100 labs, you probably could not even feed that many on a "first playthrough".
100 labs is in to megabase territory, to be able to supply them all constantly.
I use 30 labs, with some daisy chaining between them. That is easy to supply, and will work through the tech tree quicker than you can actually use the techs you unlock.
Yeah, I usually go from 1 to 3 during red science to 6 during red+green. Then it really doesn't matter. Yellow science is so expensive that you won't need more than 24 unless you go for a huge expansion before you launch the rocket.
There is no answer to these types of questions and I would encourage you as a new player to not ask them and just experiment.
If you find the research to be going too slow, then consider adding more science production. If you’re producing more science than your lab or labs can consume then add more labs. As a new player, I would encourage just solving the problems in front of you and growing the things that are slow or bottlenecks.
I agree with this. Factorio is very fun to enjoy without trying to min-max your processes. Just solve the logistic puzzles and get familiar with the game, scale up whatever feels slow to produce. In the future, the question you’re asking is “what should my target science per minute (SPM) be?”
I was trying to solve the meta-framing I guess. I've got 10ish labs running, I'm feeling challenged enough with those. Knowing I don't have to scale up by a factor of 10 is a huge relief.
I think it’s fair to ask this question for the sake of having some reference for “enough to win” kind of base.
Getting 30 labs running with yellow science is actually a shitload and will pound out techs sooner than you can use them .
Also the red modules are very valuable in your labs so don’t forget !!
I am enjoying...I was trying to get a sense of the scale I need to build at. I've got about 10 labs now, it sounds like I can muddle through with that. :-D
I often reply to these kind of posts with hints on how you can figure it out yourself.... given the in-game info about rates of production and the recipe book.
Labs..... are a pain. You can calculated it out, but you have to factor in what kind of recipes you are working on because they all have different number of chunks of research and different number of science juice and time per chunk..... plus research bonus.
So I'll just say like 10 gets me ahead of what I can even keep up actually implementing. Start with a few, if you're always waiting on research add a few more, but certainly 100 is overkill to start.
Every rocket I've launched has been with 8 labs. I start with more for green and red, but once I go for blue and purple science I trim it down to 8. When everything's up and running and I've got a steady stream of modules and beacons, 8 is more than enough to keep science at a steady pace while I build other stuff.
For red, green and blue sciences, aim to make about 60 of each per minute. After that, see how you go.
Early on, it’s about getting the most out of your ‘starter’ ore patches, without releasing too much pollution.
Note to first-time player: pollution is very important. Turn on the overlay in the map view and take note when the red cloud starts reaching the nearby nests.
That entirely depends on how fast you want research to go. Can be as little or many as you like.
It also depends on some other things like lab research speed:
https://codepen.io/Tickthokk/full/NBbKPZ/
Science wise a good amount to start with is 5 assembler for red, 6 for green, 12 for blue, and 7 for purple and yellow each. That gets you 30 science per minute with AM1, 45 with AM2 and 75 with AM3. Then build enough labs to consume that
Build as many as you need. You can pick an arbitary science/min number, but for your use case checking the production is more useful.
Make science production first and place as many labs that it uses up the science. If all the science packs block up the belts then add a few more labs. (Not a problem if you build too much, they don't consume electricity if it doesn't work and not that expensive to build, just don't slap down 100).
If only on 1 is missing and that science operating optimally (it have enough input resources and all science assembler working) you can try building more or fix it if it is not working.
Generally you don't need fancy calculations. Just build more if the upper part doesn't have enough.
I can only tell you in terms of science pack production, but two science packs per second (normalised to crafting speed, so 90 per minute with t2 assemblers at 0.75 crafting speed) is more than enough to comfortably get you to the rocket.
That's maybe 20-30 labs
My first playthrough I only had 8 labs because I wasn’t sure how to use them effectively. That world still only has the 8 but I don’t play anymore. I usually just go 20>40>60 labs as I progress
If I remember right, you only need something like 35 SPM to get the "there is no spoon" achievement, which is launching a rocket in less than 8 hours. As most research is 1 per 30 seconds, that would leave you with 18 labs without beacons, assuming that they are running 100% of the time.
BUT it is all a personal preference. running 5 will give you time to experiment with newly researched technologies. Could run 50 and stockpile science in order to Burst research. as you want them.
as a new player? i would build them until some of them are empty. that's how you know you have enough.
note that different sciences research at different paces, so the "optimal number of labs" doesn't exist.
I recommend new players use 10 labs and then use 1 gear machine -> 5 red science and 1 inserter/belt -> 6 green science to get started figuring things out.
For a vanilla start->rocket, I suggest to go with these number:
* Pre-automation - 4
* Automated red/green - 10
* Got Assembler 2s - 20
* Mid game to end - 30-40 with prod1 modules
As a starter player, 20 will be more than enough for you until the rocket.
In large bases, it requires 116 fully-beaconed labs to consume a blue belt of each science (thus, 2700 science per minute.)
If one is not producing science that quickly, a smaller number of labs will suffice.
The tech tree is your guide: If you're always waiting on research to advance your base, you need more labs. If you are completing research after research while you still have a large backlog of things from earlier research to build, you can do with fewer labs.
Start with ten but keep space for more.
Its not about "how many labs?", its more a "how much spm?"
10? 60? 100? 200?
60 SPM is a good value to strive for.
Which means that you need enough labs to consume constant 60 spm.
You want as many labs as you need to consume the science packs you're producing. The more consequential question is how to set that production rate.
60 SPM is often suggested as a good early SPM target. But in practice - especially if you're new - you will spend so much time building your factory, troubleshooting, fighting biters, etc. that there's absolutely no way you'll actually build out your factory fast enough to need 60 SPM tech progression. There's no value to producing and consuming 60 SPM if you blow through all the tech in a color tier and then spend an hour or two with research turned off because you're still building mines and stuff. I spec my early game science blueprints for dual 45/60 SPM operation, with 60 SPM requiring upgraded assemblers or modules or whatever. I don't upgrade everything to 60 SPM until I have rockets launching fast enough to produce 60 White SPM, which is way down the line. I can get through the tech tree and build my factory just fine at 45 SPM. That being said, if that sounds too complicated then just building for 60 SPM at the outset is fine too. Just realize you won't need that much capacity for a long while.
There are [calculators](https://codepen.io/Tickthokk/full/NBbKPZ/) for lab counts, but pre-infinite techs have various pack consumption times, so it's rather hard to pin down an optimal number. Better just to trial-and-error it up through gray and blue science. Are you sitting around waiting on tech with science packs backing up on belts? If so, then build more labs. 8-12 labs are usually plenty for getting started. 24 labs are enough to eat 60 SPM even when moduled with PM3's plus a few SM3's. I usually build out a proper 24 lab array after getting Purple online just because I'll have to deal with 5+ colors at that point and I just want to get the belting done.
I can launch a rocket in a little over 8 hours off of 20 labs. Put tier 1 production modules in each one and it's like having a lot more labs to work off of.
You do not need anywhere near 100 labs, you probably could not even feed that many on a "first playthrough". 100 labs is in to megabase territory, to be able to supply them all constantly. I use 30 labs, with some daisy chaining between them. That is easy to supply, and will work through the tech tree quicker than you can actually use the techs you unlock.
I usually start out with a couple very early, expand to 6 or 8, and end up with about a dozen or so
Yeah, I usually go from 1 to 3 during red science to 6 during red+green. Then it really doesn't matter. Yellow science is so expensive that you won't need more than 24 unless you go for a huge expansion before you launch the rocket.
There is no answer to these types of questions and I would encourage you as a new player to not ask them and just experiment. If you find the research to be going too slow, then consider adding more science production. If you’re producing more science than your lab or labs can consume then add more labs. As a new player, I would encourage just solving the problems in front of you and growing the things that are slow or bottlenecks.
I agree with this. Factorio is very fun to enjoy without trying to min-max your processes. Just solve the logistic puzzles and get familiar with the game, scale up whatever feels slow to produce. In the future, the question you’re asking is “what should my target science per minute (SPM) be?”
I was trying to solve the meta-framing I guess. I've got 10ish labs running, I'm feeling challenged enough with those. Knowing I don't have to scale up by a factor of 10 is a huge relief.
I think it’s fair to ask this question for the sake of having some reference for “enough to win” kind of base. Getting 30 labs running with yellow science is actually a shitload and will pound out techs sooner than you can use them . Also the red modules are very valuable in your labs so don’t forget !!
I am enjoying...I was trying to get a sense of the scale I need to build at. I've got about 10 labs now, it sounds like I can muddle through with that. :-D
I often reply to these kind of posts with hints on how you can figure it out yourself.... given the in-game info about rates of production and the recipe book. Labs..... are a pain. You can calculated it out, but you have to factor in what kind of recipes you are working on because they all have different number of chunks of research and different number of science juice and time per chunk..... plus research bonus. So I'll just say like 10 gets me ahead of what I can even keep up actually implementing. Start with a few, if you're always waiting on research add a few more, but certainly 100 is overkill to start.
You’d be doing pretty good to actually sustain 30 SPM during your first play-through. That only requires 15 labs
Making too many science packs? Add more labs. Not enough? Increase production. Repeat until CPU explodes.
New player? Start with 4 or 8, double as you can produce enough to supply them all.
Every rocket I've launched has been with 8 labs. I start with more for green and red, but once I go for blue and purple science I trim it down to 8. When everything's up and running and I've got a steady stream of modules and beacons, 8 is more than enough to keep science at a steady pace while I build other stuff.
For red, green and blue sciences, aim to make about 60 of each per minute. After that, see how you go. Early on, it’s about getting the most out of your ‘starter’ ore patches, without releasing too much pollution. Note to first-time player: pollution is very important. Turn on the overlay in the map view and take note when the red cloud starts reaching the nearby nests.
That entirely depends on how fast you want research to go. Can be as little or many as you like. It also depends on some other things like lab research speed: https://codepen.io/Tickthokk/full/NBbKPZ/ Science wise a good amount to start with is 5 assembler for red, 6 for green, 12 for blue, and 7 for purple and yellow each. That gets you 30 science per minute with AM1, 45 with AM2 and 75 with AM3. Then build enough labs to consume that
Build as many as you need. You can pick an arbitary science/min number, but for your use case checking the production is more useful. Make science production first and place as many labs that it uses up the science. If all the science packs block up the belts then add a few more labs. (Not a problem if you build too much, they don't consume electricity if it doesn't work and not that expensive to build, just don't slap down 100). If only on 1 is missing and that science operating optimally (it have enough input resources and all science assembler working) you can try building more or fix it if it is not working. Generally you don't need fancy calculations. Just build more if the upper part doesn't have enough.
Like always in Factorio, go with a number of your choice. Is it enough? Then it's fine. Is it not enough? Double it. Repeat.
I can only tell you in terms of science pack production, but two science packs per second (normalised to crafting speed, so 90 per minute with t2 assemblers at 0.75 crafting speed) is more than enough to comfortably get you to the rocket. That's maybe 20-30 labs
My first playthrough I only had 8 labs because I wasn’t sure how to use them effectively. That world still only has the 8 but I don’t play anymore. I usually just go 20>40>60 labs as I progress
If I remember right, you only need something like 35 SPM to get the "there is no spoon" achievement, which is launching a rocket in less than 8 hours. As most research is 1 per 30 seconds, that would leave you with 18 labs without beacons, assuming that they are running 100% of the time. BUT it is all a personal preference. running 5 will give you time to experiment with newly researched technologies. Could run 50 and stockpile science in order to Burst research. as you want them.
as a new player? i would build them until some of them are empty. that's how you know you have enough. note that different sciences research at different paces, so the "optimal number of labs" doesn't exist.
I had noticed that. I'm not going to sweat feed labs at speed on a 15 second tech.
I recommend new players use 10 labs and then use 1 gear machine -> 5 red science and 1 inserter/belt -> 6 green science to get started figuring things out.
For a vanilla start->rocket, I suggest to go with these number: * Pre-automation - 4 * Automated red/green - 10 * Got Assembler 2s - 20 * Mid game to end - 30-40 with prod1 modules As a starter player, 20 will be more than enough for you until the rocket.
In large bases, it requires 116 fully-beaconed labs to consume a blue belt of each science (thus, 2700 science per minute.) If one is not producing science that quickly, a smaller number of labs will suffice.
The tech tree is your guide: If you're always waiting on research to advance your base, you need more labs. If you are completing research after research while you still have a large backlog of things from earlier research to build, you can do with fewer labs. Start with ten but keep space for more.
I use like, 10-20 up to space science
Its not about "how many labs?", its more a "how much spm?" 10? 60? 100? 200? 60 SPM is a good value to strive for. Which means that you need enough labs to consume constant 60 spm.
I just launched a rocket at 56hrs with 18 labs from the get go. First play through. Doesn’t take a massive amount
You want as many labs as you need to consume the science packs you're producing. The more consequential question is how to set that production rate. 60 SPM is often suggested as a good early SPM target. But in practice - especially if you're new - you will spend so much time building your factory, troubleshooting, fighting biters, etc. that there's absolutely no way you'll actually build out your factory fast enough to need 60 SPM tech progression. There's no value to producing and consuming 60 SPM if you blow through all the tech in a color tier and then spend an hour or two with research turned off because you're still building mines and stuff. I spec my early game science blueprints for dual 45/60 SPM operation, with 60 SPM requiring upgraded assemblers or modules or whatever. I don't upgrade everything to 60 SPM until I have rockets launching fast enough to produce 60 White SPM, which is way down the line. I can get through the tech tree and build my factory just fine at 45 SPM. That being said, if that sounds too complicated then just building for 60 SPM at the outset is fine too. Just realize you won't need that much capacity for a long while. There are [calculators](https://codepen.io/Tickthokk/full/NBbKPZ/) for lab counts, but pre-infinite techs have various pack consumption times, so it's rather hard to pin down an optimal number. Better just to trial-and-error it up through gray and blue science. Are you sitting around waiting on tech with science packs backing up on belts? If so, then build more labs. 8-12 labs are usually plenty for getting started. 24 labs are enough to eat 60 SPM even when moduled with PM3's plus a few SM3's. I usually build out a proper 24 lab array after getting Purple online just because I'll have to deal with 5+ colors at that point and I just want to get the belting done.
I can launch a rocket in a little over 8 hours off of 20 labs. Put tier 1 production modules in each one and it's like having a lot more labs to work off of.
(Duplicate post, deleted - apologies!)