Sandustry Tier List: What to Build First

About this guideA practical priority list for a new factory: start with the loop that moves and refines materials, then add the systems that solve your current bottleneck.

Short answer

There is no official combat or character ranking for Sandustry. The most useful tier list is a build-priority list: start with the systems that make the first material loop understandable, then add the tools that solve the bottleneck in front of you. In practice, Shakers, Conveyor Belts, and Launchers belong in the first group; Filters, fluid routes, and production buildings become more valuable as soon as mixed materials or liquids slow the factory down.

A Sandustry factory scene with conveyors, processing areas, sand piles, and vertical logistics

This list is a player planning aid based on the categories and unlock relationships shown by the Sandustry Official Wiki and its Research page. The Wiki's file catalog is the place to browse the current building, tool, material, and world artwork referenced by those pages. It is not an official tier ranking, a speedrun route, or a claim that one build order is best in every save.

How to read the tiers

S — first-loop essentials are the systems that make materials move and become useful. A — factory multipliers solve sorting, fluid movement, and the next production step. B — task-specific tools are excellent when the world or your current bottleneck asks for them, but they do not all belong in the first build. Later — conditional systems become valuable after Research, resources, or exploration make them relevant.

The right tier changes with the question. A Filter can be S-tier when a mixed line is blocking Gold, while it can wait when every output is already separated. A Cryoblaster is a later tool for one factory but an immediate answer when frozen Lava or Water is the obstacle in front of you. Use the list as a decision map, not as a scoreboard.

S tier: build the first readable loop

Shaker

The Shaker is one of the first systems to understand because the official Research page connects it with separating Gold and Slag from Wet Sand. It gives the early factory a clear input, a process, and more than one output. Place enough room around it to see what falls out, because the by-product is part of the next decision.

Conveyor Belt

Conveyor Belts are the core way to transport solid pixels around the factory. They make a material route visible and repeatable, and they can keep moving resources without turning every step into manual carrying. Watch the bottom pixel and the receiving space: the official page notes that a blocked lower position can stop the pile above it.

Launcher

Launchers extend a solid route vertically or diagonally. They are useful when the factory needs to cross a gap, climb a shaft, or send a resource into a processing position. Direction and receiving space matter more than simply placing more launchers, so test one short handoff before building a long tower.

Research

Research is not a building, but it belongs in the first tier because it unlocks the next tools and structures. The official Research page lists branches such as Refining, Logistics, Filters, Pipes, Tools, Lights, Guns, and Drones. Spend Gold on the unlock that removes the problem currently stopping the factory rather than chasing a fixed universal order.

A tier: make the factory scale

The density chart is useful when choosing what to separate first. It does not replace a Filter rule: read the material state and the intended output, then place the separator where the next machine can actually receive it.

Filters

Filters become high priority when a pile contains more than one solid and the next machine only wants one of them. The official guide distinguishes Allow and Block behavior for a selected resource. Set a visible output after the filter so you can confirm the rule before you connect the next processing stage.

Pump, Pipes, and Liquid Vent

For many fluids, the Beginner’s Guide describes a Pump as the input, Pipes as the route, and a Liquid Vent as the output. These belong together because one piece without the others does not create a useful fluid line. The Water page also notes that flow can be blocked by particular structures and can slip through small gaps, so contain the first test and check the height of the route.

Kinetic Slag Press

The Kinetic Slag Press is a strong next step when Burnt Slag is available. The official page describes it as a production building that turns Burnt Slag into Gold and Spores when the material falls from the required height. That condition is part of the layout: leave a vertical drop and a way to clear a blockage instead of treating the press like a flat conveyor machine.

Planter Box

The Planter Box sits in the official Research and Buildings lists as part of the refining and growing path. It becomes more useful when the factory has learned how to handle Seeds, Water, and the resulting plant materials. Build it when the current resource chain asks for it, and keep Wet Seed or other inputs visible while testing the first setup.

B tier: tools that answer a specific problem

Grabber and Vacuum

The Grabber helps with manual material movement and can be improved through upgrades. The Vacuum is the Research-unlocked tool for moving piles of sand. They are excellent when carrying or repositioning a pile is the immediate obstacle, but neither one replaces a readable Conveyor route once the same movement is repeated many times.

Gun, Rocket Launcher, and Flamethrower

The official Tools and Research pages place these in the excavation or utility progression. They answer different world problems and should be chosen for the obstacle in front of you. A weapon is not automatically a production upgrade, and the correct tool can change as the world opens and new materials become accessible.

Cryoblaster and Grappling Hook

The Cryoblaster freezes Water and solidifies Lava, while the Grappling Hook improves movement around the world. Both are powerful when their use case appears, but they are conditional rather than mandatory first-loop purchases. If the current task is a fluid state change or a difficult route through terrain, move them up your personal list.

Digger and Hauler drones

The official Wiki lists Digger and Hauler among the drone systems. They can reduce repetitive work and change how a larger factory handles excavation or transport. Treat them as an automation expansion after the first belt and processing loop is clear; otherwise a drone may hide the original logistics problem instead of teaching you how to solve it.

Later tier: powerful, but not universal first picks

The official Buildings list includes Flux Emanator, special buildings, thermal buildings, energy systems, logic, and other categories. These are important parts of the wider game, but their value depends on Research, materials, and the state of the current factory. Flux Emanator belongs later because it is associated with generating Fluxite from Voidbloom; use the Flux Emanator guide when that relationship becomes relevant.

Thermal systems such as Steam Dryer, Condenser, Snowmaker, Smelter, Thermal Buffer, Burner Belt, and Pyro Dispenser belong to a later state-management layer in the official list. Energy buildings and logic pieces also deserve their own build space. Do not place a later machine just because it appears powerful; first identify the material state, input route, and output that your factory needs.

A decision rule that works better than a fixed rank

When the factory stalls, ask four questions: what is the input, what is blocking it, what output should appear, and which unlock answers that exact problem? If a solid is piling up, check Conveyor direction and receiving space before researching a new machine. If two solids are mixed, try a Filter. If a fluid cannot reach its destination, check Pump, Pipes, Liquid Vent height, and gaps before expanding the line.

This is also why the same building can move between tiers. A Shaker is an early core, but it cannot solve a fluid problem. A Cryoblaster is not needed for every first loop, but it may be the best next tool when Lava or Water state is the bottleneck. The best tier list is the one that keeps the next decision visible.