How to remove the ‘Stolen’ tag from stolen items in Starfield

Use this one trick to secure your stolen items.

Our spaceship taking off in front of a planet
Screenshot by Dot Esports

If you find yourself short on credits in Starfield, thievery is a cost-effective alternative—although the local authorities won’t approve. Stolen items are marked as such in your inventory and will be confiscated if you’re arrested. But you can remove that Stolen tag.

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And luckily for you, removing it is actually fairly easy.

An image of a stolen wrench with a red 'stolen' marker on the bottom right hand side of the item listing. Screenshot by Dot Esports.
The red marker at the bottom of an item listing can cause lots of trouble.

Whenever you steal an item, it’s marked with a red tag to identify it as stolen, this is different to the more illicit contraband, which carries a yellow marker. The main difference is carrying stolen items is not a crime in itself, but selling them at a local vendor can cause law-abiding shop owners to rat you out. Profiting off stolen goods is risky business, but this guide will teach you to sell your stolen items wherever you like.

How to take the “Stolen” tag off your items in Starfield

The Trade Authority in Neon in Starfield.
The Trade Authority can be found on Cydonia (Mars), Neon (Volii Alpha), and New Atlantis (Jemison) | Screenshot by Dot Esports

There is only one known method to remove the stolen tag off your items in Starfield; you can launder your stolen goods for free at any Trade Authority vendor. These merchants can be found in all major cities, including Neon, New Atlantis, and Cydonia.

To do this, you will need to:

  1. Go to the “Sell” menu of the merchant screen.
  2. Sell the stolen item to the Trade Authority.
  3. Switch back to the “Buy” menu and purchase the item you just sold.

Do you lose credits by laundering stolen items at the Trade Authority?

Buying back stolen items doesn’t cost anything, since these goods can be bought for the exact same sale price. You can also do this with stolen items in your ship’s cargo hold, but not with contraband. You will need to use another method to sell your contraband items if you don’t plan on using it.

With your item now cleared of its stolen status, you will not lose it should you ever be detained by the United Colonies or Freestar Collective.

Author
Image of Blaine Polhamus
Blaine Polhamus
Staff Writer for Dot Esports. Avid gamer for two decades and gaming writer for three years. I'm a lover of anything Souls-like since 2011. I cover everything from single-player RPGs to MMOs.
Author
Image of Kate Robinson
Kate Robinson
Staff Writer. Kate has written about all aspects of the games industry, from the smallest of indie titles to the largest of RPGs. She also has a game design degree obtained from the developers of Sneak King and a unique writing style that is present in all her work.