Star Citizen Free Fly Events
Anyone can play Star Citizen for free during Free Fly events. Find out when the next one is, what's included, and how to lock in a 50,000 UEC referral bonus before you launch.
What is a Free Fly event?
Several times a year, Cloud Imperium Games — the studio behind Star Citizen — opens the game to everyone. For roughly 10 days, no purchase is required. You make a free RSI account, download the launcher, and you're in.
The two main events are Invictus Launch Week in May (a Navy fleet showcase) and the Intergalactic Aerospace Expo (IAE) in November (the largest ship show of the year, with 100+ ships rotating through the free roster).
Free Fly is the moment to try Star Citizen. If you bounce off, you've lost nothing. If you're hooked, you'll know it within an afternoon — and you can decide whether to grab a Game Package while still inside the event window.
What can you do during a Free Fly?
Use this checklist whether the event is live now or you're preparing for the next one. Each step is bite-sized — get through them and you'll have a real sense of the game.
- 1
Create your free RSI account
Use a referral code at signup so 50,000 UEC lands in your account when you log in. During some events CIG adds a limited extra signup bonus on top — the banner at the top of this site shows one when it is live. You cannot add the code after the 24-hour grace window — get it right the first time.
- 2
Download the launcher
Grab the RSI Launcher from your account page. It downloads the game client (~100 GB). Start this early — the launcher will keep running while you read on.
- 3
Pick a ship from the Free Fly list
During the event, several ships are unlocked for everyone. The featured ships rotate by event — check the current event card on the homepage.
- 4
Run the new-player tutorial
Spawn at your starting station, follow the contract markers, and learn flight, quantum travel, and ship combat basics. 30–45 minutes well spent.
Full first-day walkthrough at dayonecitizen.com → - 5
Try a delivery mission
Easiest first earner. Pick up boxes on one moon, drop them on another. Pays well, low risk, and you see a lot of the universe quickly.
- 6
Explore a major planet
Microtech (snow), ArcCorp (city), Crusader (gas giant), or Hurston (industrial). Each is enormous and worth a quantum jump.
- 7
Group up with friends
Star Citizen is unforgivingly fun in groups. Use chat or Spectrum to find a crew. Friend other players and queue into shared instances.
- 8
Decide before the event ends
If you're enjoying it, pick up a Game Package while still inside the event window. Your referral bonus and any Free Fly progress carry over.
New to Star Citizen?
Free Fly is a great time to start. If you've never played before, DayOneCitizen.com has a plain-English guide for your first 30 days in the 'Verse.