TL;DR
- The Scanner is crafted at the Fabricator using Titanium, Quartz, and a Basic Battery.
- The Basic Battery needs 2x Copper and 1x Acidic Raion Pouch.
- You need a Survival Multitool first to harvest the Acidic Raion Pouch.
- Use the Scanner to unlock blueprints by scanning degraded tools and items.
- Scanning flora and fauna adds entries to your Databank but does not unlock recipes.
- The Scanner runs on charge — keep spare Basic Batteries to recharge it.
The Scanner is one of the most important tools in Subnautica 2. Without it, your crafting menu stays nearly empty. You can’t unlock better gear. You can’t go deeper. The whole progression system runs through this one tool.
The good news? It is not that hard to craft. You just need to know what to get and where to look. This guide covers every material, where to find it, how to craft the Scanner step by step, and how to actually use it once you have it.
If you are just starting out, also check our Subnautica 2 beginner tips before diving in.
What You Need to Craft the Scanner in Subnautica 2
You craft the Scanner at the Fabricator inside your Lifepod. The recipe needs three things:
- 1x Titanium
- 1x Quartz
- 1x Basic Battery
All three materials are available in the starting area near your Lifepod. You do not need to go far to find any of them early in the game.
Where to Find Titanium
Titanium is the easiest material on this list. It sits right on the ocean floor around your Lifepod. Just swim along the seabed and you will spot it almost immediately. You can also find it inside coral structures and underground caves.
Collect as much as you can early. Titanium is used in a lot of crafting recipes, so extras are never wasted.
Where to Find Quartz
Quartz is found inside Coral Domes near your starting area. These are large dome-shaped coral formations you will spot underwater. Some of them have openings you can swim into. Once inside, look at the ceilings and walls — Quartz nodes grow there in clusters.
Do not waste time searching the open seabed for Quartz. Go straight to the Coral Domes. The density is much higher there and you will get what you need faster.
How to Craft a Basic Battery
The Basic Battery is the trickiest part of this recipe. You cannot find it lying around reliably early on, so you will almost certainly need to craft it yourself.
Basic Battery recipe:
- 2x Copper
- 1x Acidic Raion Pouch
Where to Find Copper
Copper appears on the roofs and walls of underwater caves. It is a bit harder to spot than Titanium but not difficult once you know what to look for. Explore the cave openings near your Lifepod and you should find Copper without going too far.
Need more help locating it? We have a full guide on where to find Copper in Subnautica 2.
Where to Get the Acidic Raion Pouch
The Acidic Raion Pouch comes from a creature called the Acid Raion. You will find one right underneath your Lifepod. It looks pinkish with a green Medical Gel Sac in the middle.
Here is the important part: you need the Survival Multitool to harvest the pouch. The Survival Multitool only costs Titanium to craft, so make that first before you go looking for the Acid Raion.
Once you have the Multitool, use it on the pink pouches on the sides of the creature. One Acid Raion gives you up to five pouches. Be careful — when you take the pouch, the creature releases toxic gas. Move away quickly to avoid taking damage.
Note: The green Medical Gel Sac in the middle is separate. You can pick that up by hand without the Multitool. It is used for crafting Enhanced First Aid Kits, not the battery.
Step-by-Step: How to Craft the Scanner in Subnautica 2
- Craft the Survival Multitool at the Fabricator using Titanium.
- Collect 1x Titanium from the seabed near your Lifepod.
- Collect 1x Quartz from inside a Coral Dome.
- Collect 2x Copper from underwater cave ceilings.
- Use the Survival Multitool to harvest an Acidic Raion Pouch from an Acid Raion below your Lifepod.
- Go to the Fabricator and craft a Basic Battery using 2x Copper and 1x Acidic Raion Pouch.
- With Titanium, Quartz, and the Basic Battery in your inventory, craft the Scanner at the Fabricator.
That is it. The Scanner is now in your inventory and ready to use.
If you run into any issues at the Fabricator, check our guide on fixing the Subnautica 2 “requires fully functional Fabricator” error.
How to Use the Scanner in Subnautica 2
Using the Scanner is simple. Place it on your hotbar (slots 1–5). Equip it, aim at any object, and hold right-click to begin scanning. A progress bar appears while the scan runs. Hold until it completes.
What happens after a scan depends on what you scanned:
- Degraded tools and colonist equipment — These unlock crafting blueprints. Some items need 2–3 scans before the full recipe is registered. The game tracks your progress automatically.
- Flora and fauna — These add entries to your Databank (press Tab to open it). You get lore, behavior notes, and hints about where to find more of each organism. No crafting recipes come from scanning creatures.
If you have already unlocked a blueprint, scanning the same object again gives you a small amount of materials instead. It is a minor bonus but worth doing.
Where to Find Things to Scan
The world of Subnautica 2 is full of abandoned colonist equipment and degraded tools left behind by people who arrived before you. These are exactly what you need. Check every structure, ruin, and underwater camp you come across. Even a quick pass through a cave to scan available items is worth the detour, especially early in the game when every new recipe matters.
Scannable targets show a small icon in your HUD when you get close. That icon is your cue to pull out the Scanner.
How to Recharge the Scanner
The Scanner has a finite charge. Every scan uses a little of it. You can see the current charge level on the quick slots bar above the item icon.
To recharge it, place a charged Basic Battery in your inventory. The Scanner will draw power from it automatically. This means the same Basic Battery you use to build the Scanner is also the resource you use to keep it running. Craft extras and keep them on hand.
What Is the Scanner Station? (Late-Game Upgrade)
The Scanner (handheld tool) is different from the Scanner Station, which is a base module you can build later in the game. The Scanner Station tracks the location of resources, ores, and structures within 300 meters of your base. It requires a System Chip, 3x Titanium, and a Wiring Kit to build — plus a consistent 10 energy per second while in use.
To unlock the Scanner Station blueprint, you need to find and scan a Scanner Station Fragment. One is located inside Camp One, a colonist ruin in the early game area. The Scanner Station is a powerful quality-of-life upgrade, but it comes much later. Focus on the handheld Scanner first.
Why the Scanner Is So Important for Progression
Every piece of upgraded gear in Subnautica 2 — better tools, vehicles, base equipment — gets unlocked through scanning. There is no other way to open up the crafting menu. The Scanner is the gating mechanic for the entire progression system.
The deeper ocean requires better equipment. Better equipment requires recipes. Recipes require scanning. Craft the Scanner early and use it on everything you find.
For a full look at how to progress efficiently in the early game, check our guides on the best early upgrades in Subnautica 2 and how to get the Flashlight blueprint.
Other Early Game Guides for Subnautica 2
Getting the Scanner sorted is a great first step. Here are a few more things you will want to tackle early:
- How to make water in Subnautica 2 — Stay hydrated from the start.
- How to release Lifepod clamps — Escape your starting pod properly.
- Subnautica 2 multiplayer co-op guide — Play with friends and split the workload.
- Subnautica 2 Early Access launch times — Check when it went live in your region.
- Subnautica 2 PC requirements — Make sure your system can run it.
- Subnautica 2 release date, platforms, and price — Everything you need to know before buying.
You can pick up Subnautica 2 on Steam or grab it on Xbox (Game Preview) if you want to jump in now during Early Access.
