Before you buy
When is the next wipe?
“Wipe” is the scariest word a new player hears. Here is what a wipe actually touches, what it never touches, and what is — and is not — known about the next one.
Written by Doc_Flanigan, a veteran Star Citizen backer.
The short answer
No wipe is currently announced. Everything you buy with real money always survives a wipe. Your earned aUEC and in-game items are temporary alpha data that can be reset.
CIG says it generally tries to avoid wipes, and each update’s patch notes state whether progress carries over. That is the entire, honest picture — anyone quoting you a confirmed wipe date is guessing.
What survives, what resets
| Survives every wipe | Resets in a wipe |
|---|---|
| Your game package and alpha access | Your earned aUEC balance |
| Every ship bought with real money | Ships bought in-game with aUEC |
| Account UEC — including the 50,000 UEC referral bonus | Weapons, armor, and gear bought in-game |
| Pledge-store hangar items, skins, and insurance terms | Items stored in your in-game inventory |
| Your account, handle, and purchase history | Other saved in-game progress, as stated per patch |
The dividing line is simple: real money on one side, gameplay on the other. The official support docs are explicit that losing aUEC never affects the UEC or pledge purchases on your RSI account.
Why wipes exist at all
Star Citizen is an alpha. aUEC — Alpha UEC — is a temporary testing currency by design. When CIG rebuilds a core system, like the economy or how items persist, old data can become incompatible and get reset.
Whether a given update wipes is stated in that update’s patch notes. The phrase to look for is Long Term Persistence — when LTP is enabled, your aUEC and items should carry over. When a full wipe happens, everyone restarts with their pledge ships, their account UEC, and the starting money from their package.
This is exactly why the golden rule for new players holds: spend real money only on the one package you need. Money survives; time is the only thing a wipe can take.
So — when is the next one?
Unknown. As of July 2026, CIG has not announced a wipe for any upcoming update. Parts of the community expect the next major update, Alpha 4.9, to bring one — but that is expectation, not information. Nothing is confirmed until the 4.9 patch notes say so.
Practical advice: play as if your aUEC is temporary, because it is. Spend it on ships, gear, and good stories rather than hoarding it. If a wipe comes, your package ship and your 50,000 UEC bonus are waiting on the other side.
Common questions
When is the next Star Citizen wipe?
No wipe is currently announced. CIG states whether saved progress carries over in the patch notes of each update, and says it generally tries to avoid wipes. Some players expect one alongside Alpha 4.9, but that is community expectation — not an announcement.
What survives a wipe?
Everything bought with real money: game packages, pledge-store ships, hangar items, and skins. Your account UEC balance — including the 50,000 UEC referral enlistment bonus — is also never affected. Insurance terms and your account itself all carry through.
What gets reset?
Earned aUEC, ships bought in-game with aUEC, and gear or items acquired in-game. These are temporary alpha progress — the official support docs say aUEC can change or reset as development continues.
What is Long Term Persistence?
Long Term Persistence (LTP) is CIG’s system for carrying saved progress across updates. Each patch’s notes state whether LTP is enabled — when it is, your aUEC and in-game items should carry over rather than reset.
Will Alpha 4.9 wipe progress?
Nobody knows yet — CIG has not announced whether Alpha 4.9 includes a wipe. Whether a given patch wipes is only confirmed when its patch notes say so. Any prediction you read before then is community expectation, not official information.
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Sources
Where these facts come from
Every factual claim on this page is checked against official Cloud Imperium Games sources. Dates and figures are verified against the primary RSI blog post or support article linked below — not third-party trackers.
aUEC (Alpha UEC) is a temporary testing currency that can be changed or reset during alpha; losing aUEC never affects the UEC or pledge-store purchases on an RSI account. Patch notes state per-patch whether aUEC carries over (Long Term Persistence), and CIG says it generally tries to avoid wipes.