Moon Sweepers Upgrades: Plan Your Tool and Capacity Choices

Quick answer

Buy the upgrade that removes your current bottleneck. A narrow brush needs a wider tool or Wide Heads; constant return trips need a container level; slow movement needs Servo Stride; and a steady launch volume benefits from Market Contracts. The current 1.0.4 data lists 23 upgrade entries across five branches, with several levels inside each entry.

Moon Sweepers v1.0.4 · PC / Steam · upgrade matrix and hand tools Checked 28 Oct 2026

Upgrades solve different problems: width, depth, reach, capacity, speed and payout.

Choose by symptom

Start with the bottleneck, not the upgrade tree

The matrix is broad enough that a “best upgrade” list without context becomes misleading. Use the symptom you feel during a normal run.

Symptom → purchase
Symptom	Upgrade to consider	Why
You make too many short trips.	Container level for the tool you actually use.	Raises the load before a return. A Toothbrush container III holds 4 kg versus 0.5 kg at the start.
Each pass covers too little ground.	Wider hand tool, then Wide Heads.	Tool width and the matrix bonus both increase the strip per pass.
You are missing dust beside the strip.	Deep Heads or Long Reach.	Deep Heads adds cleaning depth; Long Reach extends the tool's reach.
You walk more than you clean.	Servo Stride and a vehicle.	Movement speed helps on foot; vehicles help across longer distances.
Your launches feel small.	Market Contracts.	+6% launch payout per level; level III is +18%.
Your processing line is slow.	Machine upgrades, power and more machines.	Tool upgrades do not speed up a pressure chamber or a stone press.

Tools

Hand tools and container capacity

The hand tools are bought once at the supply wall. Container levels are separate matrix purchases; they only matter for the tool you use. The starting Toothbrush is free, but its 0.5 kg container is the reason early trips are so short.

1.0.4 hand tools
Tool	Price	Starting container	Level III container	Working width
Toothbrush	Free	0.5 kg	4 kg	0.12 m
Nail Brush	$5	0.75 kg	6 kg	0.19 m
Hand Brush	$10	1 kg	8 kg	0.25 m
Household Broom	$25	3 kg	24 kg	0.44 m
Wide Broom	$75	6 kg	48 kg	0.66 m
Extra Wide Broom	$150	12 kg	96 kg	0.99 m

Tool and container values are from the 1.0.4 data index. The displayed values in your build take priority if a later patch changes them.

The cheapest tool is not always the best next purchase. Moving from a 0.5 kg Toothbrush to a 3 kg Household Broom cuts the number of return trips; adding a container level to the Toothbrush also helps, but does nothing for its narrow stroke. The beginner guide covers the first-$5 decision.

Key upgrades

The upgrades that change a run most clearly

Selected matrix upgrades
Upgrade	Levels / total price	Effect at top level	Best for
Market Contracts	3 · $1,620	+18% launch payout	Any established launch route.
Servo Stride	3 · $660	+21% movement speed	Long walks and large bases.
Wide Heads	3 · $580	+24% cleaning width	Every hand tool; unlocks deeper cleaning branches.
Deep Heads	2 · $370	+24% cleaning depth	Side-to-side sweeping and gaps.
Long Reach	2 · $290	+1.5 m reach	Cleaning over railings or awkward edges.
Surge Heads	1 · $1,500	+10% width and depth, +0.5 m reach	Late cleaning capstone; requires Wide III, Deep II and Long Reach II.

Wide Heads and Deep Heads are different. Wide Heads increases the horizontal strip; Deep Heads increases the depth of ground covered when you sweep sideways. Long Reach adds distance, not width. Surge Heads is a small combined bonus after the three prerequisites, so it is a late finish rather than an early shortcut.

Saving decisions

When to keep saving instead of buying another upgrade

Keep saving when the next purchase does not change the thing that stopped the last run. If you ran out of money before a machine and the next hand-tool level only adds 2% width, the purchase delays the machine. If you are constantly walking back with a full container, a payout upgrade will not fix the walk.

Do not buy a vehicle upgrade before you have the Garage and a vehicle.
Do not buy a payout multiplier while a machine is starved of power or inputs.
Do not buy a larger container for a tool you have stopped using.
Do not buy a capstone upgrade when its prerequisites are missing; Surge Heads is the clearest example.
Do not treat the upgrade matrix as a checklist. It is a set of answers to different bottlenecks.

Vehicles have their own upgrade catalog, including Tuned Motors, Big Hopper, Turbo Kit and Suction Control. The vehicle guide compares those levels and their prices.

Straight answers

Questions about this task

What should I buy first in the upgrade matrix?

If you are still cleaning by hand and launching dust, a container level for your current tool or a cheap cleaning head is immediately useful. Market Contracts I costs $120 and pays back through launch volume, so it is a stronger early economy purchase than a cosmetic or movement upgrade.

What is the difference between Wide Heads and Deep Heads?

Wide Heads increases the horizontal cleaning strip. Deep Heads increases cleaning depth when you sweep sideways. Wide Heads level I is also a prerequisite for Deep Heads, Long Reach and, eventually, Surge Heads.

Can I refund or reset an upgrade?

The checked 1.0.4 data does not document an upgrade reset or refund. Treat matrix purchases as final until the game UI says otherwise.

Trace the answer

Sources and scope

This is an independent, source-led guide, not a first-hand playtest. Gameplay values, build-menu details and UI behavior are checked against the 1.0.4 data snapshot and official patch notes. Your installed build is the final authority.

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