As with prior Bethesda games, the Starfield romance options you have to choose from are pretty clear-cut. All four of Starfield's romanceable characters are central to its mystery-driven plot, so it'd be hard to miss any of them as long as you progress the main mission. Once you meet them, you can have them join your crew and start to raise their fondness for you by choosing the right dialogue options.
As long as you carefully consider their likes and dislikes and spend time with them as your follower, Starfield's romanceable characters will quickly grow to like you. From there, you can start flirting with them and see where it takes you—which, in practical terms, is a special side mission and, eventually, a full commitment to the relationship through marriage.
Who can you romance in Starfield?
Starfield's only romanceable NPC companions are the four members of Constellation: Sarah Morgan, Barrett, Sam Coe, and Andreja. Each of them will ask to join you when you've completed the required main mission. You can assign them to your ship or an outpost, but if you want to romance them, you need to have them join you on foot, which you can ask them to do at any time in The Lodge on Jemison. And remember, you can only fully romance one companion per playthrough.
Starfield romance: Sam Coe
How to romance Sam Coe
Sam's entire vibe should give you a clue on what he's about. Sam grew up under the Freestar Collective, a libertarian confederation that controls some of the star systems, and briefly joined the peacekeeping Freestar Rangers group. He's a space cowboy who doesn't want anything to do with the other, competing government, the United Colonies, and letting bad guys off the hook.
If you want to romance Sam Coe, you should do the following with him:
- Talk positively about his daughter Cora
- Support the Freestar Collective and Freestar Rangers
- Obey the law
- Be nice and genuine
On Sam Coe's companion mission, Listen To Your Hart, stick to doing whatever Sam prefers and his affinity with you will greatly increase.
Starfield romance: Sarah Morgan
How to romance Sarah Morgan
Sarah Morgan is the chair of Constellation, the group of explorers you join early in the game, and isn't interested in rocking the boat whatsoever. She's an ex-soldier who has taken up exploring the universe for unsolved mysteries. Sarah is a fan of following the rules as long as they are in the interest of expanding humanity's understanding of the universe. As long as you don't make fun of the United Colonies or drop a grenade in the middle of a club, she'll like you.
If you want to romance Sarah Morgan, you should do the following with her:
- Talk positively about Constellation and its achievements
- Strictly obey the law
- Support the UC Vanguard
- Pursue justice for criminals
- Be kind and sympathize
On Sarah Morgan's companion mission, In Memoriam, tell her you love her.
Starfield romance: Barrett
How to romance Barrett
Barrett is Starfield's wild card. He's immediately impressed by your actions in Starfield's intro sequence, and relies on you to bail him out of trouble. He's not interested in waiting around for permits or papers to be signed; he just wants to get out there and discover new parts of the galaxy. If you can match his independence and initiative when confronting problems, and stay away from aligning yourself too heavily with either of the two governments, he'll have your back.
If you want to romance Barrett, you should do the following with him:
- Play along with his jokes
- Help anyone in need
- Bend the law when necessary
On Barrett's companion mission, Breach of Contract, collect all the evidence and choose Doctor Kaela.
Starfield romance: Andreja
How to romance Andreja
Andreja is tricky to impress. She has a mysterious background that she won't talk about. All you learn early on is that she had to survive on her own, which means she's not interested in playing games to get what she wants. She might be the only character who doesn't mind a little thievery and killing anyone who you might've been able to persuade otherwise.
If you want to romance Andreja, you should do the following with her:
- Show your loyalty to her as a friend
- Make sarcastic or sassy responses
- Break the law or shoot first when necessary
- Support House Va'ruun
On Andreja's companion mission, Divided Loyalties, complete all the steps, and when you return to the Lodge, choose the dialogue option tagged with "[Romance]" and then "[Commitment]".
Romance choices in the Shattered Space DLC
Does your Starfield romance affect the Shattered Space DLC?
There are no major changes to the Shattered Space questline based on who you romanced in Starfield.
Early interviews leading up to Starfield's Shattered Space DLC may have left some hopeful for more influence based on your decisions here, but most differences are relegated to simple references to player choice. The most significant factors here lay with Starfield's other major decisions, outside of who you flirted with or married. So go ahead and bring your chosen cosmic sweetheart along, and look for the fun in those minor details they offer through the usual banter.
How to romance companions in Starfield
Starfield romance is fairly simple. No matter what background traits, skills, or gender you pick, any of the four romanceable characters can be in a relationship with you.
Here's a brief summary of how Starfield romances play out:
- Meet one of the Constellation companions
- Add them to your crew and have them follow you
- Raise their affinity high enough to unlock their companion mission
- Complete the companion mission and commit to marriage
To romance Starfield companions, your goal is to raise their affinity for you, which is a hidden stat you don't have a way to track. However, you can tell how it's going by the dialogue options you get. You'll start with options tagged with "[Friendly]" and "[Flirt]", then "[Romance]", and finally "[Commitment]".
Once they like you enough, they'll start to ask to speak to you while you're out exploring. These conversations will expand on their backgrounds and give you opportunities to increase their affinity. Eventually, they'll ask you to go on their unique companion mission with them. Once you've finished that, you'll get an option to marry them and even sleep together for a 15% XP boost.
To raise their affinity, you have to keep in mind what sort of things they like. If a character loathes the United Colonies, for example, dialogue options that talk about the government fondly will make them dislike you a bit. Certain characters won't approve of theft or murder. There are tons of conversations and other opportunities to raise a companion's trust in you though, so even if you flub it a few times, you can make up for it.
How to complete Starfield romances quickly
The fastest way to raise your affinity with companions is to invest in the Leadership skill, for a 25% boost to companion affinity gains. You can also pop a Paramour aid item before conversations for its boost to affinity, too.
To get a headstart on pursuing a romance with one of Starfield's companions, pick the dialogue option to ask them personal questions. As you go through those questions, you'll have opportunities to respond to specific things they say. This is an early way to start to improve how much they like you.
As you make dialogue choices in Starfield with your companion following you, you'll have opportunities to make decisions that they approve of and to let them speak on their own. Choose options that align with your chosen companion's values for the best chance to increase their affinity for you. When they like or dislike something, it'll show up in the top right of your screen.
Eventually, dialogue options with "[Flirt]" in front of them pop up. Choose these responses when they show up—as long as it's not during a serious or tense moment—to move things along quickly. Eventually, they'll offer their companion mission, which is required if you want to marry them.
