Upgrading your pickaxe in Core Keeper is one of the most important parts of smooth progression. A stronger pickaxe does more mining damage, breaks walls faster, and, most importantly, lets you mine new wall types and ore tiers that are effectively “gated” behind better tools. If you ever feel stuck in a biome or like you are spending too long chewing through walls, the solution is usually the same: push your pickaxe tier forward.
How pickaxe upgrades actually work in Core Keeper
Core Keeper does not treat the pickaxe like a single item you upgrade at a menu. In most cases, “upgrading” means crafting the next-tier pickaxe at the appropriate workbench, usually using your current pickaxe as a crafting ingredient.
That creates a simple loop:
- Find the next ore tier
- Smelt bars
- Craft the next workbench tier (when required)
- Craft the next pickaxe tier (often using your current pickaxe)
This is why it is smart to avoid throwing away older pickaxes. Many recipes require the previous tier, so keep it until you have confirmed you no longer need it.
Pickaxe tiers and what they unlock
While the exact order can vary slightly depending on what you loot, the normal crafted pickaxe path looks like this:
- Wood Pickaxe
- Copper Pickaxe
- Tin Pickaxe
- Iron Pickaxe
- Scarlet Pickaxe
- Octarine Pickaxe
- Galaxite Pickaxe
- Solarite Pickaxe
Each tier increases your mining damage and makes it realistic to mine the next set of walls, ores, and biome materials. If you hit a wall type that barely takes damage or feels unreasonably slow, that is usually the game signaling that you are meant to upgrade.
Step by step: upgrading from early game to mid game
The early game is all about getting out of “dirt and clay struggles” and into consistent ore income.
Wood to Copper
You start with basic tools and a limited crafting setup. Your first major goal is copper because it accelerates everything: better gear, better crafting stations, and faster mining.
To move into copper:
- Mine dirt and clay quickly to expand
- Locate copper ore boulders and ore nodes
- Smelt copper bars in a furnace
- Craft a Copper Pickaxe at your workbench when the recipe appears
Even if you find loose copper ore early, the real power spike comes from locating ore boulders, since they provide a long-lasting supply when mined repeatedly.
Copper to Tin
Tin tends to appear in areas you naturally reach as you explore outward. This is usually the first point where players start noticing that mining feels slow if they delay upgrades.
To push to tin efficiently, focus on two things:
First, locate tin ore boulders and mine enough ore to build momentum. Second, upgrade your crafting stations as needed, because higher-tier recipes often require a better workbench.
Once you have tin bars, craft the Tin Pickaxe. In most progressions, crafting the tin tier is where mining stops feeling like a chore and starts feeling like exploration again.
Tin to Iron
Iron is the tier where you begin to feel “properly equipped.” It is also the point where you should start taking your food buffs and inventory habits more seriously, because mining trips get longer and you start bringing back multiple resource types.
To upgrade into iron:
- Identify iron ore in new zones as you expand
- Prioritize iron ore boulders whenever you see them
- Smelt iron bars
- Craft the Iron Pickaxe at the appropriate workbench tier
A practical tip is to set up a small “forward camp” near your current mining frontier: a bed, a couple of torches, and a chest. That minimizes backtracking and keeps your main base from turning into chaos while you are still in heavy expansion mode.
Step by step: upgrading into late game ore tiers
Once you break into the higher tiers, the game becomes more biome-driven. Your ability to upgrade your pickaxe will depend on reaching biomes that contain the next ore tier and bringing home enough bars to craft the required stations.
Iron to Scarlet
Scarlet is a major milestone because it meaningfully speeds up mining and opens up stronger crafting options across the board.
Your best approach is to treat scarlet as a targeted objective:
- Push exploration toward the biome where scarlet spawns
- Bring enough food and healing to stay out longer
- Mine scarlet ore consistently, ideally from boulders
- Smelt scarlet bars and craft the Scarlet Pickaxe
If you are struggling to gather enough ore, it often means you are mining scattered nodes instead of prioritizing boulders. Boulders are the difference between “I can craft one upgrade” and “I can upgrade everything I want.”
Scarlet to Octarine
Octarine is where a lot of players notice a second big shift in progression. The world opens up, enemies hit harder, and the game expects you to be upgrading multiple systems at once: tools, armor, movement, and food.
To upgrade your pickaxe to octarine:
- Reach the biome where octarine is found
- Mine and smelt octarine bars
- Craft any required workbench upgrade first
- Craft the Octarine Pickaxe (often requiring the Scarlet Pickaxe)
If you do not see the recipe, it is almost always because you are using the wrong crafting station. When in doubt, upgrade your workbench tier and re-check.
Octarine to Galaxite
Galaxite tends to be the point where mining speed becomes a quality-of-life issue rather than just a convenience. Better tools mean safer mining because you spend less time stuck in tight tunnels while enemies roam nearby.
The galaxite upgrade process is the same pattern:
- Reach the galaxite biome
- Secure a steady ore supply
- Smelt bars
- Craft the Galaxite Pickaxe at the correct crafting station
At this stage, it is also worth cleaning up your loadout. Carrying too many random items slows you down. A mining-focused trip should be mostly food, healing, torches, bridge materials, and a few utility items, not half your base inventory.
Galaxite to Solarite
Solarite is one of the top-end crafted tiers and a huge mining upgrade. If you are working toward solarite, you should expect the game to test your preparation more than your raw damage.
To reach solarite efficiently:
- Treat solarite ore like a strategic resource and mine it in bulk
- Smelt bars in batches so you can craft multiple upgrades at once
- Build the highest-tier crafting stations as soon as you can
- Craft the Solarite Pickaxe
If you are only mining enough for the pickaxe and nothing else, you will frequently end up making multiple trips anyway. It is more efficient to stay out longer and come home with enough bars for your pickaxe, crafting stations, and at least one other major upgrade (armor, accessories, or utility tools).
Common problems when you “cannot” upgrade your pickaxe
When players say they cannot upgrade their pickaxe, it is usually one of these issues.
You are using the wrong crafting station
Pickaxe recipes are tied to crafting progression. If you have the bars but do not see the recipe, upgrade your workbench tier and check again.
You are missing the previous pickaxe tier
Many pickaxe recipes require your current pickaxe as an ingredient. If you stored it in a random chest or accidentally discarded it, the game will block the upgrade.
A simple habit helps: keep your active pickaxe on your hotbar until your next tier is crafted, then immediately swap.
You are mining the wrong ore source
Loose ore nodes are fine early, but later tiers become dramatically easier if you locate ore boulders. If upgrades feel slow, shift your goal from “mine any ore” to “find the boulder.”
You are underusing mining buffs and utilities
Food buffs are a quiet power spike in Core Keeper. A decent food setup can make mining trips more productive even before you upgrade.
Also consider utility tools that complement your pickaxe:
- Bombs can break through stubborn areas when you are under-tier
- Drills and other mining utilities can reduce time spent on repetitive wall clearing
You still want the pickaxe tier upgrade as your main progression, but smart utility use keeps you moving while you work toward it.
How to prioritize pickaxe upgrades for the smoothest progression
If you want consistent momentum, treat your pickaxe as a first-class upgrade. A reliable priority order looks like this:
- Upgrade pickaxe as soon as the next tier is realistically obtainable
- Upgrade your workbench tier immediately when it blocks recipes
- Stockpile bars in batches so you can craft multiple upgrades per trip
- Focus on ore boulders over scattered nodes whenever possible
The biggest practical advantage of staying on-tier is time: faster mining means more ore per hour, more base building per session, and less frustration when you are carving paths through dense biomes. Once you get into the habit of pushing your pickaxe forward quickly, Core Keeper’s progression feels significantly more fluid, and every new biome becomes an opportunity rather than a slowdown.