Lithium is one of the most important materials you will need in Subnautica 2, and it is also one of the harder early-game resources to track down. Unlike Titanium or Copper, which you can stumble across almost immediately after spawning, Lithium requires a specific tool, a bit of preparation, and the nerve to swim into what is essentially a giant living mouth. This guide covers every Lithium location, how to farm it efficiently, and what you need before you go hunting.
What Lithium Is Used For
Lithium’s primary use is crafting Plasteel Ingots at a Processor. You combine one piece of Lithium with Titanium to produce a Plasteel Ingot, and the first major reason to do that is the High Capacity Air Tank, which gives you significantly more time underwater before surfacing. If you have been struggling to reach deeper areas, upgrading your air supply is the most important step, and Lithium is what makes it possible.
Beyond the air tank, Lithium becomes essential for more advanced crafting projects later in the game. Getting a reliable supply early puts you ahead of several mid-game bottlenecks. If you are also working through Titanium Ingots at this stage, knock both out in the same session since the Processor handles both.
How to Identify Lithium
Lithium is easy to confuse with Lead in low-light conditions, so knowing what to look for saves a lot of wasted time. Lead has square, blocky protrusions on its surface. Lithium looks like a cluster of long rectangles pressed together. In brighter lighting or open water, the color difference is clear: Lithium has a burnt red tone at the top that fades into a lighter orange toward the base. If you are exploring caves with the Flashlight, the shape distinction is your most reliable identifier.
Lithium also spawns in large, dense chunks rather than scattered fragments. In most locations, you will need the Sonic Resonator to break it apart. Without one, only a couple of specific pieces in the world can be grabbed by hand.
How to Get Lithium Early (The Great Jaw)
The fastest way to get Lithium early is to visit the Great Jaw, a massive clam-like organism located roughly 350 meters south-southwest of the Lifepod (bearing 195 degrees) at around 100 meters depth. This is the single highest concentration of Lithium available before you unlock access to the hot biome, and it replenishes over time, so you can return repeatedly.
Before heading to the Great Jaw, make sure you have:
- Sonic Resonator (required to break the Lithium deposits inside)
- Basic Fins and a mobility gadget like the Wakemaker to move quickly
- Air Bladders as backup oxygen
To reach it, swim southwest from the Lifepod, drop over the ocean floor ledge, and follow the crater wall on your right. You will pass by colony wreckage and eventually spot the Great Jaw below. It looks like a massive upward-facing pod with a central tonsil node surrounded by bright pink or purple strands.
Here is the important part: those strands act as tripwires. The moment you touch one, the jaw begins to close. You have a short window to break the deposits with the Sonic Resonator and swim out before it shuts completely. If you get caught, you die. Save before every run.
A few tips for surviving the Great Jaw:
- Position yourself against the inner wall of the pod before swinging the Sonic Resonator. The tool knocks you backward with each use, and you do not want to drift into a tripwire mid-swing.
- Grab what you need and exit immediately. You can re-enter after the jaw reopens, which takes only a few seconds.
- The Oxygen Tunics around the outside of the jaw let you refill air before going in. Use them.
The Great Jaw contains around 10 to 12 pieces of Lithium per visit. That is more than enough for the High Capacity Air Tank and several Plasteel Ingots.
Free Lithium Without a Sonic Resonator
If you do not have the Sonic Resonator yet, you can still get one piece of Lithium from this area. A few dozen meters northwest of the Great Jaw, there is a submerged wreckage with a table inside a spherical coral frame. A single piece of Lithium sits on that table and can be picked up without any tools. This piece also respawns over time. It is not a farming solution, but it gives you enough to craft your first Plasteel Ingot and unlock the High Capacity Air Tank before your next dive.
Best Lithium Farming Spot (Zip’s Blackbox Cave)
Once you start the Tadpole Pens investigation, you will pass through the best concentrated farming area for Lithium in the early-to-mid game. The cave near Zip’s Blackbox sits roughly 550 meters southeast of the Lifepod and 600 meters southeast of Ruby’s Blackbox. Multiple Lithium deposits cluster at the cave entrance and continue deeper inside along the base of rock formations.
This is not a spot you will miss on the main story path, which makes it easy to loot while progressing naturally. After you complete the Tadpole Pens mission, Zip’s Blackbox signal disappears from your log. If you return to farm later, use the Lifepod and Ruby’s first Blackbox as navigation references instead.
Keep an eye on your depth in this area. Some deposits sit deeper than 250 meters, which is where the stock Tadpole vehicle starts taking hull damage. Either upgrade your Tadpole or stay aware of the depth gauge.
All Lithium Locations in Subnautica 2
Outside the Great Jaw and the Zip’s Blackbox cave, Lithium appears consistently throughout the Zezuran Desert, the hot biome located roughly 220 meters east of the Lifepod. You will know you have entered it when a temperature gauge appears on your screen. The heat in this region will drain your health quickly if you enter without the Heat Tolerance Adaptation, so do not explore the Zezuran Desert until you have that unlocked.
Once you have Heat Tolerance, the Zezuran Desert becomes the richest Lithium source in the game. The most valuable spot is the Hot Cave, the massive cavern beneath the center of the desert. Lithium deposits line the cave walls throughout the system. The Hot Cave also contains the Hot Cave Base Camp, an oxygenated structure you can use to refill air between mining runs.
This region overlaps with several other resource routes. If you are already farming Silver or Necrolei Cysts in the deeper zones, plan your Lithium runs in the same session to maximize efficiency. The Subnautica 2 biomes guide covers every region in detail if you need help orienting yourself across the map. Play Now!
