Falcon 9 vs Soyuz
The Soyuz family, descended from the world's first ICBM, has launched more times than any other rocket line and carried every crew to the old Soviet stations and many to the ISS. Falcon 9 overtook its annual cadence in the 2020s and now flies more in a year than Soyuz does in several.
Rockets5 min
Falcon 9
Falcon 9 is SpaceX's partially reusable two-stage rocket and the most-flown American launch vehicle, with 670 Falcon family flights as of June 2026.
Rockets5 min
Soyuz
Soyuz is the Russian rocket family descended from the 1957 R-7 missile. With well over 1,700 flights it is the most-launched orbital rocket line in history.
Key differences
- Lineage: Soyuz traces to the R-7 of 1957 and has flown, across variants, well over 1,900 times; Falcon 9 debuted in 2010 and passed 650 flights by 2026.
- Reusability: every Soyuz is expendable; Falcon 9 boosters routinely fly dozens of missions each.
- Crew role: Soyuz still launches Russian crews and the occasional NASA astronaut under seat swaps; Crew Dragon on Falcon 9 has been NASA's primary ride since 2020.
- Payload: Falcon 9 lifts roughly three times as much to LEO (about 22.8 t expendable vs about 8 t).
Side-by-side specifications
| Falcon 9 | Soyuz | |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | SpaceX | Progress Rocket Space Centre (Roscosmos) |
| Country | United States | Soviet Union / Russia |
| First flight | June 4, 2010 | November 28, 1966 (R-7 heritage from 1957) |
| Height | 70 m | 46.3 m (Soyuz-2) |
| Diameter | 3.7 m | 10.3 m (across boosters) |
| Mass | 549,054 kg | 312,000 kg (Soyuz-2) |
| Payload to LEO | 22,800 kg (expendable) | 8,670 kg (Soyuz-2.1b from Baikonur) |
| Stages | 2 | 3 (4 boosters, core, third stage), optional Fregat |
| Status | Active | Active |
| Total launches | 670 (Falcon family, as of June 29, 2026) | More than 1,700 (Soyuz family) |
Figures come from each article's infobox; see the articles for sources and context.