Fallout Shelter: Best Layouts

Summary

• Fallout Shelter is a colony-building game, not an RPG, and offers regular content updates.
• Efficient vault layout is crucial for maximizing resource production and expansion in-game.
• Different base layouts – starter, breeding, questing, crafting, training, & mass storage – cater to different gameplay stages.

Fallout Shelter was released in 2015, and is loosely based on the cannon laid out in other Fallout games. However, rather than being an RPG, this is a colony building game. It is available for free on both mobile and desktop, but it does have a cash shop. Fallout Shelter could be termed a live service game, as it received regular content additions automatically.

Building an efficient vault is crucial in Fallout Shelter. The available space has to be used in a way that maximizes the production of raw materials. Towards this goal, it is worth working out a basic vault layout that can be extended as the game progresses. Many players enjoy the laid-back vault building speed of this game, and it has become very popular.

Updated on January 17th, 2025, by Mac Wheeler: Fallout Shelter has received regular patches since the original list of base designs was published, so it has been updated to reflect the current best choices for designing and building an effective base in this popular free-to-play game. The new vault layouts that have been added in this update are intended to be in a modular format. Starting with the first, basic vault layout, each of the new layouts that have been added builds upon the previous one. The idea is that the initial layout is designed to be as efficient as possible, with expansion being done in locations that maintain an efficient flow of resources.

9

Modular Starter Base

Designed For Efficiency

Rooms:

• Vault Door: 1
• Elevator: 4
• Living Quarters: 1
• Power Generator: 1
• Water Treatment: 1
• Diner: 1

The intent of this basic design is to start a new vault layout that is going to be, firstly, easily expandable, and secondly, has the main rooms that need manual interaction constructed close together. This basic vault layout will be used as the basis of the next two layouts that have been included on this list.

This is why the top three floors next to the vault door have water purification, power generation, and dinner rooms. These are the three resources that all players need to collect regularly. One additional level has been opened up by building an elevator, and the living area has been placed on the bottom level.

8

Modular Expanded Base

For More Vault Dwellers

Rooms:

• Vault Door: 1
• Elevator: 5
• Living Quarters: 2
• Power Generator: 2
• Water Treatment: 2
• Diner: 2

This vault layout expands on the previous one. Here, the main rooms have all been expanded to two slots. This should give enough room to put all of the initial vault dwellers to work efficiently.

Another level has been added by building an elevator and a storage room on this level. The reason for this is that the next expansion phase starts the process of crafting items and generating consumables, so this extra storage space is going to be needed.

7

Modular Support Base

Adding In A Medbay And Science Lab

Rooms:

• Vault Door: 1
• Elevator: 5
• Living Quarters: 2
• Power Generator: 2
• Water Treatment: 2
• Diner: 2
• Medbay: 1
• Science Lab: 1

The vault layout from the previous entry has been expanded with this layout. However, the player will need to have 16 vault dwellers residing within their vault in order for this layout to be possible, as the science lab and medbay rooms need to be unlocked.

Adding the medbay and science lab to the vault means that the player now has a way to start producing radaway and stim packs, which are going to be needed to start sending dwellers out to explore the wasteland, and also to start some basic questing once the overseas office has been unlocked. It is likely that players won’t have any high-intelligence vault dwellers at this stage though, unless they have been lucky with lunch boxes.

6

Starter Base

For The First Hour Of Gameplay

Rooms:

• Vault Door: 1
• Elevator: 3
• Living Quarters: 2
• Power Generator: 1
• Water Treatment: 1
• Diner: 1

There is no real new player tutorial in Fallout Shelter. However, in the first few minutes of gameplay, the player is prompted to build several structures, including living quarters, power generation, water treatment, and food production.

This base layout puts these starting structures in a suitable place ready for expansion. It also adds extra living quarters, as within minutes, a new player will have more new vault dwellers waiting to come in than a single living quarters can handle. This basic starter base layout will be extended in the following entries on this list.

5

Breeding Base

It’s Time To Make Babies

Rooms:

• Vault Door: 1
• Elevator: 3
• Living Quarters: 2
• Power Generator: 2
• Water Treatment: 2
• Diner: 2
• Storage Room: 1

After the initial flurry of 12 vault dwellers coming to a new player’s vault in Fallout Shelter, it’s time to start breeding babies and filling up the vault to capacity with dwellers. This means a need for more food and water, with the knock-on effect of needing more power to add an extra diner and water treatment plant.

This base layout is perfect for the first day of gameplay. The player can drag a male and female vault dweller up into the living quarters, wait for them to mate, and then drag them back to their workstations. If this is repeated a few times, every female in the vault will be pregnant, and the babies that are born will become the workforce for the expanded facilities.

4

Questing Base

Off To The Wasteland

Rooms:

• Vault Door: 1
• Elevator: 3
• Living Quarters: 2
• Power Generator: 2
• Water Treatment: 2
• Diner: 2
• Storage Room: 1
• Science Lab: 1
• Medbay: 1
• Overseer’s Office: 1

Once a new player to Fallout Shelter has enough vault dwellers, and has all of the facilities in the previous vault layout full of workers, it is time to start thinking about heading out into the wasteland. This includes sending suitably equipped vault dwellers out on quests.

This vault layout adds the overseer’s office to the build, as this is the room that needs to be built in order to send vault dwellers out on quests. It also adds both a medbay and science lab. These are used to generate stim packs and rad remover. Both of these consumables are needed to equip vault dwellers heading into the wasteland to fight creatures. Once again, use the baby production loop to man these new facilities.

3

Crafting Base

Making Good Use Of Wasteland Loot

Rooms:

• Vault Door: 1
• Elevator: 3
• Living Quarters: 2
• Power Generator: 3
• Water Treatment: 2
• Diner: 2
• Storage Room: 2
• Science Lab: 1
• Medbay: 1
• Overseer’s Office: 1
• Radio Station: 1
• Weapon Workshop: 1

Once a player has spent some time exploring the wasteland and taking some quests, they will have some junk parts, resources, and loot that can be crafted into new items. This vault layout prepares for this by expanding the previous vault layout, adding more storage space and increasing power generation. Crafting is done in the weapon workshop.

As usual, the player will need to breed vault dwellers to man these new facilities. By this stage of the game the vault will start being attacked by raiders randomly. This means that at least a couple of dwellers will need to be kitted out with armor and a weapon to fight off the raiders.

2

Training Base

Pump Those Stats

Rooms:

• Vault Door: 1
• Elevator: 3
• Living Quarters: 3
• Power Generator: 6
• Water Treatment: 3
• Diner: 3
• Storage Room: 2
• Science Lab: 1
• Medbay: 1
• Overseer’s Office: 1
• Radio Station: 1
• Armory: 1
• Weight Room: 1
• Athletics Room: 1
• Classroom: 1
• Fitness Room: 1
• Lounge: 1
• Weapon Workshop: 1

This is a major upgrade to the previous vault layout. The player will need to have progressed several days to be able to place all of the required rooms, as they need to be unlocked as the vault population rises. This vault layout is all about fine-tuning vault dweller stats, to make them perfect for the role the player requires them to fill.

One of each of the training rooms has been added to this vault layout. These are the weight room, athletics room, classroom, fitness room, and a lounge. Putting a vault dweller to work in the appropriate room will raise their stats. For example, a vault dweller sent to the weight room will increase their strength stat over time.

1

Mass Storage Base

For All The Loot

Rooms:

• Vault Door: 1
• Elevator: 3
• Living Quarters: 3
• Power Generator: 6
• Water Treatment: 3
• Diner: 3
• Storage Room: 5
• Science Lab: 1
• Medbay: 1
• Overseer’s Office: 1
• Radio Station: 1
• Armory: 1
• Weight Room: 1
• Athletics Room: 1
• Classroom: 1
• Fitness Room: 1
• Lounge: 1
• Weapon Workshop: 1

With this vault layout, the player is preparing for later game stages. It takes the layout from the previous entry and adds much more storage space. Once there are enough mid-to max-level vault dwellers available, the player can start sending parties or multiple single vault dwellers out on quests and wasteland exploration, generating lots of loot.

This vault layout is a good basic template that can be used to make the best use of as little space as possible, so that plenty of room is left for the end-game structures and to fine tune the vault to fit the player’s style.