Elon Musk Says SpaceX Is Prioritising a Self-Sustaining City on the Moon

SpaceX founder Elon Musk has revealed that the company has shifted its near-term focus from Mars to the Moon, with plans to build what he describes as a “self-growing city” on the lunar surface—potentially within the next decade.

In a post shared on X on Monday, Musk said lunar development offers a faster and more practical pathway to establishing a permanent human presence beyond Earth, citing significantly shorter travel times and more frequent launch opportunities.

Why the Moon comes first

According to Musk, missions to the Moon allow SpaceX to iterate far more quickly than Mars expeditions. While launches to Mars are only possible when Earth and Mars align—roughly every 26 months, with journeys lasting about six months—missions to the Moon can be launched every 10 days, with travel times of around two days.

This difference, Musk argued, makes the Moon a more realistic testing ground for building and scaling off-world settlements in the near term.

“The Moon allows us to iterate much faster,” Musk wrote, adding that a lunar city could be achievable in under 10 years, compared with 20 years or more for a fully developed Mars settlement.

Mars remains part of the long-term vision

Despite the shift in priorities, Musk stressed that Mars has not been abandoned. He said SpaceX still intends to begin building a Martian city within the next five to seven years, keeping intact the company’s long-standing ambition to make humanity a multi-planetary species.

The ultimate mission, Musk said, remains unchanged: extending human life and consciousness beyond Earth to safeguard the future of civilisation.

Strategic implications

Industry analysts note that focusing on the Moon aligns with growing international interest in lunar development, including planned missions by NASA, China, and private-sector partners. A permanent lunar settlement could serve as a proving ground for life-support systems, construction technologies, and governance models needed for deeper space exploration.

If realised, a self-sustaining city on the Moon would represent a major milestone in human spaceflight—bringing permanent off-Earth habitation closer than ever before.