This guide is my subjective opinion on how useful each default recipe is, as a companion to my alternate recipe tier list. Parts that only have a single recipe (i.e. A.I. Expansion Server) will not be included, because you have to use it anyway. The purpose of the guide is to make it more obvious when you should start looking for/scanning drives. if a particular default recipe is really terrible, you may wish to start scanning them right away rather than hoarding them for later, or making only the amount of production you need instead of going large-scale.

The tier is not a commentary on the usefulness of the actual part itself, which may be extremely important or fairly useless. For example, the Cable default recipe is poor, but you must make use of it heavily in the early game.

Parts in this tier have default recipes so good, you never need to even claim the alternate at all.

• Battery - Why someone would need Classic Battery, I don't particularly know.
  
• Empty Canister - Plastic is very efficient at making them compared to the other materials, and I can't think of situations where you wouldn't have access to it near where you would have to package things.
  
• Encased Plutonium Cell - Uses more Nuclear Waste - that is a good thing.
  
• Ionized Fuel - Quite a bit cheaper in Rocket Fuel.
  
• Stator - Compared to its alternate recipe, it is even more efficient with Caterium if you are using Caterium Wire. It can also be fed wire from numerous other recipes, rather than being limited only to Caterium. A win-win!
  
• Non-Fissile Uranium - You will likely always want to use this.

Default recipes in this tier are pretty good, and you rarely have to use the alternate outside of extenuating circumstances.

• Aluminum Casing - Alclad Casing should rarely be needed here unless you're really desperate for Aluminum.
  
• Aluminum Ingot - Still technically "the best" recipe if you have a ready supply of Silica there.
  
• Fused Modular Frame - It may produce less per building, but also uses less Nitrogen Gas.
  
• Motor - Both alt types of motors are significantly more complex to make, which may not outweigh the resource-heaviness of the default recipe.
  
• Plutonium Fuel Rod - Fuel Unit is just more resource-intensive, despite its simplicity. Given how unnecessary getting more Plutonium Fuel Rods is, it's not a priority.
  
• Quickwire - It does pretty well on its own even without having to use Fused.

Default recipes in this tier are not bad, but have alt recipes that are a bit better than them that you will likely wish to claim if you come across them.

• AI Limiter - The default recipe is decently worse, but is very easy to swap out later since it shares one of the ingredients and only uses two of them.
  
• Aluminum Scrap - Not terrible, even though Electrode Aluminum Scrap is undeniably better.
  
• Automated Wiring - Actually pretty good if you don't have Silicon High-Speed Connector. When you do get it, it becomes significantly worse.
  
• Black Powder - While its alt version is better late game when you can fuel it with Rocket Fuel output, for most of the game it is pointless to replace.
  
• Cooling System - You may eventually need to use Cooling Device if you run out of Nitrogen, but it isn't terrible to begin with, and definitely simpler.
  
• Electromagnetic Control Rod - Another one that depends a lot on if you have various alt recipes.
  
• Modular Frame - Actually not that bad if you get Steel Rod, but you may just want to get Steeled Frame for the convenience factor and higher production.
  
• Plastic/Rubber - The other forms of making it are a bit better when you have the right alt recipes, but the default method is not horrendous.
  
• Smart Plating - While Plastic Smart Plating is undeniably an upgrade, the default method is not terrible.
  
• Versatile Framework - Similar to Smart Plating, the alt recipe is a decent, but not stunningly large upgrade.

Default recipes in this tier are not great. They are a moderate priority to replace right away.

• Alumina Solution - The low output is bad, and the necessity to build extra infrastructure to merge in the Silica downstream can be annoying. It is advisable to look for Sloppy Alumina as soon as feasible.
  
• Circuit Board - Use something else... anything else.
  
• Copper Sheet - The only reason it's not D-Tier is that you shouldn't be using that many of them, so it's not as high a priority to replace, if you even do.
  
• Encased Industrial Beam - Compared to its alternate, it's lackluster, though it may become better late-game with Aluminum Beam in play.
  
• Fabric - The annoying Mycelia requirement means you will likely want to replace it with Polyester Fabric at some point.
  
• Fuel - Diluted Fuel is purely better, but the standard recipe's often enough to get you through until you unlock Blenders.
  
• Iron Plate - Coated Iron Plate is massively better, but you unlock it only in Tier 5 and later.
  
• Iron Rod - By the time you are able to phase it out, you probably won't even need it any more?
  
• Silica - Cheap Silica is much better.
  
• Steel Ingot - Certainly lackluster compared to Solid Steel Ingot.

The worst of the worst default recipes. Don't use if you can help it, and start searching drives right away to replace them with something better.

• Cable - Terrible, unfortunately you can only replace it in Tier 5 and onwards, so get ready to waste plenty of Wire before then.
  
• Caterium Ingot - Any of the alt recipes is a large improvement, but you can only replace it in Tier 5 and onwards.
  
• Computer - Run far, far away from its minuscule manufacturing speed.
  
• Concrete - You can get Fine Concrete extremely early in the game, so there is no excuse for using the default.
  
• Copper Ingot - The only time you should use this is when you have to use it.
  
• Crystal Oscillator - I would get Insulated Crystal Oscillator before even trying to start production of these if at all possible.
  
• Dark Matter Crystal - Yes, it consumes less power, but the SAM you need is essentially double compared to the alt recipe Dark Matter Trap, which is what really matters here.
  
• Diamonds - Well, you can't say it won't help the Coal mining industry.
  
• Encased Uranium Cell - Uses more Uranium - that is a bad thing.
  
• Heat Sink - Ick, needs so much Copper, get it away...
  
• Heavy Modular Frame - Revenge of the Screws!
  
• High-Speed Connector - Uses far too much Quickwire.
  
• Iron Ingot - Nope, I don't like that.
  
• Wire - Should be swapped ASAP with Caterium Wire, even Iron Wire is better but not by as much.
  
• Quartz Crystal - It should eventually be swapped, although Fused Quartz Crystal is not incredible, and it's typically best to wait until Phase 5 for the far better Pure Quartz Crystal.
  
• Radio Control Unit - Wowza, it's crazy how bad this is compared to Radio Control System.
  
• Reinforced Iron Plate - Stitched Iron Plate is an immediate and large upgrade. It does get slightly better once you get Steel Screws, but not enough to merit going back to it...
  
• Rotor - Another lackluster one due to its usage of not one, but two phase-out-able parts.
  
• Screws - Replacing them with Steel Screws is tremendously preferable, if you're still using them.
  
• Steel Beam - Very horrendous.
  
• Steel Pipe - Not actually that bad, but given how much you will likely need to make, it's still best to optimize it as much as possible with Molded Steel Pipe.
  
• Supercomputer - The less that can be said about the default Supercomputer recipe, the better. That is some heinously low output.
  
• Turbo Motor - Also very poor due to the large consumption of Cooling Systems, and, therefore, Nitrogen, despite low output.
  
• Uranium Fuel Rod - Uranium Fuel Unit is always preferable.