It should ideally be built far enough off the seafloor that a Seamoth will not hit the ground when it is deployed, but close enough that a Prawn Suit can easily reach the entrance with its thrusters. It is recommended to have an appropriate amount of space between the bottom entrance of the Moonpool and the sea floor. To reliably charge a vehicle, one Moonpool requires at least 150 Energy, equal to two Solar Panels. The rate of charging at a Moonpool is much faster than if one were to use a Power Cell Charger: this means that docking a Prawn Suit and swapping out its two Power Cells (which the player still has full access to) is superior to building a Power Cell Charger. Docked vehicles will be charged from the base's Energy, restoring an equivalent amount of Energy to the vehicle's Power Cells. It can, however, release vehicles without power.

The Seabase that the Moonpool is attached to must have power (except in Creative Mode) in order to dock vehicles. These can be found in Wrecks or the Mushroom Forest. To unlock the Moonpool Blueprint, the player must scan two of its Fragments. They can also access a Prawn Suit's shoulder-mounted Power Cells, though they will have to jump into the water to access the Power Cell of a Seamoth. From here the player can access the vehicle's upgrade slots and any cargo storage, repair the vehicle, or re-enter the vehicle upon which it is automatically released back into the water. Upon entering the access area, robotic arms will reach down and grab the vehicle out of the water, securing it for charging while a short animation plays of Ryley getting out of the vehicle. The Moonpool can dock one vehicle at a time, and is used by approaching the underside of the structure. It must be placed below water to be useful. It functions as a dock and charging station for a Seamoth or Prawn Suit and is the only room where the Vehicle Upgrade Console can be placed. The Moonpool is a Seabase module which is constructed with the Habitat Builder.

Subnautica cyclops dock