On Nov. 10, Starlink quietly published a support page detailing its latest move toward affordability: a $40 monthly plan with no cost for equipment and, in some areas, free installation. That’s half the price of Starlink’s previous entry-level plan.
One catch? You’ll get budget speeds for that budget price. Starlink is capping download speeds at 100Mbps on the new plan, which is dryly dubbed the “Residential 100 Mbps” service plan. There’s no cap on upload speeds, but Starlink’s specifications page lists expected speeds between 15 and 35Mbps.
For a long time, residential Starlink customers only had one option: $120 a month, plus $349 for equipment. But earlier this year, Starlink debuted its Residential Lite plan, which took the monthly price down to $80 in exchange for reduced speeds. (Starlink also offers a $50-per-month Roam plan designed to be used on-the-go with the Starlink Mini dish, but data is capped at 50GB each month.)
Locating local internet providers
Plan Monthly price Typical download speeds Typical upload speeds Residential 100 Mbps $40 80-100Mbps 15–35Mbps Residential Lite $80 80–200Mbps 15–35Mbps Residential $120 135–305Mbps 20–40Mbps
For the three years I’ve been writing about Starlink, I’ve heard the same thing from people in broadband circles. Yes, it is a true game changer for broadband in rural areas, but the reason most people don’t have good internet is that they can’t afford it. Now, it’s offering a price on par with some of the cheapest internet plans out there.
Can you get Starlink's affordable plan?
Where you can actually get the $40 plan is an open question. Starlink's website says that its plans and promotions vary depending on your location and the type of service you have, and that some offers "are only available in certain areas or for specific account types." It goes on to say: "If you don’t see a particular offer in your account, it just means it’s not currently available for your current service location."
Locating local internet providers
On Starlink's residential service website, I checked ten random addresses throughout the country and found only one area where the plan was actually available: a rural town in Nevada. SpaceX, Starlink's owner, did not return my request for more information, but my educated guess is that it’s only offering this plan in areas where Starlink has excess capacity.
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