What Starlink Advertises vs What You Get
Starlink's plan pages list maximum speeds: 100 Mbps, 200 Mbps, or 400 Mbps depending on your tier. These are "up to" numbers, and like every ISP, real-world performance is usually lower than the advertised maximum.
Here is what typical Starlink speeds actually look like across different plans and conditions.
Typical Speeds by Plan Tier
Residential 100 Mbps ($50 per month)
Residential 200 Mbps ($80 per month)
Residential MAX ($120 per month)
These numbers assume a properly mounted dish with minimal obstructions. Ground-mounted dishes with tree cover will see significantly lower results on any plan.
What Affects Your Speed
Dish Placement (Biggest Factor)
A dish on the ground behind your house might see 40 to 80 Mbps. The same dish on your roof peak with clear sky might see 150 to 200 Mbps. We have seen this difference on the same property, same plan, same time of day — the only variable was dish height.
This is not an exaggeration. Obstructions force the dish to lose contact with satellites momentarily, over and over, which tanks your average speed even if individual bursts are fast.
Network Congestion
Starlink speeds vary by time of day. The network is shared among all users in your area. Early morning and midday typically deliver the best speeds. Evening hours (when everyone is streaming) are the slowest.
If you live in a densely populated Starlink area, congestion hits harder. Rural areas with fewer Starlink subscribers see less peak-hour degradation.
Your Location
Speed varies by geographic region. Some areas have more ground stations and satellite coverage than others. This is improving as SpaceX adds satellites and ground infrastructure, but it means your neighbor in the next state might have a slightly different experience.
Weather
Heavy rain temporarily reduces speeds, typically by 20 to 50 percent during the heaviest downpour. This recovers within minutes once the rain eases. Light rain has minimal impact.
Wi-Fi vs Ethernet
If you test over Wi-Fi from across the house, your speed test is measuring your Wi-Fi performance, not your Starlink performance. Test over Ethernet connected directly to the router for accurate results.
How Starlink Compares
For rural customers, the relevant comparison is usually:
For most rural addresses, Starlink delivers 5 to 50 times faster speeds than whatever was previously available.
Speed Tips
1. Mount the dish as high as possible. This is worth repeating because it is the single most impactful thing you can do.
2. Upgrade your plan. If you are on the $50 plan and want better peak-hour speeds, the $80 plan offers meaningful improvement for $30 more per month.
3. Use Ethernet. Connect your most important device directly to the router.
4. Test at different times. Run speed tests at 8 AM, 2 PM, and 8 PM to understand your speed range throughout the day.
5. Check obstructions in the Starlink app. Even 1 to 2 percent obstruction affects your average speed.
Setting Realistic Expectations
If you are coming from 5 Mbps DSL, any Starlink plan will feel transformative. If you are comparing Starlink to 500 Mbps fiber, you will notice the difference during peak hours.
Starlink is excellent rural broadband, not a fiber replacement. For the millions of addresses where fiber and cable do not exist, it is the best internet available by a wide margin.
Need help getting the best speeds possible? Book an installation and we will optimize your setup.