Starlink quickly became a household name all around the world, but it’s an especially well-known brand for people in rural areas. As a satellite internet provider, Elon Musk’s company vowed to bring internet to places where it had never gone before. He’s largely fulfilled that promise with a base service that starts at $499.
Rural areas have always faced a disadvantage when it comes to internet service. Much of rural America still doesn’t have access to internet services at all, and that’s one thing Starlink set out to combat. Their regular service starts with a deposit of just $100, but the premium service is targeted more to businesses in rural areas.
A Pretty Penny
Regular Starlink service isn’t cheap compared to average DSL and cable internet services, but it allows people in isolated areas to have access to the internet at all. Without satellite internet, many areas of the United States would still be blacked out from the world wide web. The latest pricing information on Starlink’s premium subscription service shows that it will cost a pretty penny to install and maintain in rural areas.
Some would argue that Starlink’s costs are going to be described as anything but pretty to customers. The base premium kit starts at $2,500 just to get the equipment up and running. A minimum deposit of $500 is required. Then there’s the $500 monthly subscription fee to contend with, something that comes out to $6,000 a year just to keep blazing fast satellite internet up in rural areas.
Marketed Primarily to Businesses
Standard Starlink customers get their internet at download speeds of about 150 Mbps. Premium customers will enjoy internet at speeds of 150-500 Mbps. Interestingly, that starting number is the same as the standard service, a fact that suggests Starlink may at times offer premium customers the same standard speed and then during slow times ramp up to about 500 Mbps. There’s no official word on that fact yet, though.
Starlink’s website makes no secret of the fact that they don’t think this service will appeal to the average internet user who checks emails and browses websites for just an hour or two a day. The official website for the service believes that premium customers will be “small offices, storefronts, and super users across the globe.”
That last consumer base may or may not ever materialize. Very few people would need 500 Mbps speeds or $6,000+ a year internet, especially those in rural areas where the cost of living and incomes tend to be lower than the national average. However, Starlink was widely questioned when it first began its mission, and people have already signed up for the regular service and continue to take advantage of it to this day.
Look to the Stars
Everything Elon Musk does seems to capture national headlines and change the world in some way, for better or for worse. His SpaceX Starlink mission continues to find a place in headlines year after year. With their first customers already online and browsing at the prices listed, it’s not impossible that their premium service will also eventually take off and find a consumer base.
Traditional internet has had two decades to find its way to rural areas, and the major providers have largely failed to move into those blacked out areas and provide service. What they didn’t do is something Starlink is at least willing to try to do. The service continues its mission to use literal space satellites as a way to bring internet to rural and other isolated areas.
The specifics of Starlink’s premium service are still being outlined and details. The service insists that not only does it offer superior speeds, but it will also deliver superior connectivity and performance during adverse weather events and other challenging conditions. That’s Starlink’s opinion. Only their customers will ultimately know if it’s mission accomplished for Starlink.