What is Starlink Premium?
SpaceX’s satellite internet service has two tiers, “Starlink” and “Premium.” Starlink Premium is SpaceX’s business-focused version of the satellite internet service. It uses a new “high-performance” terminal that, in addition to higher bandwidth, throughput, and speeds, is more resistant to extreme weather, such as extreme temperatures.
Starlink vs. Starlink Premium
Speeds
On SpaceX’s Starlink Specifications page, the company notes that both Starlink and Starlink Premium offer greater than 99% service availability, 20-40ms of latency, and no data caps. The services differ, however, in download and upload speeds.
Standard Starlink has an expected download speed of 50-250Mbps, and an expected upload speed of 10-20Mbps.
Starlink Premium roughly doubles those speeds, with expected download speeds of 150-500Mbps and expected upload speeds of 20-40Mbps.
Importantly, SpaceX notes on the page:
*Stated speeds and uninterrupted use of Services are not guaranteed. Actual speeds will likely be lower than the maximum speeds during peak usage hours. Starlink may temporarily reduce speeds if our network is congested.
This is perhaps another benefit of Premium, as the Starlink Premium page notes, “Starlink Premium helps ensure bandwidth for critical operations even during times of peak network usage.”
Cost
If after reading about Starlink Premium’s improved speeds you were excited for the potential update, you may want to take a breath and sit down… cause the price is not for the faint of heart. This business-oriented internet service comes with an equally business-oriented price.
The standard Starlink service costs $499 for the hardware and $99 per month.
Starlink Premium is five times more expensive than the standard service, costing $2,500 for the hardware and $500 per month for the service.
When will my Starlink/Starlink Premium arrive?
This is a question that, quite frankly, varies a lot and is hard to answer. Starlink Premium deliveries will start in Q2 2022, but when any specific customer will get their terminal could depend greatly on their location, among myriad other criteria. The best bet to determine when you could get the standard Starlink service is to head over to the Starlink website and input your address to see the date provided. For my area, the estimate is “late 2022.”
It seems reasonable to think that, because Starlink Premium users will be paying so much more, delivery of those terminals could occur faster than standard Starlink.
