Starlink charges a $10 monthly hardware fee from a one-time purchase

Starlink has begun charging $10 a month for hardware rentals in exchange for its long-standing practice of selling hardware to customers for one price.

Starlink’s live ordering sites now show a $0 upfront cost and a $10 monthly fee, similar to the hardware rental fees long charged by cable and telecom companies. Starlink equipment also includes a receiver to receive satellite signals and a router to install at the user’s home.

The monthly fee is in addition to the internet charges, which Starlink recently raised and $5 to $10 a month. Starlink charges $55 per month for 100Mbps, $85 for 200Mbps, and $130 for the “Max” tier that can go up to 400Mbps. Starlink also offers professional installation services for a one-time fee of $199, or at no additional cost if you subscribe to the Max plan.

A Starlink support article he said that hardware rental is now “in selected countries” and that “Starlink equipment can be rented for home use.” Customers who rent Starlink devices instead of owning them will not be allowed to do so breathing their service. PCMag report today that the $10 rental fee “seems to be going global, appearing on Starlink.com for new customers in the US, Canada, the UK, France, Australia, and Mexico.”

We didn’t see any option to purchase equipment on Starlink’s subscription page today, but the support article said it was possible to switch from renting to buying. “If you are a current Starlink customer with Starlink rental and want to purchase your device, create a support ticket,” the support message said. Starlink devices are also sold by resellers.