Starlink vs Starlink Business: SpaceX’s Starlink program has garnered attention over the past few years as a most sought-after satellite internet service provider.
The Starlink Internet gives you as a user unlimited data, less latency, and better broadband speeds than most satellite internet providers.
Currently, Starlink has different internet plans for users to choose from.
The most common internet plans are the Starlink Standard and Starlink Business (Previously Starlink Premium).
While these two are popular, they raise a lot of controversies among users.
In the post, we’ll look at Starlink vs Starlink business, outlining their major differences and determining what option best suits your needs.
Starlink vs Starlink Business: Definition
Starlink Standard or Starlink Residential is likely all you require for an at-home connection.
Introduced in October 2020, this service has a stable internet connection but varying speeds depending on cell congestion.
On the contrary, Starlink Business is an internet service released in February 2022, specially for commercial use.
Starlink Business provides higher internet speeds, throughput, and priority support than Starlink Residential.
Starlink vs Starlink Business: Design
The Starlink kit
For Starlink vs. Starlink Business, both come with a Starlink Dish, WiFi router, base unit, power cable, connection cable, and dish mount.
However, Residential Starlink and the Starlink Business have a slight design difference.
Starlink Business has a bigger antenna along with its base and power supply. It also comes with an updated version of the router compared to residential.
The kit has been made sturdier than the residential one and can easily handle bad weather or extreme temperatures.
Starlink vs Starlink Business: Performance
The major difference between Starlink Business and Starlink Residential is internet speeds.
While Starlink Business offers a more reliable connection with high network availability, Starlink Standard has an increased chance of having connectivity challenges.
Here are the differences between these two plans:
Download Speeds
The Starlink Business has a faster download speed compared to the Starlink residential. It downloads at about 350 Mbps, while Starlink residential download speeds range between 5–200 Mbps.
SpaceX had initially designed Starlink Business to consider government offices and bigger organizations. It is thus a better choice for businesses that need faster speeds to support their operations.
Upload Speeds
Starlink Residential has about 10–20 Mbps upload speeds. It is nothing compared to Starlink Business, which can handle much heavier loads with its 20-40 Mbps upload speeds.
Latency
The Starlink Residential and the Starlink Business latency are generally the same. These services have a very low latency of 20-40 ms on terrestrial connections. Meaning you can livestream or play online video games without any lag.
Data Caps
There are no hard data caps for Starlink Residential and Starlink Business. Your internet connection will never get cut off by Starlink, and you do not need to worry about throttling when streaming or playing games online.
Starlink, however, will deprioritize your internet speeds once you exceed a certain data cap limit. With Starlink Residential, the deprioritization varies depending on your package.
For Starlink Business, Starlink will begin deprioritizing your data if you exceed the 1 TB cap.
Additionally, Residential users may have to tolerate slower speeds during peak hours of network congestion. It is so that higher-priority customers (Starlink Business users, in this case) can get faster speeds.
Starlink vs Starlink Business: Pricing and Cost
The Starlink Residential initial hardware cost is $599, a one-time payment.
On the other hand, Starlink Business’s initial hardware cost is $2,500, almost five times the price of the Starlink Residential kit.
Starlink Residential goes for a monthly fee of $110, while Starlink Business costs can get as high as $500 per month, based on your data plan.
Typically, business users have three options when it comes to monthly charges:
- $250 per month for 1 TB
- $500 per month for 2 TB
- $1,500 per month for 5 TB
Starlink Business is very costly compared to Starlink Residential because of the services and internet speeds it offers.
Also, if you purchase multiple Starlink Business kits, you can get a discount on both the hardware and the monthly subscription.
Starlink vs Starlink Business: Pros and Cons
Pros and cons Metaphor
Starlink Residential
| Pros | Cons |
| Low monthly cost of the internet service | Limited availability |
| Has fast speeds and unlimited data | |
| No contracts required | |
| No cancellation fees | |
| Has lower latency |
Starlink Business
| Pros | Cons |
| Has fast upload and download speeds with unlimited data | Very costly hardware for satellite internet |
| No contracts required | The technology of low earth orbit can affect the internet service |
| The affordable monthly cost of internet services | |
| Allow unlimited users at the same time. | |
| No cancellation fee is charged. |
Starlink vs Starlink Business: Which One Is Best?
Starlink kit with Starlink software
Choosing Starlink Residential or Starlink Business depends on your requirements and internet use scale.
Starlink Business can be a good option if you are operating a government office or running a big business and require faster broadband.
However, if you want a connection for your home, Starlink Residential is a good fit.
Here are some ways to help you pick the right Starlink service.
Pick Starlink Residential if:
- It would be best if you had an internet connection to do light activities such as video streaming, browsing, and calls
- Your internet activities don’t involve data-intensive tasks such as editing videos
- You want the cheapest Starlink internet plan
- You don’t have a huge family or one that needs all of them connected at the same time
Pick Starlink Business if:
- The employees or users connecting are many
- It would be best if you had the fastest possible internet speeds
- Internet connection reliability is a major priority
- You need dedicated priority support
- You need a public IPv4 address
- Paying more for priority data is not an issue
Conclusion
From the above, it is clear that Starlink Residential and Business plans are tailored primarily for different usage needs.
Starlink proves more favorable if you’re looking for a cost-effective internet service with low data caps.
However, Starlink Business emerges superior if your premise wants faster Internet access without limitations in terms of data cap.