SpaceX plans on capping residential Starlink subscribers to 1TB of high-speed data per month in an effort to cut down on network congestion.
SpaceX quietly revealed the plan on Friday by publishing a “Fair Use Policy” for the popular satellite internet service. The document says residential Starlink subscribers in the US will receive 1TB worth of “Priority Access” per month. The company has also uploaded the same fair use policy for subscribers in Canada.
Once the cap is exceeded, the subscriber will be relegated to “Basic Access,” meaning SpaceX can begin throttling speeds if necessary, to reduce network congestion.
“For Residential Service Plans, your data usage will only count toward the Priority Access data limits described in the chart below during 7AM to 11PM (Peak Hours),” the document adds.
The change will most affect data-hungry customers living in congested areas already full of existing Starlink subscribers. SpaceX didn't reveal expected speeds for Basic Access. But the document warns: “In times of network congestion, users with Basic Access may experience slower speeds and reduced performance compared to Priority Access, which may result in degradation or unavailability of certain third-party services or applications. Bandwidth intensive applications, such as streaming videos, are most likely to be impacted.”
Still, residential subscribers can receive more Priority Access — if they pay. SpaceX is going to charge customers $0.25 for each additional GB downloaded over the higher speed tier. To track their monthly data usage and opt in for the additional Priority Access, customers will be able to tap the Starlink app and the company's customer portal page.
SpaceX didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. But in an email sent to customers, the company said the high-speed data caps will be enforced in December for customers in the US and Canada. The email adds that less than 10% of Starlink users exceed 1TB in monthly data usage.
The upcoming change promises to restore broadband quality to Starlink when some users across the US have been experiencing drastically slower speeds. “Starlink is a finite resource that will continue to grow as we launch additional satellites,” the company wrote in the policy document. “To serve the greatest number of people with high speed internet, we must manage the network to balance Starlink supply with user demand.”
The same document also notes residential Starlink customers will receive the Priority Access tier, but not subscribers of Starlink RV and the Starlink Best Effort plans. These users will have to settle for the slower speeds.
Decreased Advertised Speeds Across the Board
But in some bad news for all users, SpaceX has decreased the advertised speeds for Starlink, according to newly published specifications. It now shows expected download speeds for residential Starlink users will only range from 20 to 100Mbps, a significant drop from 50 to 200Mbps. The advertised latency and uploads have also decreased.
Meanwhile, the download speeds for Starlink RV and Best Effort now range from 5 to 50Mbps, a decrease from the previous 5 to 100Mbps rates.
The company is also introducing Priority Access for Starlink business and mobility users, which includes Starlink Maritime and buyers of the new Starlink dish for moving vehicles. For these customers, SpaceX is imposing three different tiers for the high-speed data cap while also charging them more to receive additional data.
As you can see, the caps for Starlink business are 500GB, 1TB, or 3TB per month. Once the cap is exceeded, the company can throttle speeds to 1Mbps. For more priority access, customers have to pay $1 for each additional GB used. Meanwhile, customers on the Starlink mobility plans have to pay $2 for each additional GB used.
