(Credit: AdrianHancu via Getty Images)
SpaceX will retire the "portability" add-on for residential Starlink subscribers and migrate affected customers to the slightly pricier "Roam Unlimited" plan, which costs $165 per month.
On Wednesday, SpaceX emailed existing subscribers about ending the portability option on Feb 23. Originally introduced in May 2022, the add-on cost an extra $25 per month and gave residential subscribers a convenient way to use their Starlink dish in more than one location. It effectively gave customers a way to roam when their Starlink residential subscription restricted their service to one address.
(Credit: Reddit user GrandJunctionMarmots)At the time, SpaceX only charged $135 per month for the portability add-on when accounting for the $110 residential Starlink fee. The cost also matched the $135 monthly price for Starlink’s official roam service, which was unveiled only a few weeks later, initially as Starlink RV.
In April 2023, the company removed the portability add-on option for new residential tier customers, limiting it to existing users with an active portability subscription. The company has since been raising the price of the Starlink Roam plan, which is now $165 per month but lets customers use their Starlink dish internationally and even while in motion.
In contrast, customers who still have the portability add-on may have only seen their bill increase to $145 following a price hike for the residential plan last year. In response, some subscribers are complaining about the upcoming change.
"I'm sad about it," wrote one user on Facebook. "The $145 that my grandfathered plan cost was already a lot. We have the option for high speed at home, but travel extensively and Starlink has saved our butts at least once on a trip. I don't want to give it up, but this is a business decision I don't agree with."
Others point out that SpaceX does offer residential subscribers the option to change their service address. But if you live in an area already full of Starlink users, SpaceX warns: “Changing your service address may prevent you from returning to your original address.” In November, the company reactivated the waitlist for Starlink in certain major cities in the US.