Airlines are using in-flight connectivity to differentiate their service and create brand value
Just as hotels have progressively integrated Wi-Fi connectivity as a standard amenity for their guests, in-flight Wi-Fi is transitioning from a novelty to a convenience to an expected service.
Reflecting this increasing expectation, the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) this year incorporated “Quality of in-flight Wi-Fi” into its benchmarks for the airline industry. In-flight Wi-Fi placed 21st out of the 21 benchmarks, ranking lower than baggage handling, seat comfort, and even airline food.
To assess this performance, we analyzed our Speedtest data collected during Q1 2025. We examined performance for individual airlines and for in-flight connectivity service providers.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
In-flight Wi-Fi for the majority of users compares very poorly with their experience on terrestrial networks
Hawaiian Airlines and Qatar Airways stand out as the best performing airlines based on our data
Starlink’s low-earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation drives performance for leading airline Wi-Fi
Expect airlines to ramp up their efforts — in-flight connectivity can be a key point of differentiation for travelers, helps support the premium brand value that many international airlines aspire to create, and is an opportunity to monetize a literally captive audience
In-flight Wi-Fi Speed and Latency Performance by Airline
Speedtest data, Q1 2025, airlines sorted by median
Hawaiian Airlines and Qatar Airways use Starlink’s low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation to deliver their inflight Wi-Fi, resulting in download speeds and upload speeds and latency that are better than the other airlines.
Many other airlines are also providing very usable speeds. Spirit Airlines, Air Canada, Delta Airlines, Breeze Airlines, American Airlines and Aeromexico all provide 10th percentile (where 90% of the results are faster) download speeds above 10 megabits per second (Mbps) and very respectable median download speeds. Furthermore, upload speeds on most of these airlines tend to support basic uplink connectivity needs like emailing. However, when the upload speed is observed alongside the many high-latency results, real-time uses like gaming or video calling are likely not possible (to the relief of all other passengers).
Lufthansa, at the other end of the download speed ranking, is limited by the Deutsche Telekom LTE ground-to-air network. While Lufthansa may offer other connectivity options, our data shows a significant number of its passengers are still connecting via this poorer-performing service.
Likewise, given the premium brand reputation of carriers like Japan Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and Cathay Pacific, they likely offer better-performing connectivity services on other aircraft. However, as with Lufthansa, our data reveals that a notable portion of their passengers are still encountering a substandard Wi-Fi experience.
Qatar Airways presents additional insight as, along with Starlink as one of its connectivity service providers, it also operates planes with geo-stationary orbit GEO connectivity. This is most evident in the multiserver latency results. While Qatar’s median latency is similar to Hawaiian Airlines, its 10th percentile (the laggiest experience) is much higher, keeping it in the company of other GEO-supported airlines.
Connectivity Service Providers
In our Speedtest samples of in-flight connectivity service providers we collect a mix of GEO, LEO, medium earth orbit (MEO), multi-orbit / hybrid network providers, and even ground-based LTE. Furthermore, the category includes satellite service integrators. These integrators do not own or operate their own satellite constellations. Instead they partner with satellite operators for capacity while managing the business relationship with the airline, including installing and managing the in-flight connectivity system on the aircraft.
In-flight Connectivity Service Providers and Associated Airlines
Deutsche Telekom
Air France, Cathay Pacific, Condor, Lufthansa
Hughes (SES)
Spirit Airlines
Inmarsat (Viasat)
Air New Zealand, Qatar Airways
Intelsat
Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, United Airlines
MTN Satellite Communications
Southwest Airlines
Nelco (PAC/Intelsat)
Air India
Panasonic Avionics Corporation
Aer Lingus, Air France, American Airlines, ANA, Asiana Airlines, British Airways, Etihad Airways, EVA Air, Fiji Airways, Finnair, Iberia Airlines, ITA Airways, Japan Airlines, KLM, Korean Air, Malaysian Airlines, Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, SWISS Airlines, TAP Air Portugal, Thai Airlines, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, VoeAzul, WestJet, Zipair Tokyo
SITA Switzerland
Qatar Airways
SpaceX Starlink
Hawaiian Airlines, Qatar Airways
Türk Telekom
Turkish Airlines
Viasat
Aeromexico, American Airlines, Breeze Airlines, Delta Airlines, EL AL Airlines, Icelandair, JetBlue, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic
* Based on Speedtest data samples, Q1 2025; not based on active or announced partnerships
Deutsche Telekom is in the European Aviation Network, a hybrid network that combines a GEO satellite from Viasat/Inmarsat with a ground-based LTE network across Europe.
Hughes, an EchoStar company, provides GEO satellite internet for consumers and enterprises. In late 2022 it began offering “Hughes Fusion,” a multi-orbit in-flight connectivity solution that can simultaneously communicate with both GEO and LEO satellites. Hughes frequently collaborates with European satellite operator SES, a GEO and MEO provider.
Intelsat provides in-flight connectivity through its fleet of GEO satellites and offers a multi-orbit solution that combines its GEO network with access to a LEO constellation. Intelsat is in the process of being acquired by SES.
MTN Satellite Communications, primarily known for its services in the maritime and remote land-based sectors, also provides in-flight connectivity. The company leverages capacity from various satellite operators across different orbits, both GEO and LEO.
Nelco, a Tata Group enterprise, has partnered with Intelsat to offer its GEO-based connectivity services to airlines operating in Indian airspace.
Panasonic Avionics Corporation (PAC) – a provider of in-flight entertainment and connectivity systems, does not operate its own satellite constellation. Instead, it partners with various satellite operators, including those with GEO and LEO networks (eg, EutelsatOneWeb), to offer multi-orbit connectivity service to airline customers.
SITA Switzerland, a multinational information technology company, partners with satellite network operators, to deliver passenger broadband.
SpaceX Starlink is rapidly expanding its LEO satellite network, offering high-speed, low-latency internet service to airlines, and is being adopted by several carriers.
Türk Telekom has been providing in-flight connectivity through partnerships including Panasonic Avionics.
Viasat operates a constellation of high-capacity GEO satellites. Its services are used by numerous airlines globally. Viasat acquired Inmarsat, another GEO satellite network, in May 2023.
In-flight Wi-Fi Speed and Latency Performance by Connectivity Service Provider
Speedtest data, Q1 2025, provider sorted by median
The advantages of its dense LEO constellation compared to the GEOs make SpaceX’s Starlink the clear standout in speeds and latency. Its medians are 152.37 Mbps download speed, 24.16 Mbps upload speed, and 44 milliseconds (ms) multi-server latency.
Hughes and Intelsat, with their multi-orbit offering, deliver solid median download speeds – 84.55 Mbps and 61.61 Mbps, respectively. Viasat performs well on download speed, too, at 50.38 Mbps, given it is a GEO provider.
On the other end of the scale, the LTE ground network of Deutsche Telekom delivers a minimally usable median download speed of 4.14 Mbps. Passengers on these flights may have access to GEO services (which, for example, we see in our data with Air France, though not in sufficient sample size to include in this article), but, as stated above, given we record Speedtest samples on Deutsche Telekom means that passengers are connecting with very slow internet speeds.
Looking more closely at slower download speeds, the 10th percentile reveals a similar pattern to the median, with Starlink still performing well at 65.31 Mbps, and Hughes and Viasat still managing usable download speeds of 28.29 Mbps and 12.78 Mbps, respectively. The rest of the provider speeds tail off and down into the single-digit Mbps, and raises a question: is it the satellite constellation capacity or the onboard Wi-Fi technology (or both) that is the limiting factor? The question of onboard Wi-Fi technology is taken up in the conclusion to this research article.
Examining the uplink, besides Starlink at 24.16 Mbps, only Intelsat provides adequate median upload speeds at 9.96 Mbps. Next, Panasonic Avionics, Turk Telekom (also PAC) and Nelco (also PAC) neatly cluster – 3.65, 3.40 and 2.60 Mbps, respectively – followed by Deutsche Telekom at 2.53 Mbps.
Latency is the starkest separation between LEO and GEO, which is obvious given the orbital altitude differences in distance between them is roughly 60 times or more. Bearing this in mind, Starlink’s median multiserver latency of 44 ms would otherwise seem an outlier compared with all other providers, ranging from 667 ms to 839 ms.
Nowhere to go but up
In-flight connectivity isn’t seamless. Depending on airline routes or models of airplanes, different connectivity service providers may be used (or occasionally restricted by governments when crossing over certain territories). Moreover, old equipment on and in the airplanes takes time and expense to upgrade.
However, the upgrades are happening as many airlines see value and opportunity to provide extended services, along with better Wi-FI. For example, United Airlines is not just moving its entire fleet to Starlink for better performance, but also to deepen its customer loyalty relationships. “Access will be free for all MileagePlus customers and includes game-changing inflight entertainment experiences like streaming services, shopping, gaming and more.” SAS is also working with Starlink to enhance its “gate-to-gate” connectivity and offer free high-speed Wi-Fi by the end of this year.
Not all airlines are selecting Starlink. Also announced this year, American Airlines has aligned itself with Viasat and Intelsat, while Delta has gotten on board with Viasat and Hughes, deplaning Intelsat.
Another example of improvement, this time inside the airplane, is Panasonic Avionics offering Wi-Fi 6E. Wi-Fi 6E adds the 6 GHz frequency band to prior Wi-Fi generations (that offered 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz), which has more channels and less interference than older Wi-Fi devices.
Finally, competition is heating up. The likes of Project Kuiper and, perhaps, AST SpaceMobile will add new LEO options, where we see the leading LEO Starlink performing very well in our Speedtest data. Intention to provide “direct-to-device” connectivity to wireless customers from the mobile network operators, helps support the scale of the capital-intensive business case for launching rockets and orbiting satellites.
Watch this space
We will be revisiting this topic soon with updated information and insights. If you are an airline or an in-flight connectivity service provider, we’d like to hear from you to ensure we’re capturing and reflecting your passengers’ Wi-Fi connection experience.
Ookla assists ISPs, venue owners, and companies in designing Wi-Fi networks, monitoring their performance, and optimizing them. Please contact us to learn more about Speedtest Intelligence and Ekahau.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Kerry Baker leads Ookla's research and content efforts in North America. He has over 20 years experience in the telecom industry, primarily at T-Mobile studying network performance benchmarking and customer experience. Kerry also has founder’s experience with four technology-related startups. Kerry holds masters degrees from the University of Washington in Business and International Political Economics.
Speedtest data highlights the early usage of T-Mobile’s T-Satellite service, which works on most new iOS and Android smartphones released in the past 2-4 years. The service is available to T-Mobile customers as well as customers of AT&T, Verizon and other providers.
Editor’s note: This article was updated on October 17 to include information about devices connecting to Starlink that also registered as having active service.
T-Mobile first announced its satellite plans with partner SpaceX in August 2022, just before Apple unveiled its own satellite partnership with Globalstar. Fast forward to 2025 and T-Mobile officially launched its satellite texting service with SpaceX on July 23.
Now, Ookla Speedtest® data provides a look at the early usage of T-Mobile’s T-Satellite service across T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon and FirstNet users. (FirstNet is for public-safety customers and runs over AT&T’s network.) The below data is derived from Android smartphones that registered with SpaceX Starlink satellites at some point between December 2024 and September 2025.
Key Takeaways:
T-Mobile customers accounted for roughly 60% of all connections. When only counting devices that reported having active service at the time of their Starlink connection, that figure rose to 70.8%.
Los Angeles County, California, was the country’s most popular location for T-Satellite activity. This massive county contains both the city of Los Angeles and Angeles National Forest, an area known for its rugged mountains, steep canyons and extensive trail systems. It’s also where T-Mobile deployed free T-Satellite text messaging services in the early days of 2025, amid multiple wildfires.
The median download and upload speeds of Starlink’s fixed internet service showed no signs of degradation amid the testing and launch of T-Mobile’s T-Satellite service this year. That’s likely due to the fact that Starlink’s smartphone-capable satellites are different from those supporting its fixed internet service.
T-Satellite Rockets into the Commercial Marketplace
Direct to device (D2D) technology connects smartphones directly to satellites for text messaging and other services, primarily in outdoor, rural areas where no other connections exist. Those satellites are hundreds of miles above the Earth, traveling thousands of miles an hour. Thus, such phone-to-satellite connections represent an impressive technological feat considering standard, terrestrial cellular networks connect smartphones to stationary cell towers that are on the ground, usually just a few miles away.
Apple, via Globalstar’s satellites and spectrum holdings, pioneered the D2D market. Every iPhone since the iPhone 14, introduced in 2022, can send and receive text messages through these satellites. In September, Apple expanded D2D into its lineup of smartwatches.
But Apple isn’t the only D2D player to achieve liftoff.
T-Mobile first unveiled its satellite ambitions in 2022, via a public press conference featuring outgoing T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert and SpaceX’s Elon Musk. The companies promised a service that could connect smartphones directly to SpaceX’s Starlink satellites via a sliver of T-Mobile’s licensed spectrum holdings. Unlike Apple and Globalstar’s offering, this setup doesn’t require users to purchase a new phone.
SpaceX began launching satellites in support of its D2D service starting in early 2024.
Then, in February of 2025, T-Mobile launched a beta test of its SpaceX-powered T-Satellite text messaging service, complete with a high-profile Super Bowl advertisement. Importantly, T-Mobile offered the beta service for free, for three months, to its own customers as well as customers of its rivals, AT&T and Verizon. T-Mobile said it gradually added users to the service as part of its testing efforts, eventually gaining 2 million signups for the beta and 30,000 daily users, including “hundreds of thousands” of customers from AT&T and Verizon.
Finally, T-Mobile commercially launched its T-Satellite messaging service in July 2025, with around 650 Starlink satellites. The offering is now available at no extra cost to T-Mobile customers on the operator’s Experience Beyond plan (which starts at $100 per month). For other customers – including T-Mobile customers on other plans, as well as those of AT&T and Verizon – it’s available for an extra $10 per month. Non-T-Mobile customers can access the service via an eSIM.
Ookla Speedtest data captured throughout 2025 shows growing interest in T-Satellite:
Weekly Count of Devices Connected to Starlink D2D
From Speedtest data, December 2024 – September 2025
This is a chart that shows the growth of T-Mobile's T-Satellite.
As of September 2025, T-Mobile customers remained the biggest group of users connecting to SpaceX’s D2D satellites. But AT&T customers also show links to those satellites:
Percent share of Starlink D2D Device Connections, Active and Non Active Devices
From Speedtest data, December 2024 – September 2025
This is a chart that shows Starlink D2D Device connections. AT&T: 34%. T-Mobile: 60.9%
However, when only counting the Android devices that reported having active service (rather than counting both devices with active service as well as devices without) the figures are a bit different:
Percent share of Starlink D2D Connections on Devices with Active Service
From Speedtest data, December 2024 – October 2025
This fluctuation may simply be due to the fact that D2D is a relatively new technology and therefore device settings may vary depending on the gadget’s make, model, and operator settings.
Also, it’s possible that Verizon customers aren’t showing as much interest in T-Satellite because of Verizon’s 2024 agreement with Skylo. Skylo doesn’t operate its own satellites, but it does purchase connectivity from those that do, including Viasat, Ligado Networks, TerreStar and EchoStar.
Verizon began offering Skylo-powered text messaging in emergency situations in January 2025 on Samsung Galaxy S25 series smartphones. Since then it has added support for newer Google Pixel phones, and it expanded the service into regular, nonemergency situations.
AT&T, meanwhile, has an agreement with satellite operator AST SpaceMobile. That company hopes to begin offering intermittent satellite connections to AT&T and Verizon customers starting later this year. AST SpaceMobile has promised more continuous service in 2026 as it adds more satellites to its planned constellation.
National Forests and National Parks are Top Locations for D2D Users
This interactive map displays the locations where Speedtest data showed a Starlink D2D connection over the course of 2025:
And here is a list of the top five U.S. counties by total D2D device connections over the course of 2025:
Los Angeles County, California
Larimer County, Colorado
Teton County, Wyoming
Mohave County, Arizona
Mineral County, Montana
That Los Angeles County is the most popular location for T-Satellite D2D connections is interesting. Although the city of Los Angeles sits in the southern portion of Los Angeles County, California, the Angeles National Forest sits in the northern part. This remote area contains several wilderness zones, including the Cucamonga Wilderness, Magic Mountain Wilderness, and Pleasant View Ridge Wilderness, as well as a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail.
Cellular coverage throughout the northern portion of Los Angeles County is poor or nonexistant:
Los Angeles County has also been the scene of several major wildfires this year, including the Palisades and Eaton Fires in January 2025. In one of its first public D2D forays, T-Mobile delivered free Starlink D2D messaging to 198,000 users in areas affected by those January wildfires.
Other top D2D locations in the U.S. feature geographic characteristics similar to that of Los Angeles County. For example, Larimer County, Colorado, is located in the northern part of the state and contains parts of Rocky Mountain National Park and Roosevelt National Forest. Similarly, Teton County, Wyoming, is the home of Grand Teton National Park and a significant portion of Yellowstone National Park. And Mohave County, Arizona, includes parts of Grand Canyon National Park, Lake Mead National Recreation Area and the Mojave Desert. All of these areas sport at least some cellular dead zones.
D2D Connections are Relatively Rare
National forests and national parks are vacation destinations, visited occasionally. Based on Ookla Speedtest data, U.S. users are in reach of a cellular network the vast majority of the time.
Percent Time Spent Without Service
From Speedtest data, Full-Year 2024
This is a chart that shows percewnt time spent without service. AT&T T-Mobile and Verizon it's about 62% on Verizon for 4G, 27% for T-Mobile. For 5G it's 34% for Verizon and 69% for T-Mobile and 60% for AT&T. And it's like 2% for time spent with no service.
This data reflects the fact that homes, offices, coffee shops, schools and other familiar locations – in cities and towns with cellular coverage – are where most users spend the bulk of their time. It also highlights the impressive coverage provided by the 651,000 cell sites around the U.S. These sites – from massive cell towers to small cells atop light posts – cover most populated areas (while Wi-Fi covers most indoor locations).
The 2.79% of the time when the average U.S. user isn’t connected to a cellular network is where the D2D market can play. Clearly, 2.79% is a relatively small slice of time, but it may also represent the hours when an internet connection might be the most useful. Whether it’s a flat tire in the middle of nowhere or a broken ankle on a mountainside, users may place a value on a D2D satellite connection far in excess of the time they actually spend on it.
For example, in a recent survey of around 1,000 smartphone users, the financial analysts at TD Cowen found that more than 60% would pay at least $5 per month for some kind of satellite D2D service. That’s worth an additional $3 billion in additional annualized revenue for the U.S. wireless industry.
This is why so many companies are investing into the D2D industry. Lynk Global, AST SpaceMobile, Viasat and Iridium are among the companies planning or building satellite constellations for D2D services. Others, like Amazon’s Kuiper, may add D2D capabilities to their satellites at a later date.
That said, D2D market leaders aren’t standing still. SpaceX recently inked a $17 billion deal to acquire spectrum from EchoStar to help expand its D2D service beyond text messaging. And Apple is plowing $1.7 billion into its satellite partner Globalstar for the construction of a new satellite constellation with as-yet-unannounced capabilities.
SpaceX may have Big Plans for Starlink and D2D
SpaceX has been using its rocket-launching business to build out its Starlink satellite internet constellation, which now stretches across 8,000 satellites and roughly 7 million global fixed internet customers. SpaceX’s rockets add satellites to Starlink’s constellation on an almost daily basis.
However, Starlink’s D2D satellites are separate and apart from those dedicated to the company’s fixed internet business (although both types of satellites share the same backhaul links). This is why Starlink’s fixed internet speeds in the U.S. haven’t been affected by the testing and launch of T-Mobile’s T-Satellite service.
Starlink's U.S. Fixed Internet Monthly Performance
Speedtest Intelligence, January 2024 – August 2025
This is a chart that shows the growth in speeds of Starlink fixed internet. It was like 129 Mbps in August 2025.
This is important because SpaceX has so far received $478 million in grants from the U.S. government’s Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. That money is intended to bring fixed internet connections to almost 300,000 rural locations across the U.S.
Starlink’s D2D business currently runs over about 650 satellites. When those satellites orbit beyond the borders of the U.S., they’re used by other cellular operators in Starlink’s Direct to Cell program including Rogers (Canada), Optus (Australia), Telstra (Australia), KDDI (Japan), Entel (Chile & Peru) and Kyivstar (Ukraine). The service has proven so popular that New Zealand mobile operator One has reportedly expanded the amount of licensed spectrum it will run through Starlink’s satellites from 5 MHz to 15 MHz. And Starlink recently claimed 7 million D2D users globally.
But satellite-powered text messaging isn’t the end of Starlink’s D2D ambitions. Already T-Mobile and other Starlink partners are beginning to deploy some early data services. For T-Satellite users, those data services are restricted to select smartphone apps including AccuWeather, AllTrails, Google Maps, Google Messages, onX Backcountry, WhatsApp, X and Apple apps like Maps, Messages and Music. And T-Mobile is working to temper early users’ expectations.
“Satellite connections aren’t always instant – because satellites move overhead, your phone may need a moment to find one,” T-Mobile warns. “If you don’t see signal right away, just give it a little time and try again. This isn’t high speed data, but it’s built for what matters most off grid.”
SpaceX is working to speed things up. With the $17 billion in spectrum it purchased from EchoStar, SpaceX says it expects to ultimately provide D2D data speeds generally comparable to those on 4G LTE networks. According to Ookla Speedtest Intelligence, 4G operators in the U.S. provided 33 Mbps median download speeds and 4 Mbps median upload speeds in 2024.
SpaceX has already asked the FCC for permission to launch as many as 15,000 D2D satellites in pursuit of this objective. The company must also work with phone vendors to ensure its new spectrum licenses are supported in future phones.
Should existing cellular operators worry about all this? Maybe, according to SpaceX’s Elon Musk. When asked whether Starlink could become a global phone carrier in the future, “that would be one of the options,” Musk replied. But he added that “we’re not going to put the other carriers out of business. They’re still going to be around because they own a lot of spectrum. But yes, you should be able to have Starlink like you have an AT&T, or T-Mobile, or Verizon or whatever.”
When asked the same question in a different venue, SpaceX’s Gwynne Shotwell was a little more circumspect: “We will be initiating discussions with telcos in a different way now,” she said. “It’s our spectrum, but we want to work with them, almost providing wholesale capacity to their customers. We have to work with the device manufacturers, the chip companies, and working with telcos on the end game. It’s really exciting, but it’s a huge amount of work.”
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
SpaceX’s Starlink internet service is the clear leader among consumer-oriented satellite internet providers in Latin America. Indeed, the company accounted for 98.2% of all consumer-oriented, satellite-based Speedtests conducted throughout the region in the third quarter of 2025.
But success invites competition. Starlink continues to push against established satellite internet providers Viasat and HughesNet. And soon it will face even more competition when Amazon Leo commercially launches service later this year.
Regardless, rural internet users throughout Latin America stand to benefit: The median download speed available through a satellite internet connection – across all consumer-oriented satellite internet providers – rose from 29.12 Mbps in the first quarter of 2023 to 72.01 Mbps in the third quarter of 2025.
Key takeaways:
Starlink consistently provided faster download and upload speeds throughout Latin America when compared with other satellite operators offering internet services to consumers between the first quarter of 2023 and the third quarter of 2025. Starlink’s median download speeds across the region reached 82.54 Mbps in the third quarter of 2025, above Viasat’s 32.73 Mbps and 15.93 Mbps from HughesNet. In some cases, Starlink’s median download speeds were also competitive with those from local fixed internet providers, such as in the Dominican Republic. But in other countries, like Chile, Starlink’s median download speeds were around a third of those provided by local fixed internet providers in the third quarter of 2025.
Starlink’s network performance has improved across many different Latin American countries. For example, its median download speeds have been on the upswing in Chile, Mexico, Brazil, and the Dominican Republic (the company’s first four Latin American markets) since the beginning of 2025. And in the third quarter of 2025, the company’s latency speeds improved in countries like Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, likely due to the installation of new ground stations and other terrestrial infrastructure in that specific region.
Competition is poised to rise in the Latin American market for consumer-oriented satellite internet service. While Starlink plans upgrades to its own system, so too are existing providers like Viasat and HughesNet. Meanwhile, newcomers like Amazon Leo promise to provide alternatives.
Starlink lands in Latam
According to the GSMA’s Mobile Connectivity Index, significant portions of Latin America’s residents live in rural areas. In Brazil, the region’s largest country by population, 12% of residents lived in such areas in 2024. In Mexico, that figure was 18%. In Colombia and Peru, it was 21%. And in Bolivia, it was 29%.
Obviously this can create challenges for Latin Americans on the hunt for high-speed internet access. For example, one study from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) found that 2,817 schools in Guatemala lacked adequate connectivity. The groups acknowledged that satellites are the only feasible technological option that could bring all of those schools online.
That said, satellites still represent a tiny fraction of the overall market for broadband services in Latin America. According to one estimate, satellite internet services in the region generated $562 million in revenues in 2024 – or around 1% of the estimated $56 billion generated by the region’s broadband services (including fiber and mobile) in 2024. That figure dovetails with recent numbers from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which calculated that satellites accounted for 1% of fixed broadband subscriptions across all OECD countries at the end 2024.
Starlink and other satellite internet providers could help grow these numbers. Already Starlink’s Speedtest samples across Latin America have increased by more than 4x during the past 11 quarters.
Starlink’s Latin American growth is underpinned by the 10,000 low Earth orbit (LEO) Starlink satellites launched via SpaceX rockets since 2019. In 2025 alone, SpaceX has conducted more than 100 Starlink satellite launch missions. According to the GSMA, Starlink now controls up to 90% of the world’s communication satellites (excluding the three major Chinese constellations).
In early November 2025, Starlink said it provided connections to a total of 8 million people globally. That’s up from the 7 million mark Starlink reported at the end of August 2025 – a 14% increase in its customer base in just 69 days.
According to local telecom regulators, Starlink counted a total of 425,514 customers across Brazil and Mexico (Latin America’s two most populous countries) toward the end of last year. That would account for around 10% of the 4 million people Starlink counted in its global customer base at that time.
Starlink first began offering services in Latin America in 2021, starting with Chile (in September 2021) and then quickly expanding to Mexico (November 2021), Brazil (January 2022) and the Dominican Republic (July 2022).
Starlink's First Four Latin American Markets
Ookla Speedtest data, starting after market launch | Q4 2021 – Q3 2025
In general, Starlink’s median download speeds dipped in the months after its initial launch in each market, as the company loads more users onto its network. This is a consequence of multiple users sharing a finite resource (Starlink’s network and spectrum) and it can also be seen in Starlink’s performance on other continents as well as during events that bring together large numbers of Starlink users. As the company’s network speeds slow, Starlink can then tailor its pricing and offerings in order to moderate the addition of new customers onto its network – the company’s coverage map currently shows locations where its services are “sold out.”
The overall competitiveness of Starlink’s network performance can vary dramatically by country. In Chile, for example, Starlink’s median download speeds in the third quarter of 2025 (106.38 Mbps) significantly trailed those available from the country’s fixed internet providers at 354.53 Mbps. Chile, after all, is where 50 Gbps service plans are beginning to emerge.
Meanwhile, in the Dominican Republic, Starlink’s median download speeds of 55.01 Mbps in the third quarter of 2025 were very close to the 53.71 Mbps median download speeds provided by the country’s fixed internet providers.
Starlink accelerates across Latin America
This, however, is just the beginning. Since the start of 2023, Starlink has introduced its satellite internet services in a total of 11 new Latin American markets, countries that account for around one out of every four Latin Americans.
Market
Starlink launch date
Peru
January 2023
Colombia
January 2023
El Salvador
April 2023
Panama
May 2023
Guatemala
July 2023
Costa Rica
November 2023
Honduras
December 2023
Paraguay
December 2023
Argentina
March 2024
Uruguay
May 2024
Guyana
April 2025
In general, Starlink’s median upload and download speeds in these newer markets have been rising since the beginning of this year, likely due to the additional satellites Starlink has been adding to its constellation.
Starlink Latin American Market Launches, Q1 2023 – Q3 2025
Ookla Speedtest data for each of Starlink's new markets in Latin America, starting after the market launch
Starlink’s latency measurements – particularly in neighboring Central American countries like Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras – showed improvement in the third quarter of 2025. That may be due to the installation of new ground stations and other terrestrial infrastructure in that specific region. Such equipment can more quickly route user traffic from Starlink’s satellite network and onto the public internet backbone via physically shorter, more direct paths to users’ internet destinations.
Along these lines, Starlink’s own network performance map shows Guyana (Starlink’s newest Latin American market) with higher latency speeds than any other location in Latin America. A third-party map of Starlink’s terrestrial infrastructure indicates a possible reason: The nearest Starlink terrestrial infrastructure is in Manaus, Brazil, some 350 miles away from Guyana.
Starlink isn’t the only game in town
Starlink is a relatively new player in the market for satellite internet services across Latin America.
Viasat, founded in the 1980s, counts around 157,000 satellite internet subscribers in the U.S., down from around 228,000 a year ago. The company does not disclose the number of customers it has outside of the U.S. And HughesNet, owned by EchoStar, was founded in the 1990s and counts roughly 783,000 satellite internet customers globally. That too is down from the 912,000 it counted a year ago. HughesNet doesn’t break out its Latin American customer figures, but around a year ago it told one publication that it had 400,000 subscribers across Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, and Peru (which would account for about 44% of the company’s global customer base at the time).
Like Starlink, both Viasat and HughesNet sell satellite internet services directly to consumers. And like Starlink, both companies also operate their own satellites. However, Viasat and HughesNet maintain a handful of large, geostationary orbit (GEO) satellites whereas Starlink’s satellites are smaller, much more plentiful, and orbit closer to the Earth.
This design difference in satellite constellations is the main reason for the disparity in performance between Starlink and Viasat and HughesNet in Latin America and elsewhere.
Latin American Consumer-Oriented Satellite Internet Providers
Ookla Speedtest data | Latin America | Q1 2023 – Q3 2025
Satellite market on course to become more complex and diverse
Starlink, Viasat and HughesNet aren’t the only companies flying satellites over Latin America.
For example, OneWeb Eutelsat also operates a global LEO constellation of 600 satellites. The company, originally founded in 2012, eventually filed for bankruptcy protection and, later, merged with European GEO satellite operator Eutelsat to become OneWeb Eutelsat. Today, it focuses on wholesale connectivity rather than direct-to-consumer sales. OneWeb Eutelsat connections occasionally show up in Ookla data for Latin America but not in statistically relevant numbers.
SES also targets the market for wholesale satellite internet services in Latin America. The company, founded in the 1980s, operates both GEO and medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellites. Like OneWeb Eutelsat, SES connections occasionally show up in Ookla data for Latin America with speeds generally below those provided by the likes of Viasat and HughesNet.
Finally, Andesat and Hispasat are also worth mentioning in a discussion of satellite internet because both companies are based in Latin America and both operate a handful of their own satellites. Both companies target the business-to-business sector, like SES and OneWeb Eutelsat. Hispasat connections occasionally show up in Ookla data for Latin America, and speeds are similar to those of SES.
Nonetheless, Andesat and Hispasat are important because they both dovetail with ongoing geopolitical sensitivities concerning national satellite sovereignty. For example, Starlink is not currently authorized in Bolivia, reflecting that country’s specific regulatory environment. On the opposite side of such issues, Starlink cannot sell services in Venezuela due to U.S. embargoes.
Starlink’s coverage map reflects these ongoing geopolitical realities, showing coverage gaps across Latin American countries like Cuba and Nicaragua.
That said, much may change in the future. Amazon Leo’s pending launch of commercial satellite internet service is perhaps the clearest signal of this change. Last year, Latin American media and telecom provider Vrio announced plans to sell Amazon Leo connections to consumers in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia through DirecTV Latin America and Sky Brasil.
Meanwhile, Viasat and HughesNet are planning to launch additional satellites in support of their own offerings. Other satellite companies – such as Telesat in Canada – are also planning to join the fray.
But Starlink isn’t standing still. The company is planning a major upgrade to its satellite constellation – via its bigger V3 satellites – that could further improve its network speeds and capacity. That effort may be bolstered by SpaceX’s bigger Starship rocket, which promises to launch more Starlink satellites than the company’s current rockets.
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Starlink enciende la fiesta de internet en la América Latina rural
El servicio de internet por satélite de SpaceX está registrando un crecimiento en toda América Latina, justo cuando otras compañías intensifican las alternativas.
El servicio de internet Starlink de SpaceX es el líder claro entre los proveedores de internet por satélite orientados al consumidor en América Latina. De hecho, la compañía representó el 98,2% de todos las muestras de Speedtest por satélite hechas por consumidor registradas en toda la región en el tercer trimestre de 2025.
Pero el éxito atrae a la competencia. Starlink continúa presionando a los proveedores de internet por satélite establecidos Viasat y HughesNet. Y pronto se enfrentará a aún más competencia cuando Amazon Leo lance comercialmente su servicio a finales de este año.
En cualquier caso, los usuarios rurales de internet en toda América Latina se beneficiarán: la velocidad media de descarga disponible a través de una conexión a internet por satélite —en todos los proveedores de internet por satélite— aumentó de 29,12 Mbps en el primer trimestre de 2023 a 72,01 Mbps en el tercer trimestre de 2025.
Principales conclusiones:
Starlink proporcionó de manera constante velocidades de descarga y subida más rápidas en toda América Latina en comparación con otros operadores de satélite que ofrecen servicios de internet a los consumidores entre el primer trimestre de 2023 y el tercer trimestre de 2025. Las velocidades medianas de descarga de Starlink en la región alcanzaron 82,54 Mbps en el tercer trimestre de 2025, por encima de los 32,73 Mbps de Viasat y los 15,93 Mbps de HughesNet. En algunos casos, las velocidades medianas de descarga de Starlink también fueron competitivas con las de los proveedores de internet fijos locales, como en la República Dominicana. Pero en otros países, como Chile, las velocidades medianas de descarga de Starlink fueron alrededor de un tercio de las proporcionadas por los proveedores de internet fijos locales en el tercer trimestre de 2025.
El rendimiento de la red de Starlink ha mejorado en muchos países diferentes de América Latina. Por ejemplo, sus velocidades medianas de descarga han ido en aumento en Chile, México, Brasil y la República Dominicana (los primeros cuatro mercados latinoamericanos de la compañía) desde principios de 2025. Y en el tercer trimestre de 2025, la latencia de la compañía mejoró en países como Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador y Honduras, probablemente debido a la instalación de nuevas estaciones terrestres y otras infraestructuras terrestres en esa región específica.
La competencia está a punto de aumentar en el mercado latinoamericano de servicios de internet por satélite orientados al consumidor. Mientras Starlink planea mejoras en su propio sistema, también lo están haciendo los proveedores existentes como Viasat y HughesNet. Mientras tanto, los recién llegados como Amazon Leo prometen proporcionar alternativas.
Starlink aterriza en Latam
Según el Índice de Conectividad Móvil de la GSMA, una parte significativa de los residentes de América Latina vive en zonas rurales. En Brasil, el país más grande de la región por población, el 12% de los residentes vivía en dichas áreas en 2024. En México, esa cifra era del 18%. En Colombia y Perú, era del 21%. Y en Bolivia, era del 29%.
Obviamente, esto puede generar desafíos para los latinoamericanos en la búsqueda de acceso a internet de alta velocidad. Por ejemplo, un estudio del Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID) y la Unión Internacional de Telecomunicaciones (UIT) descubrió que 2.817 escuelas en Guatemala carecían de la conectividad adecuada. Los grupos reconocieron que los satélites son la única opción tecnológica viable que podría conectar todas esas escuelas.
Dicho esto, los satélites todavía representan una ínfima parte del mercado global de servicios de banda ancha en América Latina. Según una estimación, los servicios de internet por satélite en la región generaron 562 millones de dólares en ingresos en 2024, o alrededor del 1% de los 56 mil millones de dólares estimados generados por los servicios de banda ancha de la región (incluyendo fibra y móvil) en 2024. Esa cifra concuerda con los números recientes de la Organización para la Cooperación y el Desarrollo Económicos (OCDE), que calculó que los satélites representaban el 1% de las suscripciones de banda ancha fija en todos los países de la OCDE a finales de 2024.
Starlink y otros proveedores de internet por satélite podrían ayudar a aumentar estas cifras. Las muestras de Speedtest de Starlink en toda América Latina ya se han multiplicado por más de 4 durante los últimos 11 trimestres.
El crecimiento de Starlink en América Latina se sustenta en los 10.000 satélites Starlink de órbita terrestre baja (LEO) lanzados mediante cohetes SpaceX desde 2019. Solo en 2025, SpaceX ha llevado a cabo más de 100 misiones de lanzamiento de satélites Starlink. Según la GSMA, Starlink ahora controla hasta el 90% de los satélites de comunicaciones del mundo (excluyendo las tres principales constelaciones chinas).
A principios de noviembre de 2025, Starlink dijo que proporcionaba conexiones a un total de 8 millones de personas a nivel mundial. Eso es un aumento con respecto a la marca de 7 millones que Starlink reportó a finales de agosto de 2025, un aumento del 14% en su base de clientes en sólo 69 días.
Según los reguladores locales de telecomunicaciones, Starlink contaba con un total de 425.514 clientes entre Brasil y México (los dos países más poblados de América Latina) hacia finales del año pasado. Eso representaría alrededor del 10% de los 4 millones de personas con las que Starlink contaba en su base de clientes global en ese momento.
Starlink comenzó a ofrecer servicios en América Latina por primera vez en 2021, empezando por Chile (en septiembre de 2021) y luego expandiéndose rápidamente a México (noviembre de 2021), Brasil (enero de 2022) y la República Dominicana (julio de 2022).
Primeros cuatro mercados de Starlink en Latinoamérica
Datos de Speedtest de Ookla, desde el lanzamiento en el mercado / 4º trim. 2021 – 3er trim. 2025
En general, las velocidades medianas de descarga de Starlink disminuyeron en los meses posteriores a su lanzamiento inicial en cada mercado, a medida que la empresa incorporaba más usuarios a su red. Esta es una consecuencia de que múltiples usuarios compartan un recurso finito (la red y el espectro de Starlink) y también se puede observar en el rendimiento de Starlink en otros continentes, así como durante eventos que reúnen a un gran número de usuarios de Starlink. A medida que la velocidad de la red de la compañía se ralentiza, Starlink puede ajustar sus precios y ofertas para moderar la adición de nuevos clientes a su red. El mapa de cobertura de la compañía actualmente muestra ubicaciones donde sus servicios están “agotados” (sold out).
La competitividad general del rendimiento de la red de Starlink puede variar drásticamente según el país. En Chile, por ejemplo, las velocidades medianas de descarga de Starlink en el tercer trimestre de 2025 (106,38 Mbps) quedaron significativamente por detrás de las disponibles a través de los proveedores de internet fijos del país, con 354,53 Mbps. Después de todo, Chile es donde los planes de servicio de 50 Gbps están comenzando a surgir.
Mientras tanto, en la República Dominicana, las velocidades medianas de descarga de Starlink de 55,01 Mbps en el tercer trimestre de 2025 estuvieron muy cerca de las velocidades medias de descarga de 53,71 Mbps proporcionadas por los proveedores de internet fijos del país.
Starlink acelera en América Latina
Sin embargo, esto es sólo el principio. Desde el comienzo de 2023, Starlink ha introducido sus servicios de internet por satélite en un total de 11 nuevos mercados latinoamericanos, países que representan aproximadamente a uno de cada cuatro latinoamericanos.
Mercado
Fecha lanzamiento Starlink
Perú
Enero 2023
Colombia
Enero 2023
El Salvador
Abril 2023
Panamá
Mayo 2023
Guatemala
Julio 2023
Costa Rica
Noviembre 2023
Honduras
Diciembre 2023
Paraguay
Diciembre 2023
Argentina
Marzo 2024
Uruguay
Mayo 2024
Guyana
Abril 2025
En general, las velocidades medianas de subida y descarga de Starlink en estos mercados más nuevos han ido en aumento desde principios de este año, probablemente debido a los satélites adicionales que Starlink ha estado añadiendo a su constelación.
In general, Starlink’s median upload and download speeds in these newer markets have been rising since the beginning of this year, likely due to the additional satellites Starlink has been adding to its constellation.
Lanzamiento Starlink en Latinoamérica. 1er trim. 2021 – 3er trim. 2025
Datos de Speedtest de Ookla para cada uno de los nuevos mercados en Latinoamérica, desde el lanzamiento en el mercado
Las mediciones de latencia de Starlink —particularmente en países vecinos de Centroamérica como Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador y Honduras— mostraron una mejora en el tercer trimestre de 2025. Esto puede deberse a la instalación de nuevas estaciones terrestres y otras infraestructuras terrestres en esa región específica. Dicho equipo puede encaminar más rápidamente el tráfico de los usuarios desde la red satelital de Starlink hacia la red troncal de internet pública a través de rutas físicamente más cortas y directas hacia los destinos de internet de los usuarios.
En esta línea, el propio mapa de rendimiento de la red de Starlink muestra a Guyana (el mercado latinoamericano más reciente de Starlink) con menores latencias que cualquier otra ubicación en América Latina. Un mapa de terceros de la infraestructura terrestre de Starlink indica una posible razón: la infraestructura terrestre de Starlink más cercana se encuentra en Manaus, Brasil, a unas 350 millas (aproximadamente 563 kilómetros) de Guyana.
Starlink no es el único actor en el mercado
Starlink es un actor relativamente nuevo en el mercado de servicios de internet por satélite en América Latina.
Viasat, fundada en la década de 1980, cuenta con alrededor de 157.000 suscriptores de internet por satélite en EE. UU., una cifra inferior a los aproximadamente 228.000 de hace un año. La compañía no revela el número de clientes que tiene fuera de EE. UU. Y HughesNet, propiedad de EchoStar, fue fundada en la década de 1990 y cuenta con aproximadamente 783.000 clientes de internet por satélite a nivel mundial. Esta cifra también es inferior a los 912.000 que tenía hace un año. HughesNet no desglosa sus cifras de clientes en América Latina, pero hace aproximadamente un año declaró a una publicación que tenía 400.000 suscriptores entre Brasil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, México y Perú (lo que representaría alrededor del 44% de la base global de clientes de la compañía en ese momento).
Al igual que Starlink, tanto Viasat como HughesNet venden servicios de internet por satélite directamente a los consumidores. Y al igual que Starlink, ambas compañías también operan sus propios satélites. Sin embargo, Viasat y HughesNet mantienen un puñado de satélites grandes en órbita geoestacionaria (GEO), mientras que los satélites de Starlink son más pequeños, mucho más numerosos y orbitan más cerca de la Tierra.
Esta diferencia de diseño en las constelaciones de satélites es la razón principal de la disparidad en el rendimiento entre Starlink, Viasat y HughesNet, tanto en América Latina como en otros lugares.
Proveedores de satélite al consumidor final en Latinoamérica
Datos de Speedtest de Ookla / Latinoamérica / 1er trim 2023 – 3er trim. 2025
El mercado del satélite rumbo a ser más complejo y diverso
Starlink, Viasat y HughesNet no son las únicas compañías que tienen satélites sobre América Latina.
Por ejemplo, OneWeb Eutelsat también opera una constelación LEO global de 600 satélites. La compañía, fundada originalmente en 2012, finalmente se declaró en bancarrota y, más tarde, se fusionó con el operador europeo de satélites GEO Eutelsat para convertirse en OneWeb Eutelsat. Hoy en día, se centra en la conectividad mayorista (wholesale) en lugar de las ventas directas al consumidor. Las conexiones de OneWeb Eutelsat aparecen ocasionalmente en los datos de Ookla para América Latina, pero no en números estadísticamente relevantes.
SES también se dirige al mercado de servicios de internet satelital mayoristas en América Latina. La compañía, fundada en la década de 1980, opera satélites tanto GEO como de órbita terrestre media (MEO). Al igual que OneWeb Eutelsat, las conexiones de SES aparecen ocasionalmente en los datos de Ookla para América Latina, con velocidades generalmente inferiores a las proporcionadas por empresas como Viasat y HughesNet.
Finalmente, también vale la pena mencionar a Andesat e Hispasat en una discusión sobre internet satelital, porque ambas compañías tienen su sede en América Latina y ambas operan un puñado de sus propios satélites. Ambas compañías se dirigen al sector business-to-business (de empresa a empresa), al igual que SES y OneWeb Eutelsat. Las conexiones de Hispasat aparecen ocasionalmente en los datos de Ookla para América Latina, y las velocidades son similares a las de SES.
No obstante, Andesat e Hispasat son importantes porque ambas encajan con las sensibilidades geopolíticas actuales relativas a la soberanía satelital nacional. Por ejemplo, Starlink no está actualmente autorizado en Bolivia, lo que refleja el entorno regulatorio específico de ese país. En el lado opuesto de tales cuestiones, Starlink no puede vender servicios en Venezuela debido a los embargos de EE.UU.
El mapa de cobertura de Starlink refleja estas realidades geopolíticas actuales, mostrando lagunas de cobertura en países latinoamericanos como Cuba y Nicaragua.
Dicho esto, mucho puede cambiar en el futuro. El inminente lanzamiento del servicio comercial de internet por satélite Amazon Leo es quizás la señal más clara de este cambio. El año pasado, el proveedor latinoamericano de medios y telecomunicaciones Vrio anunció planes para vender conexiones de Amazon Leo a consumidores en Argentina, Brasil, Chile, Uruguay, Perú, Ecuador y Colombia a través de DirecTV Latin America y Sky Brasil.
Mientras tanto, Viasat y HughesNet están planeando lanzar satélites adicionales en apoyo de sus propias ofertas. Otras compañías satelitales, como Telesat en Canadá, también planean unirse a la contienda.
Pero Starlink no se queda quieto. La compañía está planeando una actualización importante de su constelación de satélites, a través de sus satélites V3 más grandes, que podría mejorar aún más la velocidad y capacidad de su red. Ese esfuerzo puede verse reforzado por el cohete Starship, más grande de SpaceX, que promete lanzar más satélites Starlink que los cohetes actuales de la compañía.
Para obtener más información sobre los datos y la información de Speedtest Intelligence®, visite nuestro sitio web.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
A new Ookla report found that the digital divide has narrowed in 33 states during the first half of 2025.
Key Takeaways
The number of states with 60% or more of Speedtest users experiencing the FCC’s minimum standard for fixed broadband speeds of 100 Mbps downstream and 20 Mbps upstream jumped from 22 states and the District of Columbia in the 2H of 2024 to 38 states and the District of Columbia in 1H of 2025.
The digital divide between urban and rural users improved in the first half of 2025 with 33 states seeing the gap between the percentage of fixed urban users and fixed rural users that receive the minimum required FCC broadband speeds lessen during that time while 17 states saw that gap grow in the first half of 2025 compared to the second half of 2024. Ookla uses the Census Bureau’s urban-rural classification to determine which users are urban vs. rural.
The digital divide doesn’t exist for many Starlink users. In 26 out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, rural users get better broadband speeds than their urban counterparts. This is likely due to Starlink’s ability to overcome the geographic and cost barriers that make delivering fixed rural broadband so difficult.
U.S. broadband speeds are on the uptick, and more users are getting better performance than ever from their broadband connectivity. However, there are still some states (particularly those with lower population density and vast terrain) that are struggling to deliver broadband services to their residents.
Ookla Speedtest Intelligence® data found that the number of states that are able to deliver fixed broadband services (fiber, cable and DSL) to the minimum standard of broadband speeds (100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload) to 60% or more of Speedtest users in their state grew dramatically from 22 states and the District of Columbia in the second half of 2024 to 38 states and the District of Columbia in the first half of 2025.
In addition, there are now five states—Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey, North Dakota and Rhode Island —delivering speeds of 100/20 Mbps to more than 70% of their users.
Not only are broadband speeds improving, Speedtest data from the first half of 2025 also revealed that 33 states narrowed the gap between how many rural users vs. urban users were able to achieve the FCC’s minimum broadband speeds of 100/20 Mbps.
This is a fairly dramatic turnaround from the second half of 2024 when Speedtest data showed that 32 states had increased their digital divide instead of decreasing it. Ookla uses the Census Bureau’s urban-rural classification to determine which users are urban vs. rural.
South Dakota No. 1 in Starlink-delivered broadband speeds
As a result of NTIA’s June decision to allow other technologies such as LEO satellites to compete for BEAD funding, at least 32 states and territories have decided to include LEO satellite systems in their final proposals (not all final BEAD proposals have been submitted as some states received extensions). While many states are still prioritizing fiber, LEO services such as SpaceX’s Starlink and Amazon’s Kuiper are appearing in many of the revised proposals.
We looked at Speedtest data on SpaceX’s Starlink service in every state and the District of Columbia to see what percentage of Starlink users received the FCC’s minimum standard for broadband of 100/20 Mbps. South Dakota is the No. 1 state with 37.1% of Starlink users getting access to 100/20 Mbps speeds followed by Maine with 35.3% of users and Wyoming with 34.5% of users.
Download the full report
To find your state’s standing and how it compares to the rest of the country in broadband connectivity, download this free report here.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Sue Marek is Ookla’s editorial director and part of the company’s analyst team. She oversees the company’s thought leadership and editorial content. Sue is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience covering the telecom industry and her work has appeared in Fierce Network, Light Reading, and SDxCentral. She is a frequent speaker at industry events and has moderated panels at Mobile World Las Vegas, Connect(x), the Consumer Electronics Show, the Competitive Carriers’ Show and 5G North America. Sue has a B.S. in journalism from the University of Colorado.
Wireless ISPs face a growing threat from LEO satellite providers like Starlink that can reach rural users with faster download speeds.
There are around 2,000 U.S. wireless internet service providers (WISPs) and about nine million Americans get their internet service from these companies, according to the Wireless ISP Association (WISPA). Many of these WISPs are very small and provide service to just a few hundred customers.
WISPs have become more prevalent over the past few years largely due to the introduction of vendor equipment that makes it possible to more cost-effectively deliver better coverage using unlicensed spectrum and commercial off-the-shelf hardware.
WISPs deliver their services using fixed wireless access (FWA) but they tend to be smaller and focused on certain markets such as rural areas or apartment complexes than the large telcos like Verizon, T-Mobile or AT&T, which also use FWA technology to deliver broadband services across the country. However, unlike the WISPs, these operators don’t consider broadband to be their primary business.
Using Ookla’s Speedtest Intelligence® data, we examined the performance of eight of the larger U.S. WISPs—Etheric Networks, GeoLinks, NextLink Internet, Resound Networks, Rise Broadband, Starry, Unwired Broadband, and Wisper Internet — from Q1 2021 through Q2 2025. For those providers that offer both FWA and fiber, we categorized users with upload speeds under 100 Mbps as FWA customers to distinguish them from fiber users. While all eight of the WISPs that we monitored improved their median download speeds during that time period, their performance varies greatly.
Key Takeaways
Starry, which is being acquired by Verizon, delivered the highest median download speeds (202.25 Mbps in Q2 2025) of all eight U.S. WISPs that we studied.
GeoLinks delivered the slowest median download speeds (22.74 Mbps in Q2 2025) of the WISPs we reviewed. Its users in the 75th percentile (those in the upper end of the typical speed range) experienced download speeds of 56.58 Mbps in Q2 2025. We measured GeoLinks customers in its California markets where the company currently uses an older platform on 5 GHz spectrum.
Because of Starry’s faster speeds, the WISP was able to deliver the FCC’s minimum requirement for broadband speeds of 100/20 Mbps to 66.88% of Speedtest users in Q2 2025.
WISPs face a growing threat from low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite providers like Starlink, which can reach rural users with download speeds that are often faster than WISPs.
To continue to compete in the broadband space, WISPs need to find ways to secure more spectrum to avoid network congestion and interference.
The Many Flavors of WISPs
The performance of WISPs in the U.S. is under scrutiny right now because of recent changes that the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) made to the Broadband Equity and Deployment (BEAD) program. In June 2025 the NTIA revamped BEAD to provide a technology-neutral approach and prioritize cost-per-location.This means that instead of favoring fiber, other technologies such as low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite and FWA can compete with fiber for BEAD funding. The revisions also include a rule to ensure that bids go to the lowest-cost bidders.
States revised their BEAD applications and re-submitted them using the new guidance. Early indications are that many states plan to use FWA for at least a portion of their BEAD eligible locations.Connected Nation, a non-profit that monitors the digital divide, found that states have awarded 11.7% of eligible locations to FWA providers, and many of those FWA providers are categorized as wireless ISPs (WISPs).
We analyzed the performance of eight of the largest U.S. WISPs over several quarters from Q1 2021 until Q2 2025. However, it’s important to note that all of these companies vary greatly in terms of their spectrum holdings, their business models, their coverage areas, and their vendor equipment, which drives a large variance in performance outcomes.
Nevertheless, it’s notable that all eight of the WISPs we monitored improved their median download speeds during that time period. They also improved their median upload speeds, but to a much lesser extent.
Starry outpaced all the others and recorded the highest median download speeds. In Q2 2025 Starry’s median download speed was 202.25 Mbps, which is more than double that of the Resound Networks with a median download speed of 99.41 Mbps in Q2 2025. Starry also was nearly nine times higher in median download speeds than the slowest of the eight WISPs, GeoLinks, which had a median download speed of just 22.74 Mbps in Q2 2025.
A Comparison of WISPs Median Download and Upload Speeds
Q1 2021 through Q2 2025
A comparison of WISPs median download and upload speed over time.
Most WISPs struggle to deliver the FCC’s minimum broadband speeds to their customers
All of the eight WISPs use a different configuration of spectrum licenses. Most are reliant upon some combination of low-, mid-, or high-band licensed and unlicensed spectrum. In addition, many have deployed fiber either as an alternative to their FWA service or to use to carry backhaul or middle-mile traffic.
While using unlicensed spectrum means that a WISP can launch services quickly without having to purchase costly spectrum licenses, it also means that congestion and interference can result in the WISP having to carefully manage demand for their services.
Using Speedtest data collected in Q2 2025 we compared the median download and upload speeds of the eight WISPs to determine what percentage of their Speedtest users were receiving the FCC’s minimum standard for fixed broadband speeds (100 Mbps downstream/20 Mbps upstream).
Starry, which has mmWave spectrum licenses and uses proprietary equipment, is able to provide the FCC’s minimum standard for broadband to the highest percentage of users at 66.9%. In contrast Rise Broadband, which primarily operates with unlicensed spectrum in the 5 GHz band and in the 3.55 GHz to 3.7 GHz bands (CBRS), but also uses some licensed spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band, is able to provide the FCC’s minimum requirement for broadband to just 6.7% of its users.
WISPs
% of Speedtest users achieving wireless broadband speeds of 100/20 Mbps
Starry, GeoLinks and Etheric all use some combination of high-band spectrum to deliver their FWA services. The benefits of this spectrum is it can deliver faster speeds and carry bandwidth-intensive applications. But it also requires line-of-sight or near-line-of-sight to work because of potential interference from buildings, trees, and even rain.
Among the three providers that use mmWave spectrum we saw dramatic differences with Starry significantly outperforming GeoLinks and Etheric, which suggest that Starry has a greater penetration of mmWave spectrum among its customer base that is benefitting the WISP.
Starry
Starry uses a proprietary technology with base stations that cover a radius of about one mile and its system operates on shared spectrum licenses in the 37.1, 37.3 and 37.5 GHz mmWave bands. It also acquired 104 licenses in the 24 GHz band that cover 51 partial economic areas.
The company targets large apartment buildings with its service. Its setup consists of a rooftop base station that broadcasts a signal to multiple building-mounted receivers, allowing a single base station to serve dozens of buildings. Although it uses proprietary equipment it’s based upon modified 802.11ac/ax standards that takes advantage of the Wi-Fi chipset ecosystem.
The company, which is currently being acquired by Verizon, offers service to about 100,000 subscribers in apartment buildings in five markets; Boston, Denver, Los Angeles, New York/New Jersey, and Washington, D.C./Virginia.
Starry offers a variety of rate plans: $30 per month for up to 200 Mbps; $55 per month for up to 500 Mbps; and $75 per month for up to 1 Gbps.
Ookla’s Speedtest® data shows that Starry has nearly doubled its median download speeds in its markets from 102.74 Mbps in Q1 2022 to 202.25 Mbps in Q2 2025. The company’s upload speed also increased, but not as dramatically from 52.29 Mbps in Q1 2022 to 54.34 Mbps in Q2 2025. The company saw the biggest increase in speeds from Q1 2024 to Q2 2025, which is likely due to some network upgrades, including the deployment of the 2.0 version of its Comet receiver. Starry said the upgrades would expand its coverage range as well as provide better spectral efficiency.
Starry's Median Download, 75th Percentile Download, and Median Upload Speeds
Q1 2021 through Q2 2025
Starry's median download, median upload and 75th percentile speeds over time.
GeoLinks
GeoLinks uses local multipoint distribution services (LMDS) spectrum that it acquired from Verizon in 2021 as well as some unlicensed 5 GHz and unlicensed 59-61 GHz spectrum. Those 208 LMDS licenses are in the 29/31 GHz bands and cover several markets. However, GeoLinks currently offers service primarily in California and has a few deployments in Arizona and Nevada, but our Speedtest data samples were all collected from the company’s California deployment where it is currently using the unlicensed 5 GHz spectrum and an older platform..
The company recently tested Intracom Telecom’s point-to-multipoint equipment to demonstrate multi-gigabit FWA using its 29/31GHz mmWave spectrum. In addition, it has indicated that it is interested in leasing its spectrum to other enterprises and operators that can then use its spectrum holdings to develop their own FWA services.
GeoLinks offers a variety of price plans: $25.99 per month for speeds of 10/10 Mbps; $38.99 per month for 25/10 Mbps; $45.99 per month for 30/30 Mbps; and $69.99 per month for speeds of 100/25 Mbps. The company’s web site indicates that the $45.99 per month plan that delivers 30/30 Mbps is the most popular plan with its customers.
Speedtest data shows Geolinks delivering median download speeds of just 22.74 Mbps in Q2 2025 with 75th percentile download speeds of 56.58 Mbps. Its users experience median upload speeds of 19.82 Mbps in Q2 2025.
GeoLink's Median Download, 75th Percentile Download, and Median Upload Speeds
Q1 2021 through Q2 2025
GeoLink's median download, median upload and 75th percentile speeds over time.
Etheric Networks
Etheric Networks provides FWA service to the California Bay Area. The company has a fiber ring stretching from San Francisco to Monterey, California that connects its FWA towers and eight data centers. Etheric uses a mix of spectrum including unlicensed 2.4 GHz and 5.8 GHz spectrum. However, in 2024 Etheric partnered with BroadbandOne to leverage BroadbandOne’s 28 GHz mmWave spectrum. The company said this partnership will allow it to enhance its connectivity and serve more rural and agricultural areas.
The company offers three residential price plans: $79 per month for speeds up to 100 Mbps; $99 per month for speeds up to 250 Mbps and $169 per month for 1 Gbps speeds.
Speedtest data shows Etheric has nearly doubled its median download speeds from 21.34 Mbps in Q1 2021 to 41.09 Mbps in Q2 2025. Its users in the 75th percentile (those in the upper end of the typical speed range) saw speeds of 65.45 Mbps in Q2 2025.The company’s median upload speeds also increased over time from 13.6 Mbps in Q1 2021 to 29.5 Mbps in Q2 2025.
Etheric Networks' Median Download, 75th Percentile Download, and Median Upload Speeds
Q1 2021 through Q2 2025
Etheric Networks' median download, median upload and 75th percentile speeds over time.
WISPs make the most of mid-band with CBRS licenses
Many WISPs take advantage of the mid-band CBRS spectrum, which is a 150 MHz shared spectrum in the 3.5 GHz to 3.7 GHz band that allows for flexible use by three different groups that are managed by a Spectrum Access System (SAS). The SAS can dynamically grant access to different users. The band is shared by these three parties: incumbent users such as the U.S. Navy that have priority access to the band; licensed users with Priority Access Licenses (PAL) that have exclusive use of a portion of the band in a specific geographic location; and the General Authorized Access (GAA) group who can access the spectrum but have no protection from interference from the other two groups.
Several of the WISPs we analyzed deploy their services in the CBRS spectrum and primarily use the GAA portion of the band. Others have acquired CBRS PAL and some use a combination of both. Some WISPS also use unlicensed bands such as 5 GHz.
NextLink
Nextlink spent $28.4 million in FCC’s Auction 105 to purchase over 1,100 CBRS PAL licenses covering 491 counties in eleven states including Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana, Wyoming, and Missouri. The company uses that spectrum to deliver its FWA service to its more than 100,000 subscribers (as of August 2025). NextLink also has deployed fiber to more than 100,000 locations and has 20,000 fiber customers.
Nextlink secured Connect America Fund II funding and participated in the FCC’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund so much of its FWA expansion has been driven by those commitments. In August Nextlink said it has completed five of the six states as part of its CAF II funding and is halfway through its RDOF buildout.
The company offers a variety of FWA plans: The Next50, which offers up to 50 Mbps speeds for $30 per month; the Next100 that offers speeds up to 100 Mbps for $40 per month; The Next300 that offers speeds up to 300 Mbps for $60 per month; and the Next500 that offers speeds up to 500 Mbps for $75 per month.
Speedtest data shows NextLink has more than tripled its median download speeds from 19.45 Mbps in Q1 2021 to 68.47 Mbps in Q2 2025. The WISP also increased its median upload speeds significantly from 4.72 Mbps in Q1 2021 to 18.26 Mbps in Q2 2025. NextLink users in the 75th percentile (those in the upper end of the typical speed range) get much higher speeds of 122.88 Mbps in Q2 2025.
NextLink's Median Download, 75th Percentile Download, and Median Upload Speeds
Q1 2021 through Q2 2025
NextLink's median download, median upload and 75th percentile speeds over time.
Resound Networks
Resound Networks provides FWA service in Texas, New Mexico, Arkansas, Arizona and Oklahoma and uses Tarana Wireless gear in the unlicensed 5 GHz and 6 GHz spectrum bands. It also offers fiber service in some locations and is planning to expand its fiber footprint. Like many WISPs, Resound is focused specifically on rural communities that have historically been overlooked by larger ISPs. In 2022 the company was awarded $303 million through the FCC’s RDOF program to deliver FWA and fiber to 214,000 rural locations.
Resound offers both residential and enterprise rate plans. Its residential plans start at 75 Mbps for $55 per month and go up to 1 Gbps for $130 per month.
The company’s customers experienced a steady increase in their download and upload speeds from mid-2023 until Q2 2025 from a median download speed of 38.94 Mbps in Q3 2023 to 99.41 Mbps in Q2 2025. Its users in the 75th percentile (those in the upper end of the typical speed range) experienced an even greater climb in download speeds from 62.99 Mbps in Q3 2023 to 190.76 Mbps in Q2 2025. During this time period Resound was expanding its network.
Resound Network's Median Download, 75th Percentile Download, and Median Upload Speeds
Q1 2021 through Q2 2025
Resound's median download, median upload and 75th percentile speeds over time.
Rise Broadband
Rise Broadband claims to be the country’s largest WISP with around 200,000 customers. It may also be one of the longest living WISPs because it dates back to 2006 when it started as JAB Broadband and its goal was to consolidate many of the country’s smaller WISPs to create one big WISP with a large footprint.
Today Rise offers FWA service in16 states, mostly in the Midwest. Rise offers service primarily in rural areas and it uses a mix of unlicensed spectrum in the 5 GHz band and in the 3.55 GHz to 3.7 GHz bands (CBRS), but also uses some licensed spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band, to deliver its service.
Like NextLink, the company is actively deploying fiber in addition to FWA. The company’s strategy is to deploy FWA initially to capture market share and then roll out fiber to the densest FWA coverage areas.
Rise’s price plans start as low as $30 per month for 50 Mbps and reach up to 400 Mbps for $55 per month.
Rise users logged median download speeds of 42.58 Mbps in Q2 2025, which is a significant jump from Q1 2021 when users experienced median download speeds of just 16.01 Mbps. Rise’s users in the 75th percentile (those in the upper end of the typical speed range) were able to achieve download speeds of 65.97 Mbps in Q2 2025. The company’s median upload speeds also increased from 4.05 Mbps in Q1 2021 to 18.38 Mbps Q2 2025. Rise saw a big jump in median upload speeds between Q2 2022 when users logged median upload speeds of 5.86 Mbps and Q3 2022 when users experienced median upload speeds of 13.68 Mbps.
Rise Broadband's Median Download, 75th Percentile Download, and Median Upload Speeds
Q1 2021 through Q2 2025
Rise Broadband's median download, median upload and 75th percentile speeds over time.
Wisper Internet
Wisper Internet offers FWA in six midwestern states including Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Indiana. The company uses unlicensed spectrum in the 5 GHz, and a mix of unlicensed and licensed spectrum in the 2.5 GHz and 3.65 GHz bands. Like NextLink and Rise, the company also has deployed fiber in a few select areas.
Wisper offers a variety of rate plans including 25 Mbps for $70 per month; 50 Mbps for $75 per month; 100 Mbps for $80 per month; 200 Mbps for $110 per month and 400 Mbps for $140 per month.
Similar to the other WISPs, Wisper’s median download speeds increased over time but it increased dramatically from Q3 2023 to Q2 2025 when its median download speeds increased from 33.74 Mbps to 52.90 Mbps. Likewise, the download speeds for users in the 75th percentile also increased, climbing from 55.12 Mbps in Q3 2023 to 107.90 Mbps in Q2 2025. This jump in speeds was likely due to Wisper’s deployment of additional FWA gear from Tarana Wireless on 180 more towers in its footprint.
Wisper Internet's Median Download, 75th Percentile Download, and Median Upload Speeds
Q1 2021 through Q2 2025
Wisper Internet's median download, median upload and 75th percentile speeds over time.
Unwired
Unwired Broadband provides FWA coverage in rural and underserved areas in central and northern California. The company said it has a network of more than 200 towers and a coverage area of about 17,000 square miles. Besides FWA, Unwired also provides some fiber service but It’s early in its deployment process.
Unwired uses a combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrum to deliver its FWA service, including the licensed 2.5 GHz band and the unlicensed 6 GHz band.
The company offers both business and residential FWA service and its pricing starts at $59.99 per month for 100 Mbps.
Unwired users experienced increases in download and upload speeds over time but between Q3 2024 and Q4 2024 the jump was more dramatic. Median download speeds jumped from 27.22 Mbps in Q3 to 44.25 Mbps in Q4. Similarly median upload speeds increased from 9.7 Mbps in Q3 2024 to 15.9 Mbps in Q4.
Unwired's Median Download, 75th Percentile Download, and Median Upload Speeds
Q1 2021 through Q2 2025
Unwired's median download, median upload and 75th percentile speeds over time.
WISPs’ performance is improving but competitive threats lurk
Although the WISPs we studied are improving their networks and delivering better performance for their customers, the broadband market is rapidly changing. In the past many WISPs, particularly those in rural areas, faced little or no competition. But that’s no longer the case.
As LEO satellite constellations such as Starlink become more powerful and more prevalent (Amazon’s Kuiper now has 153 satellites in orbit and is expected to launch late this year), WISPs will face growing competition from these companies.
A recent Ookla report on Starlink found that Starlink’s network saw its median download speeds nearly double from 53.95 Mbps in Q3 2022 to 104.71 Mbps in Q1 2025, making its median download speeds on par or better than seven of the eight WISPs we reviewed (Starry was the only exception). With Starlink residential price plans starting around $80 per month, the company’s introductory price plan is a bit more expensive than some introductory price plans from WISPs but Starlink is aggressively promoting its services and offering large discounts on its equipment to entice new customers.
To continue to play in the broadband space, WISPs need to try to secure more spectrum–licensed or unlicensed— to avoid network congestion and interference and also invest in network upgrades so their services remain competitive.
To find out more about Speedtest Intelligence® data and insights, visit our website.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Sue Marek is Ookla’s editorial director and part of the company’s analyst team. She oversees the company’s thought leadership and editorial content. Sue is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience covering the telecom industry and her work has appeared in Fierce Network, Light Reading, and SDxCentral. She is a frequent speaker at industry events and has moderated panels at Mobile World Las Vegas, Connect(x), the Consumer Electronics Show, the Competitive Carriers’ Show and 5G North America. Sue has a B.S. in journalism from the University of Colorado.
The LEO satellite provider is giving free gear to new customers in areas where it has excess capacity. Will it be able to handle an influx of new customers and still maintain its broadband speeds?
Key Takeaways
Users on Starlink’s network experienced median download speeds nearly double from 53.95 Mbps in Q3 2022 to 104.71 Mbps in Q1 2025. Median upload speeds also increased dramatically during the same period from 7.50 Mbps in Q3 2022 and to 14.84 Mbps in Q1 2025.
Only 17.4% of U.S. Starlink Speedtest users nationwide were able to get broadband speeds consistent with the FCC’s minimum requirement for broadband of 100 Mbps download speeds and 20 Mbps upload speeds. However, this small percentage of Starlink users is primarily due to its low upload speeds.
Speedtest® data for the states where Starlink is offering its free equipment to new users indicates that existing Starlink users are experiencing a range of median download speeds — from as high as 136.93 Mbps in Maine to as low as 72.65 Mbps in Alaska.
With Starlink’s substantial increase to its median upload and download speeds and ability to deliver broadband speeds of 100/20 Mbps to nearly 20% of Speedtest users across the country, the satellite provider is becoming an increasingly attractive broadband option for many.
SpaceX’s low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite provider Starlink is making inroads in the U.S. broadband market and trying to attract more subscribers by offering free equipment to new customers in states where it says it has excess capacity (more on this below).
Ookla® Speedtest data on Starlink indicates that the satellite company’s network performance has been on the uptick over the past couple of years and as of Q1 2025 17.42% of U.S. Starlink Speedtest users were able to get speeds consistent with the FCC’s minimum requirement for fixed broadband of 100 Mbps download speeds and 20 Mbps upload speeds.
Starlink is positioned to benefit from recent changes to the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced June 6 that it had reviewed the BEAD program and, as expected, it adopted a technology-neutral stance instead of prioritizing fiber deployments, making way for LEO satellite systems like Starlink to get BEAD funding.
In addition, some states such as Maine have launched state-funded programs that subsidize Starlink for some rural addresses and more are likely to follow. The Texas Broadband Development Office, for example, announced in January 2025 that it is developing a grant program to support LEO satellite broadband service in rural areas.
Starlink Upload, Download Speeds Are On the Rise
Starlink’s network performance over the past three years shows a dramatic increase in median download and upload speeds as well as a decline in latency.
Starlink’s performance across the U.S. from Q1 2022 until Q1 2025 indicates that after experiencing a decline in download speeds between Q1 2022 and Q3 2022, U.S. Speedtest users on Starlink’s network saw a median download speeds nearly double from 53.95 Mbps in Q3 2022 to 104.71 Mbps in Q1 2025.
The decline in median download speeds between Q1 2022 and Q3 2022 was likely due to growing pains as the satellite service added more subscribers and network usage increased.
A similar trend was observed in median upload speeds as Speedtest users saw their median upload speeds decline between Q1 2022 from 9.81 Mbps to 7.50 Mbps in Q3 2022 and then tick upward to Q1 2025 when median upload speeds reached 14.84 Mbps.
Starlink's Median Upload, Download and Latency Speeds
Q1 2022 through Q1 2025
Starlink's Median Upload, Download and Latency Speeds Over Time
Starlink’s Latency Ticks Downward
Perhaps more importantly than download and upload speeds is latency, which is the time it takes to transmit data from one point in the network to another. Transmitting data between earth and space is particularly challenging because of the distance involved. However, because Starlink’s satellites orbit the planet in low-orbit (about 340 miles above the earth) its latency is much lower than geostationary satellite systems that orbit about 22,000 miles above the earth. For example, signals from satellite system such as HughesNet have a much greater distance to travel, which is why Speedtest users on HughesNet experience a much higher median latency than Starlink Speedtest users.
A comparison of Starlink's Median Latency with HughesNet's Median Latency
Q1 2022 through Q1 2025
Starlink's low-Earth orbit median latency compared with geostationary satellite system's median latency
Starlink users in the U.S. experienced a median multi-server latency of 76 milliseconds (ms) in Q2 2022, but latency measurements ticked downward over time and in Q1 2025 Speedtest users clocked an average median latency of 45 ms.
Starlink said in March 2024 that it was improving its latency in the U.S. by adding six additional internet connection locations (also referred to as PoPs) and optimizing its gateway locations and its planning algorithms to ensure that traffic lands as close to its destination point as possible.
In addition, the satellite company has also steadily added more satellites to its constellation. In February 2022 Starlink had 1,560 satellites in orbit and as of February 2025 it had 6,751 satellites in orbit. At publication of this report, Starlink had launched an additional 24 satellites into low Earth orbit.
Starlink’s New Free Equipment Offer Targets Several States
Starlink recently announced plans to offer free equipment (valued at around $350) to new customers in areas where it has excess capacity. In the U.S., those areas are depicted on the map below and include all or portions of about 33 states.
Customers who receive the free gear must commit to a one-year plan, and they have a choice of one of two residential plans: An $80/mo plan that will give them speeds between 50-100 Mbps and a $120/mo plan that provides speeds of 250 Mbps.
Ookla Speedtest data for the states where Starlink is offering the free equipment indicates that existing Starlink users are experiencing a range of median download speeds — from as high as 136.93 Mbps in Maine to as low as 72.65 Mbps in Alaska. Perhaps more telling is the download speeds for Speedtest users in the 25th percentile, which provides the download speed performance for the bottom quarter of Speedtest users in these states.
With the exception of Alaska, the overall performance of the rest of the states, particularly the 25th percentile users in Nebraska, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada and Wyoming is probably a better indication of why Starlink is offering free gear to these states. With the 25th percentile of Starlink users in these states experiencing download speeds of more than 80 Mbps there is likely plenty of excess capacity.
Although Starlink said its goal is to deliver service with just 20 milliseconds (ms) median latency, the lowest median latency rates recorded by Speedtest users in all or portions of the selected states was 38 ms in the District of Columbia and 39 ms in Arizona, Colorado and New Jersey. Alaska and Hawaii have the highest latency rates of 105 ms and 115 ms respectively. The higher latency rates in these two states is likely due to these two states being more geographically distant from Starlink’s constellation of satellites and not having the same density of satellites as the continental U.S.
Speedtest Performance for Starlink Users in States that Get Free Gear
The portions or entirety of 33 states or territories where Starlink has decided to offer free gear to potential customers include both high density areas such as Washington D.C. and New Jersey as well as low density states like Alaska and Wyoming. With the exception of Alaska and West Texas, all of the states have a median download speed of more than 100 Mbps.
When looking at the 25th percentile of users (which are the bottom quarter of Starlink users in download speed performance) only one state – Alaska– has a download speed in the 30 Mbps range and three states have 25th percentile users getting in the 50 Mbps range for download speeds.
In addition, when it comes to latency, 20 states have a median latency between 40-49 ms and two states on this list—Arizona and New Jersey— and Washington, D.C. —have median latency under 40 ms.
Starlink Speedtest Performance In the 50 U.S. States
How each state performs in latency, median download, and 25th percentile download
Starlink's performance in latency, median download, and 25th percentile download in all 50 states in the U.S.
Speedtest Performance in States Not Included in Starlink’s Free Equipment Offer
Many of the states where residents are not eligible to get Starlink’s free equipment offer are in the middle and southeastern areas of the U.S. and only eleven of those states have median download speeds over 100 Mbps compared to 28 states and Washington, D.C. that are in the eligible equipment list.
Median latency rates in these ineligible states are very similar to the eligible states with 14 states having a median latency rate between 40- 49 ms. However, when examining the 25th percentile of users (which are the bottom quarter of Starlink users in download speed performance) one state — Florida — has 25th percentile download speeds of just 27.12 Mbps, Washington has 25th percentile download speeds of 46.92 Mbps and Louisiana has 25th percentile download speeds of just 48.25 Mbps.
Northeast and Rural Mid-West States Win in Minimum Broadband Speeds
Only 17.4% of Starlink Speedtest users are able to get broadband speeds consistent with the FCC’s minimum requirement for broadband of 100 Mbps download speeds and 20 Mbps upload speeds. Much of this is due to Starlink’s low upload speeds, which are on the uptick but with a combined overall median upload speed of 14.84 Mbps in Q1 2025 there is still room for improvement.
However, when we look at all satellite providers that deliver service in the U.S., these providers combined are only able to provide 15.75% of Speedtest users with speeds that meet the FCC’s minimum requirement of 100/20 Mbps, which means Starlink outperforms the other providers in this category.
On a state level analysis, when comparing the median download and upload speeds collected in Q1 2025 across all 50 states and Washington, D.C., South Dakota is the No. 1 state with 42.3% of Starlink users getting the FCC’s minimum standard for fixed broadband speeds (100 Mbps downstream/20 Mbps upstream). All of the top-performing Starlink states are in the Northeastern and Midwestern U.S.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, the states with the lowest percentage of users receiving 100/20 Mbps broadband speeds are primarily in the Southeastern U.S. The only state outside of that area is Alaska with the smallest number of Speedtest users —just 5.3%—receiving 100/20 Mbps.
States With the Highest % of Starlink Users that Receive 100/20 Mbps Broadband Speeds
State
% of Starlink users that receive 100/20 Mbps
South Dakota
42.3
Rhode Island
39.0
Wyoming
38.5
Maine
36.5
Massachusetts
35.1
Data as of Q1 2025
States with the Lowest % of Starlink Users that Receive 100/20 Mbps Broadband Speeds
State
% of Starlink users that receive 100/20 Mbps
Alaska
5.3
Mississippi
8.4
Louisiana
9.0
Arkansas
9.6
Florida
9.8
Data as of Q1 2025
Starlink Delivers a Viable Broadband Option for Many
In our recent U.S. state broadband report which focused on Speedtest data from the 2H of 2024, we found that the number of states with 60% or more of Speedtest users getting speeds of 100/20 Mbps had increased substantially from the 1H of 2024.
However, it was disheartening to discover that during that same time period the digital divide within many states had actually increased (some of this is attributed to the demise of the Affordable Connectivity Program) rather than decreased leading us to conclude that many of the recent broadband investments were resulting in better urban coverage rather than closing the gap in rural areas.
With Starlink’s substantial increase to its median upload and download speeds and ability to deliver broadband speeds of 100/20 Mbps to nearly 20% of Speedtest users across the country, the satellite provider is becoming an increasingly attractive broadband option for many.
With Starlink’s latest promotional offer of free equipment to consumers in areas where it has excess capacity, we expect to see the company’s subscriber count grow throughout 2025. It will be interesting to see how the LEO provider balances subscriber growth with capacity.
We will continue to monitor Starlink’s speed performance in the U.S. throughout the year. For more information about Speedtest Intelligence® data and insights, please get in touch.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Sue Marek is Ookla’s editorial director and part of the company’s analyst team. She oversees the company’s thought leadership and editorial content. Sue is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience covering the telecom industry and her work has appeared in Fierce Network, Light Reading, and SDxCentral. She is a frequent speaker at industry events and has moderated panels at Mobile World Las Vegas, Connect(x), the Consumer Electronics Show, the Competitive Carriers’ Show and 5G North America. Sue has a B.S. in journalism from the University of Colorado.
SpaceX’s satellite network showed signs of congestion in Nevada’s Pershing County last week.
Starlink today uses around 8,000 low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites to provide Internet connections to roughly 7 million customers around the world. But an event in the desert of Nevada last week collected enough Starlink users in one place to create a measurable effect on the company’s network in the region.
Key Takeaways:
A large number of Starlink users gathered in rural Nevada for the annual Burning Man event.
Starlink’s daily speeds in the area slowed to a low of 66 Mbps during Burning Man, but rose as the event wrapped up.
The annual Burning Man event draws enough Starlink users to affect Nevada’s statewide Starlink speeds.
Starlink satellite Internet connections have become increasingly popular at the Burning Man desert arts festival, a nine-day event that occurs annually. The festival attracted around 70,000 attendees last week. According to Ookla Speedtest Intelligence data, Starlink’s speeds slowed slightly amid Burning Man demand.
Specifically, Starlink download speeds surpassed 200 Mbps in Pershing County, Nevada – where Burning Man takes place every August – in the days leading up to the event. But during the actual Burning Man event itself – which took place from August 24 to September 1 – Starlink speeds dipped well below 100 Mbps. On August 28, Starlink speeds hit a daily low point of 66 Mbps, but then began to rise again as the event drew to a close.
It’s worth noting that, while there was a dip in speeds, Starlink users at Burning Man still received Internet speeds in rural Nevada that were faster than what some 5G networks provide in major US cities.
Starlink daily download speeds during Burning Man
In Pershing County, Nevada, USA. Burning Man was held August 24 – September 1.
Burning Man Goes Online
According to a Wall Street Journal report, Starlink services have become increasingly popular at recent Burning Man gatherings, and were prevalent across this year’s 1,500 Burning Man camps and art installations.
The event is big enough to earn itself a listing on Google Maps, and that location information is reflected in Ookla Speedtest Intelligence data for the month of August:
Moreover, Ookla recorded a major spike in the number of Speedtest users in Nevada’s Pershing County during the week of Burning Man. That’s no surprise considering Pershing County’s annual population sits at around 6,000, but spikes by 11x during the week of Burning Man.
Finally, it’s worth noting that a dip in Starlink speeds in Pershing County – one of more than a dozen counties in Nevada – also occurred last year during Burning Man. Indeed, Nevada’s median statewide Starlink speeds also dipped during the month of August 2024, mainly because of the network demands created by last year’s Burning Man during that month. But Starlink’s speeds across the entire United States were not affected.
Starlink monthly median download speeds
Burning Man is held annually at the end of August.
Network Loading
The dip in Starlink’s speeds last week was likely due to the loading that the company’s network experienced during Burning Man.
After all, a wireless network like Starlink’s satellite network is a shared resource, much like any other telecom network. As more users connect to such a network, they all compete for access to the same limited bandwidth. This competition can lead to a decrease in network performance, as the available bandwidth is divided among an increasing number of devices. Consequently, if too many users are streaming video, downloading large files, or engaging in other high-bandwidth activities at the same time, the network can become congested, resulting in slower speeds for everyone connected.
Some Starlink users are already familiar with this concept. According to PCMag, Starlink last year introduced $100 congestion charges for select areas where its network had become strained from too many users. This year, that fee rose to $250 in some cities. But in other cities where Starlink has excess capacity, the company has been offering potential customers free equipment.
Network congestion is also a well-known issue for cellular operators like Verizon and T-Mobile. That’s why some deploy temporary cell sites during major events like concerts.
According to the financial analysts at New Street Research, Starlink has so far won $387 million in BEAD grants to provide Internet services across 213,000 rural locations in the U.S.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
Network performance stats in the tech press catch our attention here at Ookla – especially download and upload speeds or latency. Here’s a quick look into this press release about the Starlink satellite internet service being offered by Claro Colombia. The release states that Starlink will offer download speeds ranging from 40 to 220 Mbps, upload speeds ranging from from 8 to 25 Mbps, and latency in the range of 20 to 60 ms.
Speed and Latency Ranges Are In Reach
On the surface, Starlink’s performance claims appear possible for users to achieve, even though Q3 2024 Speedtest user data for Starlink in Colombia is not yet there.
The article doesn’t state how its ranges were determined, so, to make a comparison, we constructed our own ranges by examining the lowest and highest 10th percentiles, along with medians, of Starlink Speedtest users.
For download speeds, the Speedtest range (8 – 140 Mbps) fell short of the Starlink range (40 – 220 Mbps) and the median Speedtest (54 Mbps) was well short of the middle of the Starlink range (130 Mbps). Still, there was a healthy overlap, and there are other factors that can explain slower speeds in Speedtest user test than what Starlink is providing, such as older user equipment or Wi-Fi propagation path loss.
To get a picture of download speeds, we mapped our Starlink Speedtest users’ tests based on the 40 – 220 Mbps range with a color break at the 130 Mbps midpoint. The light red and light green squares coalesced, forming an area of tests within the range – a clear visual majority. And while many tests fell below the range (dark red squares), a few were also above range (dark green squares).
Turning to upload speeds, the Speedtest range (4 – 27 Mbps) and the Starlink range (8 – 25 Mbps) were much closer than download speeds. Likewise, Speedtest median (14 Mbps) and the Starlink midpoint (17 Mbps) are close, too.
Last, the latency Speedtest range (30 – 116 ms) and the Starlink range (20 – 60) were also closer than they may appear. Latency tests are susceptible to extreme values (very high latency) that result in a long-tail effect. More insightful for latency is the closeness of the Speedtest median (44 ms) and the Starlink mid-point (40 ms).
Quick Take Away
Starlink began service in Colombia in February 2023. It continues to add capacity to its constellation and introduce new terminals to support more use cases.
The Speedtest perspective finds the speed and latency ranges in the press release to be credible, and we look forward to revisiting the data to see more Speedtest users enjoying the benefit of the Claro Colombia and Starlink alliance.
Low for Starlink is the bottom of its stated range for speed and top for latency; for Speedtest it is the slowest 10th percentile for speed and highest 10th percentile for latency ↩︎
Mid for Starlink is the simple average of its stated range; for Speedtest it is the median speed ↩︎
High for Starlink is the top of its stated range for speed and bottom for latency; for Speedtest it is the fastest 10th percentile for speed and lowest 10th percentile for latency ↩︎
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Kerry Baker leads Ookla's research and content efforts in North America. He has over 20 years experience in the telecom industry, primarily at T-Mobile studying network performance benchmarking and customer experience. Kerry also has founder’s experience with four technology-related startups. Kerry holds masters degrees from the University of Washington in Business and International Political Economics.
The Maine Connectivity Authority (MCA) recently made it possible for homes and businesses in remote locations of the state to become eligible to receive low-Earth orbit satellite internet service from Starlink. According to Ookla data, Starlink Speedtest users in Maine are able to get median download speeds of 116.77 Mbps, which surpasses the FCC’s threshold for broadband.
Maine is a Top 10 state in Ookla’s U.S. Broadband report, ranking 9th with a 30% year-on-year increase in Speedtest users who achieved broadband speeds (1H 2023 vs 1H 2024). Yet only 37.6% of Rural Speedtest users experienced speeds at or above the FCC thresholds of 100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload speeds for broadband, lagging its Urban counterparts by 13.3 percentage points.
Taking a look to see how the MCA Starlink program might help, here are current Starlink Speedtest user results in Maine:
1 Oct – 15 Dec 2024
10th percentile (Slower)
Median
90th percentile (Faster)
DL (Mbps)
22.81
116.77
250.96
UL (Mbps)
6.79
18.17
27.17
Latency* (ms)
72
47
37
* Multi-server latency
With a median of 116.77 Mbps download speed, a majority of Starlink Speedtest users are already exceeding the FCC’s 100 Mbps download speed target minimum. The median upload speed of 18.17 Mbps is close to the FCC’s 20 Mbps upload speed target minimum.
Taking a look at the slower results (that is, the 10th percentile, where 90% of Speedtest user tests results are faster), this cohort saw download speeds of 22.81 Mbps and upload speeds of 6.79 Mbps. Coincidentally, there exists a lower threshold of 25 Mbps download speed and 3 Mbps upload speed that divides the Unserved (below 25/3 Mbps) from the Underserved (above 25/3 Mbps; over 100/20 Mbps is considered Served by broadband internet).
These results are based upon the existing end-user equipment and the current satellite constellation. Newer customer premise equipment and recent (and future) satellite launches could improve these results.
Satellites are an important solution for addressing the digital divide in rural areas, as the MCA program with Starlink represents. The Starlink Speedtest results demonstrate this, and we look forward to revisiting this data as this program takes flight.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Kerry Baker leads Ookla's research and content efforts in North America. He has over 20 years experience in the telecom industry, primarily at T-Mobile studying network performance benchmarking and customer experience. Kerry also has founder’s experience with four technology-related startups. Kerry holds masters degrees from the University of Washington in Business and International Political Economics.
Recent satellite launches have improved Starlink’s performance in Europe, bolstering its credentials as a competitive broadband solution.
While Europe may not represent the largest market for satellite solutions compared to other large landmass regions with lower fiber density and a greater share of the population living in rural areas, low Earth orbit (LEO) constellations have emerged as an important part of the connectivity toolkit in the region.
SpaceX’s Starlink has secured a leading position in the LEO market, both in Europe and globally. With a network of more than 7,000 satellites worldwide, it remains the most capable in terms of coverage and capacity, providing broadband access throughout most of Europe.
As Starlink adoption on the continent has surged, even in unexpected places like London—where network capacity has been exhausted and the service is sold out—SpaceX has moved swiftly to bolster its constellation. The company ramped up investments to increase the density of its ground stations and launched a blitz of new satellites in the latter half of last year.
This article explores how SpaceX’s investments are contributing to Starlink’s performance in Europe as the service scales up amid intensifying competition from the rapid expansion of fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) infrastructure across the continent.
Key Takeaways:
Significant improvements in latency translate into better quality of experience (QoE) for Starlink users across Europe. The latency disparity between Starlink and the aggregate terrestrial fixed broadband market has narrowed substantially across Europe over the past two years. In Q4 2024, Starlink users in Western Europe experienced the lowest median latencies on the continent, with the United Kingdom (41 ms), Belgium (46 ms) and Luxembourg (46 ms) leading the way. Improvements in latency have boosted Starlink’s QoE performance for video streaming, web browsing and gaming, as evidenced by outcomes such as shorter video start times and reduced game latency.
Starlink’s download speeds are recovering in most countries as SpaceX continues to scale capacity with recent satellite launches. In Q4 2024, most European countries experienced an improvement in Starlink download speeds, likely driven by the continued expansion of the satellite constellation. The sharp increase in operational satellites at the end of October last year appears to have contributed to higher speeds across multiple countries, with some regions seeing particularly notable gains. Southern European countries such as Croatia (~70%) and Greece (~65%) recorded substantial quarter-on-quarter download speed increases between the third and fourth quarters of last year, now ranking among the fastest Starlink connections in Europe.
Starlink adoption is more highly concentrated in countries with lower levels of fiber penetration and a larger proportion of the population living in rural areas. Central and Southern European countries such as Germany, Greece, Italy and Croatia have below-average FTTH coverage compared to the EU average and exhibit higher levels of Starlink adoption, likely due to the LEO solution being relatively more competitive (either on performance or price) in these regions. At the same time, while Starlink continues to provide higher speeds than the aggregate terrestrial fixed broadband market in some countries—including Greece, the Czech Republic, Italy, and Croatia—the number of such markets is steadily decreasing. Significant fiber investments across Europe have improved fixed broadband speeds over the past two years, increasingly challenging Starlink’s competitiveness.
A Surge in Satellite Launches Expanded the Starlink Constellation in Late 2024
Source: SatelliteMap.space
Starlink latency improvements continue at pace across Europe
The physics of transmitting data across vast distances between Earth and space has long challenged satellite operators in their efforts to compete with terrestrial fixed broadband services in Europe on latency. Starlink’s LEO system has been a game-changer, significantly improving latency performance compared to traditional satellite systems that rely on mid-Earth or geostationary orbits.
Over the last two years, SpaceX has been focused on building on this advantage and narrowing the disparity between the performance of its service and what is available from terrestrial fixed operators. To achieve this, it has sought to reduce the distance and number of hops data travels across its network. This has involved massively expanding its satellite constellation over Europe—boosting inter-satellite links for more direct routing—and increasing ground station density to optimize connections to the terrestrial internet.
While the latencies observed in the aggregate fixed broadband market remain materially lower than those of Starlink across Europe, there has been remarkable progress in improving its competitiveness. Speedtest Intelligence® data reveals a consistent trend of double-digit declines in median latency across over a dozen European countries between Q4 2023 and Q4 2024.
During the period between Q4 2023 and Q4 2024, countries in Central and Southern Europe recorded significant improvements in Starlink’s median latency performance. Greece saw its median latency decline by 54%, while Switzerland and Austria saw declines of 28% and 27% respectively. These improvements are contributing to Western Europe’s strong overall performance in latency on Starlink connections, with several countries now approaching the 40 ms mark for the first time. The United Kingdom led the continent with a median latency of 41ms in Q4 2024, followed by Belgium (46 ms), Luxembourg (46 ms) and Ireland (47 ms).
This rapid pace of improvement in latency comes from a high baseline but is at least twice as fast as the underlying rate of improvement in the aggregate fixed broadband market across most European countries. A notable exception is Spain, where Starlink’s median latency of 54 ms showed only a 4% reduction over the year, matching the modest improvement seen in the rest of the country’s fixed broadband market. This limited improvement may reflect orbit-related factors, as neighboring Portugal also experienced a relatively small 8% reduction in Starlink latency compared to the larger improvements observed in most other European countries.
Across Starlink’s European footprint, latency outcomes continue to vary significantly by country. In Southern Europe, Cyprus (144 ms) and Malta (106 ms) recorded some of the continent’s highest latency in Q4 2024, while Nordic countries like Finland (89 ms) and Norway (79 ms)—despite often leading in Ookla’s terrestrial benchmarks—also lagged behind.
These regional disparities in latency performance highlight the immense technical challenge of delivering uniform service across Europe. Higher-latitude Nordic countries often rely on Starlink’s polar-orbit satellites for coverage in the far north, which can impact performance. Meanwhile, Cyprus and Malta’s higher latency may stem from a limited ground station presence, increasing reliance on inter-satellite links for connectivity.
Shifts in download speeds indicate Starlink is balancing capacity and demand in Europe
Unlike latency, which has seen significant and sustained improvements across most European countries over the past two years in Speedtest Intelligence data, Starlink’s download speed performance has faced growing pressure as the service scaled and network usage increased.
Between Q4 2022 and Q4 2023, Central European countries saw some of the steepest declines in median download speeds. In Germany, speeds fell by 31%—from 94.37 Mbps to 65.44 Mbps—while Switzerland recorded a 24% drop, going from 136.03 Mbps to 103.88 Mbps. Combined with the backdrop of improving median download speeds in terrestrial fixed broadband—driven by accelerating FTTH deployment and adoption—Starlink’s competitiveness on speed eroded over this period in many parts of Europe.
For the first time in Q4 2024, there were signs that the successive speed declines observed in previous quarters may have stabilized, with early indications of a potential recovery. However, given quarter-to-quarter variability, it remains to be seen whether this trend will hold in the coming year.
Nonetheless, the timing of these improvements dovetails with the reported jump in the number of Starlink satellites in service from late October last year, likely reflecting the additional capacity afforded by an expanded constellation above Europe.
Starlink Download Speeds Improved in Most European Countries in Q4 2024 Following Constellation Expansion
Speedtest Intelligence® | Q4 2022 — Q4 2024
While most European countries recorded a material quarter-on-quarter boost in Starlink’s median download speeds in Q4 2024, the most pronounced gains were concentrated in Southern Europe. The significant improvements in countries like Croatia (~70%) and Greece (~65%) have propelled them to be among the top in Europe in terms of median download speed on Starlink, joining other neighbors in nearby countries like Hungary and Romania.
Even the previously mentioned examples, Germany and Switzerland, for the first time in almost two years, saw a quarter-on-quarter speed increase in Q4 2024, rising by 18% and 11% respectively. The overall movements have left countries in Central and Southern Europe trailing in Starlink’s median download speed, with Cyprus (36.52 Mbps) and Malta (53.85 Mbps) ranking similarly as poorly as in latency, but others—most notably the Nordics—performing relatively better on median download speed than latency.
Despite the decrease in the number of countries where Starlink delivers higher median download speeds than the aggregate terrestrial fixed broadband market over time, principally a result of rising FTTH adoption driving improved fixed performance, several countries still stand out.
Starlink is Competitive with Fixed Operators in Southern Europe on Download Speed
Speedtest Intelligence® | Q4 2024
For example, in Q4 2024, median download speeds on Starlink were faster in Greece, Croatia, Italy, Austria, the Czech Republic and Estonia than the aggregate terrestrial fixed broadband speeds in these markets, all of which feature FTTH coverage below the EU average.
In the many countries where Starlink is not ahead of the rest of the fixed market on download speed performance—which is the majority of European countries—it remains competitive on other related metrics, including consistency, which measures the proportion of Speedtest samples exceeding minimum thresholds of 25 Mbps for download and 3 Mbps for upload.
In the United Kingdom, for example, Starlink’s consistency performance remained within the range of the rest of the fixed market over the last year, behind operators like Virgin Media and Vodafone but ahead of TalkTalk and PlusNet. In QoE measures such as Game Score™ (a 0-100 weighted sum incorporating multiple video performance factors), it has steadily closed the gap with the broader UK fixed market, narrowing from over 5 points in Q4 2023 to less than 3 points in Q4 2024.
This improvement in video QoE on Starlink connections has been observed across many European countries over the past year, driven by reductions in adaptive start time and failure rates—resulting in Starlink users spending less time waiting for videos to load and experiencing fewer playback issues—as well as enjoying an increase in average video bitrate.
Starlink adoption continues to be shaped by regional demographics and the varying availability of high-speed broadband
The relative penetration of Starlink across Europe (based on analysis of share of Speedtest samples) remains highly varied by country and region, shaped largely by demographics and the profile of available fixed broadband technologies in each market. Highly urbanized countries with a small share of the population living in rural areas, such as the Nordics and the Benelux region, exhibit lower levels of Starlink adoption.
Higher-than-average fiber availability and take-up in these countries (corresponding to a larger share of fixed subscriptions providing download speeds of at least 100 Mbps), combined with the performance declines at higher latitudes closer to polar orbits, mean that Starlink may not be a competitive broadband access solution for a large proportion of the population. Other factors, such as high levels of fixed wireless access (FWA) penetration—offering higher performance at lower prices than Starlink—in countries such as Finland may also contribute to dampening the appeal of LEO services there.
Starlink Adoption is Highest in Southeastern Europe, Moderate in Central and Western Europe and Lowest in Fiber-Rich Nordic and Benelux Regions
Speedtest Intelligence® | Starlink Share (%) of Total Fixed Speedtest Samples in Q4 2024
A corollary is seen in parts of Central and Southern Europe, where Starlink is relatively more competitive as a fixed broadband solution and measured take-up of alternatives like FWA is below the EU average. This is driven by higher Starlink speeds compared to other parts of Europe—particularly in Greece and Croatia—along with the lower-than-average availability of fixed networks offering very high-capacity coverage (as defined by the European Commission for FTTH and DOCSIS 3.1). As a result, Starlink is relatively more competitive in these markets and, in some cases, outperforms terrestrial fixed operators.
The higher proportion of Starlink users in Germany among Europe’s largest economies is likely a consequence of its outdated fixed broadband mix. With some of the lowest FTTH coverage in the EU and higher fixed broadband prices than elsewhere, Starlink adoption may be higher in Germany and present an attractive alternative there despite providing lower speeds than in other parts of the continent.
Notwithstanding these structural patterns, however, not all instances of Starlink adoption fall neatly into line across Europe. As noted earlier with the example of London, some outliers are driven by specific use cases. For instance, London’s relatively high Starlink usage has been partly linked to its utility beyond home broadband and in providing connectivity for events, supporting card terminals and similar applications.
The LEO space race is heating up above Europe
SpaceX’s ambitions for Starlink in Europe extend well beyond traditional broadband. Over the coming year, the company plans to enter the direct-to-device (D2D) market—widely seen as the next frontier in the LEO space race—by connecting unmodified consumer handsets. This effort is being powered by the launch of SpaceX’s Gen2 satellites, of which the company ultimately hopes to deploy tens of thousands.
The company’s success in transforming the economics of large-scale satellite launches has inspired others to make similar moves. Amazon, for example, plans to deploy over a thousand satellites by mid-2026 through its Project Kuiper initiative, which will focus on mid-latitude coverage (lacking the polar-orbits boasted by Starlink). AST SpaceMobile, meanwhile, is targeting the D2D market and already has five satellites in operation. It aims to expand its constellation to more than 240 satellites.
We look forward to monitoring the satellite market as it expands into the D2D space in the coming months, and will return to check up on how Starlink is performing in other regions beyond Europe. For more information about Speedtest Intelligence data and insights, please contact us.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Luke Kehoe leads Ookla’s research and thought leadership efforts in Europe.
An electronic engineering alumnus of University College Dublin, Luke has extensive experience collaborating with mobile operators, telecoms vendors, and government agencies in research and advisory roles across Europe. He has contributed to internationally recognised thought leadership publications in areas such as 5G, IoT, open RAN, and edge computing, working with prestigious organisations like the Telecom Infra Project and the World Economic Forum.
