The idea of having fast, reliable internet anywhere and not having to rely on cell coverage or data caps is a life goal for many RVers.

If you live and work on the road like we do, you know that finding reliable internet (with enough data!) can be a challenge. In March 2022, we took the plunge and purchased Starlink. While we have only been using it for a few months, we have been able to get a good grasp of it’s pros and cons for RVers. As we continue using it all around North America, we will continue to update this post on new experiences and opinions on it. 

What is Starlink?

Starlink is the name of a satellite network developed by SpaceX to provide low-cost internet to remote locations. SpaceX eventually hopes to have as many as 42,000 satellites in their “megaconstellation”. According to their website, “Starlink internet works by sending information through the vacuum of space, where it travels much faster than in fiber-optic cable and can reach far more people and places. 

Because Starlink satellites are in a low orbit, the round-trip data time between the user and the satellite – also known as latency – is much lower than with satellites in geostationary orbit. This enables Starlink to deliver services like online gaming that are usually not possible on other satellite broadband systems.”

Starlink isn’t cheap. Is it worth it?

Of course, “low-cost” is a relative term. There are a few things to consider when deciding if Starlink is worth it. Our two biggest questions were:

Can we cancel or downgrade other services to break even or make our total cost cheaper?

For us, the cost of Starlink ended up being a wash after we downgraded and changed our cell phone and hotspot data plans. Our initial internet setup consisted of:

• Cell phone plan with Visible, $25/month

• Cell phone plan with AT&T, $75-$85/month (depended on my hotspot usage that month)

• Hotspot data plan with Verizon, $70/month

Total: $170-$180/month

Now with Starlink, our current internet set up is:

• Cell phone plan with Visible, $25/month

• Cell phone plan with Mint, $15/month

• Unlimited iPad data plan with AT&T, $20/month

• Starlink with portability add-on, $135/month

Total: $195/month

We were able to cancel our Verizon hotspot and switch from AT&T to Mint, saving us $130/month. We decided to get an AT&T data plan for the iPad just to have back up options for work. 

As you can see, the cost ended up being very close to our old costs, but we now have connectivity with Verizon (though Visible), T-Mobile (through Mint), AT&T, and satellite. 

Is Starlink’s biggest benefit, having internet everywhere you go, a big enough benefit for our travel style?

If you are full time traveler, but do tend to stay in or near major major metro areas, having Starlink might not make a big difference for you. We tend to spend the fall and winter seasons in Las Vegas and southern California, which are very well connected areas with tons of coffee shops and libraries for strong wifi if needed. During these times, Starlink isn’t a necessity for us (although we will definitely enjoy the 100+ mbps speeds!). 

Our biggest benefit with be during the Spring and Summer when we explore the vast western states, and during our times in Baja, Mexico.

A major deciding factor when planning our routes is checking to see how strong the cell phone reception was. Campendium was a great resource for this, as fellow travelers would report their cell phone reception while staying at that location (here is an example of a favorite place and their cell reports).

All of our favorite boondocking spots have little to no cell signal, so we used to have to plan weekend stays or be willing to “commute” to a nearby town. Now, we don’t have to worry about that at all. Our only concern is finding a spot with clear open sky above us!

What’s the difference between Residential Starlink with Portability and their Starlink for RVs service?

Residential Starlink was meant to be used at one physical location. There were work-arounds early on, but now with the Portability feature, anyone can take their Starlink with them wherever they go, plug it in, and receive internet. 

The pricing is exactly the same ($135/month) for the RV Plan as it is for the standard plan plus Portability. The equipment is the same too, so it is not super clear if there is a different between these two services. 

If you do have a home base that you stay at for long periods of time, the standard plan with Portability would be the way to go, as the $25/month add-on feature can be turned off. Also, Starlink prioritizes speeds for users at their registered Service Address, so you would get to take advantage of prioritized speeds as well. 

Speeds are de-prioritized for Starlink for RV users compared to other Starlink services, however this hasn’t been an issue at all yet. The RV Plan will always be $135/month no matter what, but you can “pause/unpause” service with this account type.

One major benefit to the RV plan is that you do not need to wait for availability at your service address in order to purchase and receive your Starlink equipment. With Starlink RV, all they ask for is a shipping address, so it doesn’t matter where you are!

Our experience RVing with Starlink. 

Our first experience with Starlink was in Baja this past winter, when roaming was first turned on. We were camped on the sand in Cerritos Beach near some friends that had Starlink (@lahrs.with.lattitude). 

At that time, our AT&T data speeds were under 1mbps. Meanwhile their Starlink speeds were over 100mbps! After a few days of using their internet, we ordered ours and had it shipped to our family’s house southern California. 

So far we have used it in Palm Springs, Yosemite, and Lotus, CA, all with different experiences. The speeds have been great at each location. What has differed at each location has been the “drops” in service due to trees and other sky obstructions.  

Even the tall skinny Palm Trees in Palm Spring would cause a drop every couple of minutes. These drops were more frequent in Yosemite, as our sky was 15% obstructed (the Starlink app can scan the sky around your dish and tell you this information). These drops we not very long, so normal internet usage like web browsing, streaming music and Netflix, etc, were not noticeably affected. What was affected were phone calls and Zoom calls. We found that the frequency of the drops made using Starlink not ideal for anything communication-related. 

The good About Starlink

• The speeds really are quite amazing, consistently reaching over 100mbps.

• The teardown and setup on travel days is very quick and easy.

• We have already gotten to visit a place that had no cell signal (Yosemite) and we got to stay for 3 weeks!

• The amount of devices on our network hasn’t seemed to affect speeds (so we routinely share our logins with all our friends).

The bad

• The hardware costs, shipping and first month of service makes it pretty pricey to start

• ANY sky interference will cause drops. While these drops aren’t long, they are deal breakers for things like Zoom calls.

• If there are not many satellites in your area, drops may happen even with clear skies (we experienced this in Baja).

Should I get Starlink for my RV?

We couldn’t be happier with our purchase of Starlink. It is going to be a total game changer for our work and home schooling while we travel to our favorite locations. Since we were able to keep our monthly internet costs similar to our pre-Starlink costs, and we will have unlimited high speed internet everywhere we go (even Baja which we are super excited about!), we would recommend it for anyone that needs strong, fast internet and enjoys traveling to remote locations. 

Do you have Starlink? Leave a comment below and let us know your pros and cons!